Alex Warren, Benson Boone and other successes boost a wave of perfect pop releases for musical competition realities
The Highlight Single of Alex Warren, Ordinaryhas a background story worthy of television. The 24 -year -old wrote the song about his wife, Kouvr Annonwith whom it started dating at 18. At the time, it didn’t seem the best time to start something so new and intense. Warren had already faced the pain of losing his father as a child and, upon reaching adulthood, was expelled from home by his mother, who fought alcoholism. With nowhere to go, he started living in the car. Four months later, Annon left home to join him.
Warren’s story brings together all the elements of a narrative of overcoming: love, loss and an hopeful end. Are exactly the boxes that producers of programs like The Voice and American Idol They try to fill in by presenting a new talent to the public – not disc producers, but those who create competition realities. The format is predictable: the viewer receives emotional stories to increase emotional investment. By the time the young man and a dreamer singer finally introduces himself, the public already cheers for him. Just the music is missing to complete the story. The Tiktok algorithm has ensured that Warren didn’t have to expose his suffering on realities to find his audience. But if I had tried, Ordinary would have guaranteed him the turn of four chairs.
Currently the single follows the classic formula of competitions: not necessarily in the repertoire, but in the structure of the presentation. The production is lean, not to cover up the vocal. The voice needs to be distinct enough to generate interest. And in a minute and a half, it is essential to have a dramatic climb of eighth – a final card if no one has pressed the button. Warren hits all requirements in Ordinary: The simple piano melody starts the music, and the rise of eighth happens at 50 seconds. And he’s not alone: the so -called “hearing songs The Voice“Dominate the pop stops.
Before Benson Boone sit at the piano in its hearing to American Idol In 2020, he told the jurors that he had only discovered his vocal talent a year earlier. He stumbled a little on the notes of Punchlinefrom AIDAN MARTINand had a minute to impress. Octave’s climb arrived in the middle of the presentation.
“I see you winning the American Idol If you want, ”he said Katy Perry.
Boone, however, decided to leave the competition after arriving at Top 24. That season, the program abandoned the recording contract with BMG to focus on the development of artists after reality. Already with a considerable base in Tiktok, Boone chose to pursue an independent career.
Today, the hit Beautiful Thingsof Boone, is the choice of new candidates. In September 2024, the participant of The Voice, CREIGH RIEPEused the music in its blind hearing. During the first minute, he sang for turned chairs. Reaching the “Don’t take … These Beautiful Things That I’m Got” section, Gwen Stefani and Refi mcentire They hit the buttons. When Boone exchanged the TV for Tiktok, it was precisely this moment of music that won the public.
Beautiful Things currently occupies the tenth place at Hot 100, just below Lose controlfrom Teddy Swims – A more soulful version of the same format. The music starts hard, with the vocal apex emerging at 45 seconds. Swims spent 88 weeks on the stop, against 65 of Boone and 11 Warren. Lose control also guaranteed unanimous approval for candidates such as AJII HAFEEZ (Season 22) and Jamier Jones (Season 23) No American Idol. Jelly Rollanother artist who benefited from this type of music, also recently participated in the program as special guest.
Even veteran stars like Lady Gaga and Bruno Mars applied this formula to songs like Die with a smilealthough they can be credited as co -authors of the model.
The unofficial catalog of songs for Realities has grown in recent years, surpassing classics such as Gravityfrom John Mayer, Before you gofrom Lewis Capaldiand almost all ballads of Ed Sheeran. In 2022, Stephen Sanchez took advantage of its online base to transform the ballad Until I Found You in a hit after making covers of Harry Styles, James Bay and Cage the Elephant. Now, music joins other hits like Arcadianfrom Duncan Laurenceand Be alrightfrom Dean Lewis – Songs that have become more recognizable than their own interpreters, functioning as white screens perfect for auditions.
When Chappell Roan tried the The Voice over a decade ago, she chose Stayfrom Rihannabut did not have the expected impact.
“The producer or who was not even raised his eyes from his cell phone,” she told the W Magazine. “I took the stage and sang to Cappella – the scariest thing – and he never really looked at me.”
Today, candidates try their luck playing their songs. The participant Conor Jamesfor example, sang Pink pony club In playoffs, but was eliminated. Perhaps some artists have so much personality in their songs that they do not easily fit other voices – especially new singers who have not yet consolidated their identity.
The dynamic of performing before jurors is not so different from competition for attention at Tiktok. Instead of turning chairs or gaining a yes, the goal is to prevent the user from rolling for the next video. The difference is that we realize musicians have about a minute to prove; Online, only a few seconds.
However, the television hearing shrunk. The public of American Idol fell from 11 million in 2014 to 5.5 million today, while the The Voice From 14 million to 7 million in the same period. On the other hand, Tiktok has launched more careers in the last five years than The Voice and American Idol Together in over a decade.
With Tiktok, songs that might not work in realities – like Messyfrom Lola Young, Back to Friendsfrom Sombror Chest Painfrom Malcolm Todd – They can find your audience. These artists take advantage of the enthusiasm of those who feel they discovered a talent about to explode.
The problem is to maintain this interest. Millions may cheer for an artist during the program, vote it as a winner, but they can quickly lose interest if the authorial work does not meet the expectations created by the covers.
Alex Warren already had an entrance to Hot 100 with Burning down (which was 14 weeks on the chart and reached position 69), but Ordinary It’s your first big hit. He recently released a “wedding version” of music, in a strategy similar to that of Ed Sheeran with Thinking Out Loud.
About that, Benson Boone is trying to move away from the formula with more pop songs, like Sorry I’m here for Someone Else and MYSTICAL MAGICAL.
“I think I’m coming to the point where I want people to know that there is more than just that song,” Boone told Rolling Stone Earlier this year. “I’m still proud of her. And I’ll sing her for a long time.”
As well as the future generations of candidates from The Voice.
This article is a translation of the American Rolling Stone, written by Larisha Paul and published on May 11, 2025. Read the original version here.
Source: Rollingstone
Earl Johnson is a music writer at Gossipify, known for his in-depth analysis and unique perspective on the industry. A graduate of USC with a degree in Music, he brings years of experience and passion to his writing. He covers the latest releases and trends, always on the lookout for the next big thing in music.
