It is indeed true that the United States of America has become the melting pot of the world and this is manifested by one of its most popular reality TV shows, American Idol. Over the years, the singing competition show has accumulated contestants from different backgrounds and heritage.
Another American Idol trend is that its contestants, as well as its winners, have been getting younger and younger. 2007 winner Jordin Sparks was only 17 when she won and last year’s finalist, David Archuleta, was the same age as well. Both trends are seen in a current American Idol contestant, Arianna Afsar, a teenager of Bangladesh heritage who has just turned 17 years old. She is part of the Top 36 and is set to perform with the rest of Group 3 next week.
Arianna Afsar first wowed the judges when she auditioned in Phoenix Arizona (although she is from San Diego), singing “Put Your Records On” by Corinne Bailey Rae. The judges were won over by her sweet personality and her clear, jazzy voice. She received four yeses and got the yellow ticket to Hollywood. While Hollywood week was tough for a lot of the contestants, what with the group fights, cracked voices, and stage fright – Arianna survived Hollywood week and moved on to the next round as part of Top 36. Fans of Arianna Afsar will have to wait until next week to find out if Arianna will get into the Top 12 of American Idol season 8.
Arianna Afsar is no stranger to the stage. She began singing when she was 6 years old and has joined a number of teen beauty competitions such as the Miss California’s Outstanding Teen Competition and went on to be the runner up for the Miss America’s Outstanding Teen Competition in 2005. Arianna first began singing musical theater with roles such as Cindy Lou in the “How the Grinch Stole Christmas!” and Dorothy in “The Wizard of Oz.” Just recently, Arianna starred as Gabriella Montes in the “Disney’s High School Musical” production of J* Company. She also uses her singing talents for the good and has founded the “Adopt a Grandfriend” group and often entertaining the elderly with her voice.
Arianna also sings pop songs and has a repertoire of more than a hundred. She has also sung the national anthem in a number of games of the San Diego Padres. However unlikely it may sound, Arianna Afsar is also a very studious girl. She has mentioned that her favorite subject is Math and she once took advanced classes for the subject. Arianna goes to Westview High School in San Diego, California.
While Arianna may not have an off-the-charts personality that might keep American Idol fans fascinated, her smooth voice, pleasant charm, and attractive looks have the potential to bring her far in the competition. As the judges always say, it’s not just how good your voice is, but it’s also about the song choice. We will see next week whether Arianna Afsar chooses the right song that can carry her over to be a Top 12 finalist.
After she graduated from the University of Texas, she attended one of the University’s internship programs in Los Angeles, Califonia. While interning at the artist publicity department of Sony BMG, Kendall Beard rediscovered her love for making music and performing rather than dealing with the business side of music. It was during that time when she started making her own music. She was discovered by Jeffrey Weber, a Grammy award winning producer, and was contracted to record her very own self-titled album. Playing with her band in Austin has not stopped Beard from dreaming about becoming the next American Idol. She has always wanted to try out for the talent competition but she chose to wait things out until she finished college. Now age 24, Beard has succeeded in landing a spot in American Idol Season 8’s Top 36 semi-finalists.
It was in Puerto Rico where Kendall Beard chose to audition for this season’s American Idol competition. Oddly, this pretty young blonde Texan was the first to be put through to Hollywood in an audition held in Puerto Rico. She earned the judges’ thumbs ups when she performed “From the Ashes” by Martina McBride. She got her golden ticket to Hollywood where she went through the succeeding rounds where she sang “In the Arms of an Angel” by Sarah McLachlan and “Before He Cheats” by Carrie Underwood. Her performance, although considered to be bad song choices by the judges, were good enough for her to be put through the succeeding episodes. Beard has shared the limelight with the other contestants in the Top 36 who hoped to make enough of an impression on the viewers to make it to the Top 12 finalists.
Kendall Beard was part of the third group of semi-finalists set to perform their solos, after which the viewers can text in their votes to determine which three contestants will make it to the Top 12. As with the other groups of semi-finalists, the top male performer, the top female performer, and the one with the next highest number of text votes. Three others as determined by the judges will make it through to the Top 12 in the Wild Card round where the other contestants who did not get enough viewers’ text votes will be given a second chance. It is proving to be an exciting yet scary time for Beard. Kendall Beard hoped that her love for music will shine through and be enough to make her succeed as the next American Idol.
Ann Marie Boskovich is a 22-year old Nashville resident who works as a waitress and nanny. She has a bit of a musical background and is waiting for her big break to come along. Ann Marie looks back at her first memory of singing for an audience, when she was 5 and sang “Over the Rainbow” at a family member’s funeral. She has also appeared on Disney’s direct-to-video cartoon “The Little Mermaid II: Return to the Sea” at a young age of 13. Her rendition of the classic theme “Part of Your World” could be heard over the closing credits. Back in 2003, she also sang “God Bless America” at the NBA All Star Game. Ann Marie has a bit of a recording past, like many other idol aspirants.
As a passionate musician, Ann Marie Boskovich has been trying to make it as a singer/song writer. It has been reported that the idol contestant has been singing before she could even talk. She is also blessed with the talent to play guitar and piano. She enters Idol in the hopes that it could finally be her big break. Ann Marie has made quite an impression on both judges and viewers. She makes it through Hollywood week and advances to the season’s top 36 contestants. Excited to continue on her idol journey, she has been tasked to perform with one of the first group of contestants who gets to try to make it to the season’s Top 12 Finalists.
February 17 was the day set for group 1 to show America how much they deserve a spot in the top 12. The group came out with a mix of good and bad performances. Unfortunately, Ann Marie was part of the latter. The song she chose to perform is “Natural Woman” by Aretha Franklin. Although she received a standing ovation from the audience, the judges were not as impressed. Her voice did not have the power to deliver the song well, and her performance just did not do much justice to it. Much to her fans’ dismay, Ann Marie was not able to gather enough votes to get her to the Top 12.
Could this be the end of the idol road for Ann Marie Boskovich? Petitions of her to be wildcard pick on idol are becoming more and more popular. If enough people want her back on the show, Ann Marie might just make it back on the road.
