What the heck is wrong with Christina Aguilera?  There is no denying she is the “voice of our generation” and, though I sometimes question the merits, being a Latina has helped her cause a bit, but her catty-tude has got to go.  Or does it?

 

Let’s face it, everyone has been complaining about her passive aggressive comments towards Tony Lucca all season, asking why producers keep her each week.  The answer is obvious to me.  If we tune in each week, some simply to see what she is going to say, then why have her stop?  It is about ratings.  Simon Cowell has made billions being the bad guy.  So, why do they get a pass?  They’ve earned it.  According to the way our society is set up, once people get to a certain place in life and achieve über-success we allow and even encourage the “take charge” and “who’s going to tell you no” attitude.   We do this two ways.

First, we are very critical and very hard on people as they are making their way up the ladder.  In Christina Aguilera’s case, she was presented by her label as yet another in a long string of bubble-gum popstars – Britney Spears, Jessica Simpson, Mandy Moore, Willa Ford, P!nk, and so on.  Fans were shocked, in such disbelief, when she won the Best New Artist Grammy over Britney Spears.  The press has been brutal in its scrutiny of every iteration and every outfit and every decision along the way.  As though high school bullies aren’t enough, these celebrities grow up with the millions of bullies and they have to suck it up because they are paid to do so.  Despite it all, here sits a 31-year-old, divorced, single mother who has made her way to the very top of the game. Some crack under the pressure (think: Britney shaving her head), some struggle to find their niche (um, hello, Jessica Simpson) while others fade away (where is Willa now?) and we fault her for being strong, outspoken, and putting on a suit of armor every day. So some of the comments seemed unwarranted, but we all make mistakes. We are just fortunate to not have the cameras on us when we do.

Second, we fall over ourselves when we meet someone powerful. Sure we all say we wouldn’t or act tough around our friends, but if Sonia Sotomayor or Jennifer Lopez were coming over for dinner, best believe my house would be spotless and I would bring out the good dishes and make damn sure to cater to their needs.

 

Actions speak louder than words.

We remind them how important they are and fawn over every syllable, drool over every glance but get incredibly upset when they aren’t returning our affections or saying something disagreeable.  I read The Wanted was upset after being on the show because she was cold towards them backstage.  For all we know, she was rushing to see her son or, as has been my experience in press lines, her handlers were rushing her along.  I need not go into the amount of time and the number of people women “require” when on camera which keeps a barrier of bodies between them and the rest of the world.

 

Speaking of… We should demand a new stylist for Christina.  There were a few episodes where she looked positively stunning again.  Then there was the rest of the season.  I know she likes Old Hollywood Glamour but she is so overdone it is more like Old Hollywood Madame.  She is far too pretty and too young for all that.

 

Back to the lecture at hand…   My point is a simple one, we create these celebrities in a manner not too dissimilar to Connor Kent, then we marvel at their power, then we want to tear them down.  They are required to be “on” for us at all times, we demand perfection, we want in them what we feel we lack.  They are not permitted to be human because we have made them superhuman.  I call bullshit.

Stay classy, Christina.

~.~

UPDATE: Jermaine Paul won.  Though Juliet Sims was a frontrunner, Chris Mann gave me goosebumps, and the beef with Christina Aguilera kept Tony Lucca safe, in the end none of it mattered.  Jermaine did what he does and it paid off – though I’m sure having a force such Alicia Keys in corner didn’t hurt. Keep your head up, Juliet; if the history of these shows is any indicator, you’re we’re better off not winning.

Stay tuned this fall when The Voice comes back against the X Factor.  The networks are using the teenage, media fueled rivalry between Britney Spears and Christina Aguilera to boost ratings.