In late January, after being wooed by Megan Corkrey during her "American Idol" audition, I wrote a piece that quoted liberally from music critic Kalefa Sanneh, compared Corkrey to Feist and basically stated that while I found her voice (and, let's be honest here, her appearance) to be quite pleasing, she had no hope whatsoever of actually winning "Idol," if only because singers like her never do.
At the time, I was confident ... so confident, in fact, that I made a little wager with my pal Caryn Ganz (who, in addition to working as a deputy editor at Rolling Stone also happens to be a huge Megan Corkrey fan). Caryn disagreed with my story and said she saw Corkrey making it all the way to the "Idol" top 12. I said she'd barely make it out of Hollywood Week. We agreed to our terms: If Corkrey made the top 12, I owed Caryn dinner. If she didn't, well, then I'd be eating for free.
As the weeks pressed on (and Corkrey was all but invisible during Hollywood Week), I would send Caryn taunting texts ("I'm totally ordering two steaks, BTW"), and while she was whiffing on Corinne Bailey Rae's "Put Your Records On" during her top 36 performance (when she not only unveiled the new "Joy" in her name, but her herky-jerky Duffy moves too), I was ready to book a table for two at Del Frisco's. Dinner was mine.
Only, something strange happened. Rather than rip Corkrey apart, the judges seemed to love her. Kara DioGuardi went out of her way to praise Cork as "a package artist." They loved her look, her voice and her go-go moves. And I began to worry. When she didn't make it through to the top 12, I breathed a sigh of relief, but looming in the back of my mind was the very real chance that Corkrey was going to be brought back for the wild-card round ... and I'd have to break out my Diners Club card.
And as soon as Corkey was named as a wild card, I knew I had lost. The judges love her too much. They think (justifiably so) that she is current, and even if her voice doesn't quite meet the lofty standards of "Idol" (the entire point I based my original "she won't win" argument on, BTW), she gave the show credibility. Of course, she made it through to the finals. And of course, I now owe Caryn dinner.
Don't get me wrong; I'm glad Corkrey is through (my wife, however, isn't), and I sort of hope she defies the odds and somehow wins the entire thing (anyone but Danny Gokey, please). I'm just mad that I have to pick up the check now ... which is why I'm not willing to concede just yet. As one of my co-workers pointed out this morning, I haven't really lost the bet, because Corkrey hasn't made the top 12; she's made the top 13. And while this might seem like nitpicking, to paraphrase a line from "The Big Lebowski," this isn’t 'Nam ... there are rules.
So, if Corkrey gets booted next week, I win. If not ... well, hey, Caryn, how does Gray's Papaya sound?