Ex-Idol Contestant Says Show Is Rigged, Ju'Not Joyner

Ex-Idol Contestant Says Show Is Rigged, Ju'Not Joyner

http://new.music.yahoo.com/blogs/realityro...show-is-rigged/

Ex-Idol Contestant Says Show Is Rigged

Posted Wed Jul 29, 2009 3:48pm PDT by Lyndsey Parker in Reality Rocks
Some ousted season 8 American Idol top 36 semi-finalists--including Felicia Barton, Kendall Beard, and Ju'Not Joyner--participated in an online chat with the Idol website AI Now today. And during his frank online conversation with fans, Ju'Not came right out and said that the TV talent show is in fact rigged, and that its contracts are unfair to contestants.
"It's a fixed thing if I ever saw one," he boldly declared--much to the shock of many naive chatters, who responded with capslocked interjections and frowny-faced emoticons.
It was hardly the first time that AmIdol had been accused of wrongdoing. A book loosely based on anonymous former Idol employees' experiences with the show, Stage 46, made similar allegations last year. But few detractors have ever been as brutally honest as Ju'Not was today.
Ju'Not--who by his own account was labeled a "troublemaker" by Idol producers for questioning the contract (which he dubbed a "slavetract") that all auditioners are required by Fox/19 to sign, and was allegedly told by Idol bigwig Ken Warwick, "You're not going to ruin my show"--explained that he wanted to set the record straight today. He stated that he wanted to reveal "truth of Idol" because "Idol ain't all it is cracked up to be...It's certainly not the fairytale most think it is."
Ju'Not claimed he was cut from the competition, and not invited back for the Wild Card round (a shock to many viewers wowed by his memorable "Hey There Delilah" performance) because of his concerns regarding the fairness of the Idol contract.
"They pay for our lawyers to negotiate against their lawyer (which is BS)," he said. "They make us COLLECTIVELY choose the lawyer, then they act like it's in our best interest. Craziest stuff I've ever seen. I have a son to feed. I HAD to ask questions and know what I was signing. Plus I write my own songs and I needed to know details...Some folks were like, 'Just shut up and sign on the dotted line.' I know better than that...I wasn't complaining...I was asking basic legal questions. There's a huge difference between the two."
He continued: "I definitely believed that affected my time on the show. They didn't like the fact that I wouldn't sign 'just anything' and that other contestants were coming asking me questions. So I think they ousted me the first chance they could get...Even if I didn't get in on votes...how did I not get picked for the Wild Card show when I received comments from the 'judges' that were better than most of the contestants who were picked for the Wild Card show?"
Ju'Not also theorized that he was not selected for the top 13 because he refused to let the show's producers exploit his sympathetic "back story" of being from "the hood." Said Ju'Not: "They wanted me to put that out to the world and expose my personal business for ratings. I wouldn't do it."
While Ju'Not made it clear he believes Kris Allen is indeed talented and deserved to win this season, he also maintained that Kris's victory was fixed. "The producers know who they want and they slant it to reflect that. They fix it in a way that makes you surprised but it's still manipulated," he typed. "Think about it...ADAM, ADAM, ADAM, then...Kris....SURPRISE SMITHCHES!!!!
"What I mean is that people think AI is a talent show," he elaborated. "No. It's a reality show with writers!! We're all actors. All these shows have writers that guide the public opinion. The Hills, Real World. All of them." He even bluntly questioned the validity of the public's votes, saying, "Do you think a billion-dollar enterprise is subject to the whim of the public?"
Naturally, while some chat participants applauded Ju'Not's frankness, others questioned his motives, since few other Idol contestants have come forth with such accusations. Ju'Not explained: "No one else is complaining because a lot of the contestants don't understand how this business works. They've never had record deals or seen a record contract...I have. So I knew what questions to ask. It's kinda like ignorance is bliss. Some contestants may have thought it was just cool to be on TV, but this is my career. I take this thing VERY seriously...Very few people spoke up. They saw me as the ringleader. I'm not naming names. Because I have nothing against the other Idols."
So, was Ju'Not speaking the truth? If so, then he is to be commended for his bravery. But it's possible he was just trying to drum up publicity for the "hot" new album he's self-releasing this winter, in which case he's a typical showbiz opportunist. Or maybe he's just a bitter reject, desperately angling for a 16th minute of fame and dreaming of what might have been. All of this is up for debate.
But there is no debate that Ju'Not is, as he worded it today, "a straight-up person." He definitely went there

Now my personal opinion is simple, I do not believe Idol is rigged, I honestly don't think Taylor would have won had it been rigged. I really don't think they wanted him anywhere near that title but of course what do I know right? I do believe that they do push the envelope a bit here and there and of course I thought it was totally rigged after David Hernandez was voted off last season but when Kris won instead of Adam I pretty much knew it wasn't rigged in that way..

I believe Taylor was the exception. I believe they (the producers and judges) pimped Chris Daughtry to win from the beginning. They had and undeiable talent in Taylor and when he won AI 5 it pissed them off. Therefore I believe AI has been rigged ever since. I mean come on how much of "real Taylor" did we actually see on AI 5. I have been to his concerts, seen Grease, and met the man. He is so sweet, funny, humble, multi-talented and very gracious to everyone, and it's not and act. I'm sure he has his moments, who doesn't. He is not the bafone they made him out to be on the show. I do not mean any disrepect to Kris Allen or Clay Akien (sp?) fans, but I can't help wondering if the reason these gentlemen were runner-up and not the winner is because they suspected these contestents were gay, and do not want an openly gay Idol. (Sorry for the soapbox, but this has been eating me for a while I needed to get it off my chest)

Ya but Kris Allen won, and I really deep down believe that they wanted Adam to win this season, it would have been a feather in their cap.

I know what you mean by the way the show treated Taylor, I've watched it several times and it still makes me mad, Simon did not want Taylor any where near this show and I think he knew from day one that he was a threat to win, I've seen Taylor's concerts and I"ve read and watched everything I can on him, I've yet to meet the guy but I know what type of person he is, for someone to call a fan that is facing Breast Cancer surgery and wish her well show's that his fans mean everything to him. It truly speaks volumes. Simon tired his dangest to put him down on the show and even now but Taylor takes it with a smile and a nod and moves on, I still don't think the show is rigged for the winning spot at least, I honestly believe that the voters pick the winners, there are just to many things that could go wrong with the rigging of a show like this.,,, But again this is just my opinion...

I could zip my lips but I won't. You know me. Okay here is my take on this latest bit of news about American Idol.

First of all I do not think the show is rigged but I do feel that people can be easily persuaded to vote for contestants. So many listen to what the judges say however that does not mean that we all do. I feel the average teen is easily led by teen worship which is why I think Sanjaya Malakar made it on the show. The teen girls definitely kept David Archuleta on even though I personally feel he is a good singer also. The average person however likes who they like in spite of the judges or others who post negative comments about certain contestants and the die hard fans will continue to support their favorites overall. But I also believe the public is fickle to some degree and moves on when someone new hits the scene.

Now about our Taylor, I think he is one incredible and handsome guy who have tons of talent and we the real soul patrol will continue to support him no matter what. However I do have to ask myself did he receive so many votes because people truly wanted him to win or to spite Simon? I ask this because Taylor's sales have not been the best and I always wonder where the hell are the so-called fans that helped him win.

As for Ju'Not Joyner, I think he is a poor sport who is looking for his 15 minutes of fame. I did not think he was all that and his poor attitude as demonstated during Hollywood week did not earn him any points I think. Well, he got his exposure and hopefully he will now fade off into the sunset.

I know I always support whoever I like and this season it will be Adam, Danny and Matt overall. I also am interested in seeing how Michael Sarver, Scott MacIntyre and possibly Allison Iraheta will do with their music. I do not like Kris so I know I will not care about his music.

My top favorite idol has always been Taylor and he always will be but I can for sure like others and support their careers as well. And with that being said I now bid you

concertcris wrote:

I could zip my lips but I won't. You know me. Okay here is my take on this latest bit of news about American Idol.

First of all I do not think the show is rigged but I do feel that people can be easily persuaded to vote for contestants. So many listen to what the judges say however that does not mean that we all do. I feel the average teen is easily led by teen worship which is why I think Sanjaya Malakar made it on the show. The teen girls definitely kept David Archuleta on even though I personally feel he is a good singer also. The average person however likes who they like in spite of the judges or others who post negative comments about certain contestants and the die hard fans will continue to support their favorites overall. But I also believe the public is fickle to some degree and moves on when someone new hits the scene.

Now about our Taylor, I think he is one incredible and handsome guy who have tons of talent and we the real soul patrol will continue to support him no matter what. However I do have to ask myself did he receive so many votes because people truly wanted him to win or to spite Simon? I ask this because Taylor's sales have not been the best and I always wonder where the hell are the so-called fans that helped him win.

As for Ju'Not Joyner, I think he is a poor sport who is looking for his 15 minutes of fame. I did not think he was all that and his poor attitude as demonstated during Hollywood week did not earn him any points I think. Well, he got his exposure and hopefully he will now fade off into the sunset.

I know I always support whoever I like and this season it will be Adam, Danny and Matt overall. I also am interested in seeing how Michael Sarver, Scott MacIntyre and possibly Allison Iraheta will do with their music. I do not like Kris so I know I will not care about his music.

My top favorite idol has always been Taylor and he always will be but I can for sure like others and support their careers as well. And with that being said I now bid you

I love reading your Take on things, you have a way with words that make things clear..

I happen to agree with you on most of your post. Especially about Taylor. Where are all those fans that helped him win, but the fact is that a lot of the people that do watch AI don't buy Cd's and their voting favorite is good for a season at a time, after the season is done they move on to the next one. Also I think when it came to the finale season 5 So many did not like Kat that they voted for Taylor because of that, He still won and should be treated as such, but he has never been treated like a winner by this show at all. As far as this past season, I've been reading a lot of the reviews from those that went to the concert and from what I hear, Michael and Scott are great, I know you don't care for Kris but someone sent me a couple of video links from utube, one he did, "Bright Lights" which was great and the other was "Hey Jude" Fantastic performance, toward the end he got all the idols on the stage and it was magaical, Kris was my favorite this season and I think he'll do great, as for Allison, some think she'll do better than KELLY CLARKSON, Ok I like Allison but she's no Kelly..

Just putting my worth of thought in here. I don't believe the show is rigged either. At least not any more than any other game show. The judges have their favorites (who they pimp and want to win), we the general population of America have our favorites we want to win. IMO, it's mostly about the voting. Which has been the subject of debate over the last few seasons. American Idol is going to continue doing what it's producers want as long as we watch it.

I agree with everything said about Taylor. He's a kind, sweet and giving human being. The true Soul Patrol will continue to love him and support him as long as he keeps putting himself out there for us to hear him. And....where are the rest of the so-called fans who voted for him? America is truly fickled.

Taylor will always be my #1 favorite Idol but I do like David Cook, Danny Gokey, Kris Allen, Matt Giraud, Allison Irathea and Adam Lambert. (and several others like Elliot, Bo, David A, Kelly, Clay and Chris Richardson) These contestants will get my support well beyond the seasons they appeared on because I feel they deserve it.

To begin with Ju'Not Joyner isn't a good singer period. When they show him i said out loud to my brothers - 'He is so cute he doesn't even have to sing, he could just stand there and get my vote. :)
After he sang i thought to myself that was horrible and he would have gotten more votes just standing there.

I really don't know if the show is rigged or not. Though i really don't think it matters. I think they find ways to pimp there big babys and ways to burn those they hate.

Why wasn't Tay allow the final say in his cd?? Compare his self-title cd to the Distance or even Early Works. Do you really except me to believe that he had the creative control that he should have and deserves. And still it is a whole lot better then what most people give him credit for.

So is the show rigged? In my personal opinion it doesn't matter.

Stepping off my little soap box for now and letting others have their say.

taysiah

Ok Mae, I kind of agree with you on some points, I honestly don't remember JuNot that well is he the one with the little boy? HELP... Anyway, with Taylor's First Cd we all know he had NO say other than to pick the songs from a list they wanted him to do, wow huh? But to be fair from what I've heard they did that in the past but its something they no longer do, they let the winner have a bit more control so if nothing else Taylor helped the others in that way. As far as is AI rigged, I agree it really doesn't matter nor will be ever really know, I'll watch it regardless but voting might be a different story if I knew for sure it wouldn't do any good.

I totally agree. It doesn't matter. The voting is always going to be my big issue with this show. Let's see what they do with next season now that Paula won't be joining them as a judge.