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American Idol, as with everything else on TV, boils down to money. There's no money in people that can't sing, and there's no money in people that can sing but no one wants to support through buying records or going to see live. The Idol judges know this, and they know what they're looking for in a person. You have to remember, American Idol is a singing competition, but it's also a commercial endeavor, they're trying to find the next big hit, and there's a lot more to a pop star than their pipes.

Of course, the most important thing is raw singing talent. Pop stars have come and gone who can't sing, especially in today's digital mastering world where timbre and even pitch can be adjusted with a few simple programs, but those people won't last. Britney Spears never developed a jaw dropping voice, and she dropped off the entertainment map as soon as her looks started to fail. On American Idol, your first impression of someone is based of a performance in a room with bad acoustics, a capella, and in a very intimidating setting. If you can sound good there, you've got it in the studio.

I hate to say it, but Idols are attractive. That doesn't mean drop-dead gorgeous girls always, but the visual aspect has to be there. Ruben was big, but he was clean, well dressed, and had a sense of street style that appealed to people, his made his size work to his advantage, people thought he was cute. I heard him referred to as a "big teddy bear" more than once. I have even heard Simon make the comment that you have to look at someone as if you're looking at a record cover or music video; in this day and age, if you don't look good on TV, people aren't going to pay attention.

An Idol has to be personable. It's that "X Factor" people talk about, that ease on stage and in interviews that makes people know you're comfortable with what you do and you're happy about it. It makes people like you, and they're be more open to what you're doing artistically. This goes hand-in-hand with stage presence, but the difference with our culture today is that your personality can't just shine on stage, it has to carry over into the way you act in front of people all the time.

Basically, you need to be marketable. The judges see contestants as products, which is what they are. Selling a person or band in the corporate music world is the same as selling cereal, you have to get people to trust you, to feel good about you because you make them feel good about themselves, and to never, ever think you can go overboard with the sugar. People love sugar, whether it be on their Oreo-O's or radio dials.

Learn more about this author, Ian Wise.
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