I’ve seen several items in the news over the last week or so that explore why American Idol contestants from the South seem to fare better than their competitors from other regions of the country. Birmingham alone has ties to four finalists: Ruben Studdard, Diana DeGarmo (born in B’ham; raised in Georgia), Bo Bice, and now Taylor Hicks.
Some people speculate that it’s because we throw our kids in church choir early on and “make” them sing…some people say it’s because the South enjoys such a rich musical history in terms of blues, gospel, jazz and country…some think it’s because we’re more “rural” than the rest of the US and have nothing better to do than sit around and watch reality television shows.
I don’t really have a problem with any of those theories, though I’m surprised that last one didn’t also say, “watch reality television shows while they bite their toenails in their run-down trailers as they simultaneously sip moonshine, play the banjo, and smooch on their cousins.” I have some issues with the way the media portray the South, if you can’t tell. (Total aside: Daph, do you remember how Anne Harris always stressed in our comm. classes that “media” is the plural of the singular “medium” and therefore takes the plural verb? I’ve never forgotten that. Riveting information for the rest of you, I know.)
I’ve only seen one person mention what I think is the real reason Southern contestants do so well on American Idol: we enthusiastically support our own in this part of the world. Being Southern is such a huge chunk of our identity that we tend to rally around fellow Southerners. We love a “small town boy / girl does good” story, and since the normal six degrees of separation are whittled down to around three for us, we feel like we know the people who are competing. And since we feel like we know them, we vote for them, because they’re practically one of the family. I don’t know if those of you who have never lived in the South can fully understand it, but we are fiercely loyal to our place and to our people in this (red)neck of the woods.
Someone – I think on ew.com – mentioned that one factor in Southerners’ AI success is that we can be charming, as evidenced by the fact that it’s much easier for a Southern presidential candidate to win over Northern voters than vice versa. Of course I find Southerners to be charming, but I’ve never lived anywhere besides Mississippi, Alabama, and Louisiana, so I see the world through deep fried glasses. I assume that all people in all parts of the country are charming and warm and hospitable, just as we are down here.
I’d love to hear if y’all have any theories about the Idol deal. If you live in another part of the US (or a completely different country, for that matter), what’s the hospitality temperature of your area? Warm, lukewarm, or frigid? Do you feel “rallied around” where you live? If you were on American Idol, for example, would you feel like you had the support of not just your town but your entire REGION behind you?
Meanwhile, I’ll be on the front porch practicin’ my hog callin’ if anyone needs to find me. ;-)
Be sure you’ve got your over”hauls” on and you have a tall glass of sweet ice tea in your dainty lil’ hand! ;)
WOOOOOOOOOOOO……PIG!!! SOOIE!!!
Oops……..Sorry, couldn’t resist, LOL.
Does this mean I’m banished from your blog for a time? ;)
Diane – It doesn’t mean you’re banished at all…it just means you are now The Official Hog Caller of the BooMama Blog. Every Southern blog needs a hog caller, don’t you think? ;-)
I’m as southern as it gets and I just assume that everybody loves everybody. You mean they don’t?
If I could whistle with my fingers stuck in my mouth, I’d do it right now!! ;D
Hog call me ASAP
Hot dog!! I am now the official Hog Caller for boomama’s blog!!
Now…….wonder what my duties entail?
LOL ;)
They don’t have the ROOTS we do. That is all I work with and they just don’t have the same loyalty to a region as we do. Now New Yorkers and people from Chicago seem to be pretty loyal to their area. But most of them will pack up and move in a heartbeat. I have a trader in NYC that commuted 1 1/2 hours each way to work everyday. We have some in our office that commute 2 1/2 hours each way. Harry is a native New Yorker and he came down this spring to work out of our office for a week or two. He started looking at houses and he could not believe how cheap they are compared to NY and NJ. He packed the wife up last week and moved here. I went and picked him up some “vittles” today from Plate Lunch Express which he scarfed down.
you make me laugh girl – have I mentioned that lately?
Well I am about as NON Southern as they come – being from Canada and all.
I think you might be on to something with your theory, but hey I am just Canadian what do i know eh?
I think you Southerners are as sweet as the ice tea you are sippin! Itis sweet isn’t it? you all put enough sugar in it right??
I have never been farther south than Tennessee, so I don’t know more the than books, movies and people I see/meet from the South represent. And it seems pretty good for the most part. You all do seem to get slammed a lot though. (I think your accents are just darn adorable!)
But you know there is good and evil in every neck of the woods, from the North to the South and East to the West. We can all pick on the bad stereotypes from any area of the world. That is easy to do – and so people do it. But we can also find a ton of good. You certainly represent the good of the south girl!! And whatever you are doing with your singers – it is working!
I think your theory is right on the money. I grew up in Connecticut. There’s no “we” thing about living in New England, no loyalty per se.
I live in Ohio now. People are generally friendlier (not nicer overall, just friendlier) than in CT, but still, I don’t sense any great loyalty. Heck, most of the people around here are originally from KY or TN anyway, and they ARE loyal to where they came from!