Photo from americanidol.com
The first thing we learned when John Park came on screen Tuesday night was that he goes to Northwestern and is in an a cappella group called Purple Haze. We all know this, but it was cool to hear. But Purple Haze came back to haunt Park at the end of his performance.
Here’s what worked:
- We finally learned more about him. He got some couch time with Seacrest, where people sitting around them giggled at the name Purple Haze. In a pre-taped segment, Park talked about how English is his second language; he moved to Korea shortly after he was born, then moved back to Chicago in the fourth grade.
- His song choice was better. He took my advice (and I take full credit, obviously) by picking something more a cappella-y, singing “Gravity” by John Mayer. The judges took note as well — Ellen said it was the right song for him.
- His fan base is adorable. Okay, so this doesn’t directly relate to his performance, but have you seen John Park’s Facebook fan page? He has awesome admirers. I really wrote this bullet point so I could link to this anime-style illustration someone made of Park and fellow contestant Haeley Vaughn.
But alas, his reception was negative once more. Here’s what didn’t work.
- He was terrified. The jitters really got to him this week, and it was obvious to anyone watching. When chatting with Seacrest he stammered through it (randomly mentioning voice coaches, and most contestants tend to gloss over the fact that they get trained every week). When he sang, his voice was shaky up until the end of his song. I mean, I get it — it’s probably frightening to sing in front of millions. But he needs to get over that, fast, or he’ll be gone.
- He didn’t “connect.” This was the major complaint from the judges. Park can sing, that’s for sure, but he needs to get more animated and really show emotion during his performances. He said he tried to focus on “the honesty” in a performance, but he needs to try harder or risk more hate from the judges.
- He lacks personality. This really goes off of the “connection” thing. But Park needs to up the personality and ham it up with the cameras more. If I had any say in this, I’d have him do a faster song next week, having him move about the stage and dance around. If he gets goofy, he’ll be endearing, and endearing always gets votes.
Ultimately, Simon said, “Purple Haze may get its lead singer back this week.” We’ll have to wait until Thursday to find out.
Missed the show? Watch his performance here: