Word: Dai Man

I remember as a teenager being stopped in supermarket car parks and being market tested. The questions were about which colours, smells, shapes and words I liked, or didn’t like. Simon Cowell has taken market testing to an insane new level, reaching directly into the living rooms of millions of TV viewers. Now after a few weeks of these irritating karaoke contests it is obvious who is going to sell the most records at Christmas, and then, even before the competitions have finished, the packaging begins. When a winner emerges there’s a new haircut, new wardrobe and new “look”. A star (to use the word liberally) is born. The problem is that Simon Cowell and his team of execs have turned the pop industry into a vast, bland, inhuman business. There’s absolutely nothing wrong with Alexandra Burke, she has spunk and sass and with a more interesting team of producers, and more time, she could still be quite the entertainer. As it is, 10 of the 13 songs here are bland and dull. TV talent shows are killing potential new stars, and our collective interest in pop music.