Lost Her Appeal

I found Jackie on Youtube, as I bet most have, and have accumulated 2 concert DVD's and 49 mp3's and 55 mp4's, 'flv's and avi's, which I'll bet is a low count as compared to most of you who frequent here.
The album, Dream With Me, was taped April 12 to 14(Just after her 11th birthday), at the Ringling Museum in Sarasota, Florida and released in June, 2011 and Songs Of The Silver Screen was taped at the Orpheum Theater in Los Angeles in June, 2012 and released October, 2012. Jackie was 11 and 12 respectively when these albums were taped.
I have spent countless hours with a headphone wrapped around my head, listening to these albums and digesting every note, every motion, every nuance, every...... Well, you get the idea.
I have been listening to Jackie and watching her Youtube videos for over a year now and the 11 and 12 year old child that used her arms to accentuate the vocals and made grown men cry, and could take a breath and hit just about any note with little or no effort, and must have a million Jackie dresses, has, I'm afraid, as she goes from child to young women, lost some of the appeal that initially drew me to her.
When she walked onto the Cirque du Soleil stage and sang Bridge Over Troubled Water, hair pulled back, heavy eye makeup, false lashes and lipstick, I knew we had lost the little child. When she sang Imaginer for the David & Yara Shoemaker Wedding Reception in April of 2012, it just wasn't the same as when she sang it on the Dream With Me album, a year earlier. She didn't seem as confident as she usually does and seemed to be reaching for the high notes at the end of the song.
And, when I saw her sing Can You Feel The Love Tonight for the July 4th special, I knew the child was gone. Gone were the hand gestures (I know, she was holding a mike, but the other arm was not animated), and the Jackie dress has now become a normal, form fitting dress, no double wave at the end of the performance, and I doubt that anyone in the audience found that her performance made them weep.
Also what's missing is the absolute joy that she exuded at the end of almost every performance. On the Dream With Me and the Silver Screen albums, as soon as the last note was sung and the applause started, a smile came over her face that told everything.
If you watch her Nessun Dorma performance on Britain's Got Talent, go to the end of her performance and watch as she lights up with a joyful expression that is hard to describe as the audience goes crazy. I don't see that now.
It seems that her passion for singing, and love of music has waned, and that makes me sad.
Jackie deserves all the accolades given her when it comes to her singing voice. It is pure and unadulterated. She adds no unnecessary baggage to what the composer intended; just a pitch perfect rendition delivered from a package that was designed to gain the highest emotional effect.
It was the image and branding that drew tears from her listeners, but time has necessitated a change.
The child has got to grow into an adolescent and then an adult and the image and brand cannot remain the same through both cycles.
I think we will see a whole new Jackie when she performs in Loveland, Colorado on Oct. 19. When she takes the stage of the Budweiser Events Center, a new image and brand will emerge, and when she opens her mouth to sing, she will tell us which path she has chosen for this stage of her career.
I hope and pray that the image chosen will restore her lost appeal.

I'm thinking much along your lines, William, though I'd qualify "lost her appeal", only because she'll always appeal to some people. Still, I think you point out that Jackie is facing a significant challenge at this point in her young career: how to achieve a successful transition from child singer to adult singer. 

She's between albums with no theme for her tour this fall. Having seen her recently in concert in Lewiston, NY, I came away thinking that she needs to polish her act. She's now too old to rely on (and now seldom does rely on) her charming mannerisms. Where once it was forgivable when she'd suddenly walk off stage without having signaled or announced her reason for exiting, now when she does so it comes across as awkward and unprofessional. 


While she does have some scripted banter, and while she does say the odd off-the-cuff remark, there is too little of that. She really needs to work on what I'm sure she can do well, talking to the audience, establishing a rapport with them with some extemporized chatter (or well-prepared chatter that convincingly seems extemporized).


She also, I think, needs to have much of her movement on stage choreographed. She's already using arm and hand gestures in a choreographed way, so obviously she understands that she can't rely only on spontaneous gestures to animate her performance.  


I think she needs to be coached by a professional who can turn her onstage performance into a show. Otherwise, it's a recital, and a recital is not what the average person wants to come out to a theatre to see.


I think her performance on July 4th was telling. She sang well, looked beautiful, but if I wasn't already familiar with her story, I'm not sure I'd have run to YouTube to find out everything I could about her.

Though her age still differentiates her from all those other beautiful female singers out there, on TV think she probably now looks to those who aren't familiar with her anywhere between age 16 and 20. 

So she no longer has the hook she once had: a child singing so maturely and beautifully. Now to take advantage of her youth to differentiate her, her performance has to be prefaced with her story. That can go on for only so long. Hayley Westenra started out at (if I recall correctly) age 14. But that is no longer mentioned, except in bio articles. No she relies on 1) her beauty, 2) her voice, 3) her song selection and arrangement 4) her interpretation / delivery of her songs 5) her onstage performance 6) marketing

Jackie has 1) and 2) going for her. But she's weak on 5). If she's going to continue to succeed she needs the help of someone who is expert in staging acts. I get the feeling that it's her mom alone who determines how Jackie is presented to the world onstage.

I hope no one here finds this too negative; it's meant to be an honest assessment. Jackie is no less extraordinary than she has always been; it's the stage act that I think is lacking.

Bristol;
As I mentioned in my "Why No News" post, the Evancho's have 3 months before her next engagement in Colorado, and I believe that most everything that you mentioned (Polish her act, Choreography, Coached by a professional), will be addressed during this time. If this is done right, the Jacqueline Marie Evancho who takes the stage on October 19 will have a new image.

"I think she needs to be coached by a professional who can turn her onstage performance into a show. Otherwise, it's a recital, and a recital is not what the average person wants to come out to a theatre to see."

Jackie at 10 or 11 or 12 could get away with a "recital" simply due to her age and the image she projected. The new Jackie cannot.


I'm hoping that the flaws that have been cropping up in her performances lately, are due to the limitations that she has placed on her range and breath control based on advice from voice coaches and her mother, all to protect her voice.
I believe this will change on October 19, but only time will tell.

bristol wrote:I'm thinking much along your lines, William, though I'd qualify "lost her appeal", only because she'll always appeal to some people. Still, I think you point out that Jackie is facing a significant challenge at this point in her young career: how to achieve a successful transition from child singer to adult singer. 

She's between albums with no theme for her tour this fall. Having seen her recently in concert in Lewiston, NY, I came away thinking that she needs to polish her act. She's now too old to rely on (and now seldom does rely on) her charming mannerisms. Where once it was forgivable when she'd suddenly walk off stage without having signaled or announced her reason for exiting, now when she does so it comes across as awkward and unprofessional. 


While she does have some scripted banter, and while she does say the odd off-the-cuff remark, there is too little of that. She really needs to work on what I'm sure she can do well, talking to the audience, establishing a rapport with them with some extemporized chatter (or well-prepared chatter that convincingly seems extemporized).


She also, I think, needs to have much of her movement on stage choreographed. She's already using arm and hand gestures in a choreographed way, so obviously she understands that she can't rely only on spontaneous gestures to animate her performance.  


I think she needs to be coached by a professional who can turn her onstage performance into a show. Otherwise, it's a recital, and a recital is not what the average person wants to come out to a theatre to see.


I think her performance on July 4th was telling. She sang well, looked beautiful, but if I wasn't already familiar with her story, I'm not sure I'd have run to YouTube to find out everything I could about her.

Though her age still differentiates her from all those other beautiful female singers out there, on TV think she probably now looks to those who aren't familiar with her anywhere between age 16 and 20. 

So she no longer has the hook she once had: a child singing so maturely and beautifully. Now to take advantage of her youth to differentiate her, her performance has to be prefaced with her story. That can go on for only so long. Hayley Westenra started out at (if I recall correctly) age 14. But that is no longer mentioned, except in bio articles. No she relies on 1) her beauty, 2) her voice, 3) her song selection and arrangement 4) her interpretation / delivery of her songs 5) her onstage performance 6) marketing

Jackie has 1) and 2) going for her. But she's weak on 5). If she's going to continue to succeed she needs the help of someone who is expert in staging acts. I get the feeling that it's her mom alone who determines how Jackie is presented to the world onstage.

I hope no one here finds this too negative; it's meant to be an honest assessment. Jackie is no less extraordinary than she has always been; it's the stage act that I think is lacking.

 I agree with you about what Jackie does between songs.  I have thought from the time she first started giving concerts that the one thing on stage that Jackie does not do very well is what goes on between songs.  But like you, me and most others have said....she's only 10,11,12.  But you are correct, she is not really a little kid anymore, time to start working on that aspect of her performance.  And I have absolutely no doubt that, with a little effort, she can be as good as anyone in that dept.  In fact I am positive of that   And I will add that while sure, she is growing up and some, probably most of her youthful mannerisms are going by the wayside, I think she would be foolish to let them all go.  A couple of them I can see her using for the rest of her career. (she owns her audience, why set them free   )

I do disagree with the need to have a professionally choreographed stage show.  I have seen plenty of great concerts given by both male and female CC and classical singers, with a great rapport with the audience between songs, that if you had to qualify their performance, would be a recital.  Not saying a choreographed stage show is a bad thing, just saying I do not believe it necessary.  Continuing to provide great material is the most important thing.

Come Oct 19th, I am predicting Jackie will be a lot more comfortable with banter between songs, I think we will hear some new material.  But I doubt we will see a new kind of stage show.  Of course I am just as likely to be wrong about this as I am of being right.  Can't wait to find out !!  

It really is an exciting time for Jackie (or should I say, continues to be). To date, she and her mother have been up for every challenge. This next one -- establish a direction and approach that suits Jackie's teenage status and continues to attract audiences -- is a big one.

bristol wrote:It really is an exciting time for Jackie (or should I say, continues to be). To date, she and her mother have been up for every challenge. This next one -- establish a direction and approach that suits Jackie's teenage status and continues to attract audiences -- is a big one.

Huge one !

Willyiam wrote:...Well, you get the idea. I have been listening to Jackie and watching her Youtube videos for over a year now and the 11 and 12 year old child that used her arms to accentuate the vocals and made grown men cry, and could take a breath and hit just about any note with little or no effort, and must have a million Jackie dresses, has, I'm afraid, as she goes from child to young women, lost some of the appeal that initially drew me to her.
When she walked onto the Cirque du Soleil stage and sang Bridge Over Troubled Water, hair pulled back, heavy eye makeup, false lashes and lipstick, I knew we had lost the little child. When she sang Imaginer for the David & Yara Shoemaker Wedding Reception in April of 2012, it just wasn't the same as when she sang it on the Dream With Me album, a year earlier. She didn't seem as confident as she usually does and seemed to be reaching for the high notes at the end of the song.
And, when I saw her sing Can You Feel The Love Tonight for the July 4th special, I knew the child was gone. Gone were the hand gestures (I know, she was holding a mike, but the other arm was not animated), and the Jackie dress has now become a normal, form fitting dress, no double wave at the end of the performance, and I doubt that anyone in the audience found that her performance made them weep.
Also what's missing is the absolute joy that she exuded at the end of almost every performance. On the Dream With Me and the Silver Screen albums, as soon as the last note was sung and the applause started, a smile came over her face that told everything.
If you watch her Nessun Dorma performance on Britain's Got Talent, go to the end of her performance and watch as she lights up with a joyful expression that is hard to describe as the audience goes crazy. I don't see that now.
It seems that her passion for singing, and love of music has waned, and that makes me sad....

 I can only imagine what kind of response this would have gotten at JEFC, you would be Public Enemy #1!  At least here you can express an honest opinion like this without getting tarred and feathered. 

I do agree with you on a lot of these quoted points, and I am wondering if Jackie and her family are now beginning to worry that her worst fear of losing her appeal as she grows up is coming true before their eyes. The album sales have declined a lot, and it is not just due to declining CD sales in general like her rabid fans say. She is losing several fans and gaining very few new ones. This could partly explain why she does not seem as joyful as earlier, when it looked like her career was just taking off and would continue to blossom. I do believe this next album could be make or break. If the sales trend continues as it has, it will not be good, and unless she has a hit song, there is no reason to believe sales will suddenly take off. The AGT honeymoon is over, as is the cute little girl factor. 

Many people did see her as a type of novelty, The Little Girl With The Big Voice. Only a small handful was mesmerized enough to stick with her until now (if you go by CD sales, that would be about 200,000 at the most, as that is the number who bought SFTSS and many of those may have been gifts or bought by lukewarm fans). Hard to say what her core fan base is, but it is certainly not growing. And her main income is from concerts, which usually average around 2,000 per show per the box office stats I have seen, so if that were to decline, then what? This has to be weighing on everyone. 

I know a lot of lukewarm fans have fallen by the wayside because the novelty just wore off. And some former enthusiastic fans and lukewarm fans have been turned off by the antics of her radical hardcore fans which even Mike commented on at one time. I know of some of these disillusioned fans and in fact, I have seriously thought about throwing in the towel on Jackie myself for that exact reason, but have chosen to hang in there for now. And I consider myself a pretty major fan. I do wonder if the reason for the "no new members" at her own fan site is to protect new and less rabid fans from having this turn-off happen to them.

At any rate, there are a lot of problems. Hopefully, there will be better days. But I do agree that things are not as rosy as they used to be in Jackie Land, and I think Jackie is feeling the weight of it.

Thank you bluebird for your reply.
I was thinking of going over to JEFC and posting my piece, but, probably good for me they are not accepting new members.
I agree with you on the declining CD sales. Wikipedia has the DWM sales at 682,000, and SFTSS at 116,054. I wonder what the concert numbers would be going through time?
The dwindling fan thing is definitely a problem and I'm hopeful that come October 19 at her next performance, the E team will have arrived at a course of action that will correct the ship and see her through to the next crisis.

It seems to me that declining popularity is par for the course for many acts. Just casually reflecting on the rise and fall of many artists in the rock-related genres I'm most familiar with, it seems that most make a splash (or at least a ripple in the pond) in early adulthood. The ones that make the biggest impact and continue to put out great music have some staying power. Others seem to exhaust their best work in their first one or two albums, and although they may make a few more, the magic has already passed.

My thoughts here are just guesses, but the entertainment-consuming public is fickle, and needs to be wowed by "new and improved" at every turn. Maybe it's human nature, but I think that for most people, the first kiss is always the most exciting. If that wow moment for Jackie's fans was her Dream With Me work, there are those who will likely never feel the magic again, no matter what she does.

That leaves a few possibilities – some of which overlap. One is that Jackie's loyal fans, and a slow-and-steady group of new loyal fans, will sustain her at some lower but respectable level, through thick and thin. When I looked at booking stats for a few of last winter's concerts, Jackie sold more tickets that Jackson Browne, who was playing on tour in some of the same venues. Jackie hasn't risen to the level that Jackson Browne was at in his heyday, but if Jackie hasn't yet hit her heyday, these sorts of stats are encouraging.

Another possibility is that she could successfully reinvent herself. I think that shedding the AGT/prodigy label would be the best thing that could happen to her, especially if she continues to put out good music. If fans (and I suspect even some in the industry) can let go of the adorable little songbird thing, and embrace her good name, talent and mounting reputation as a "legitimate" presence in the industry, she could re-brand. The best way to do that, in my opinion, is to release a great album that simply can't be ignored. Volumes have been written on the forums as to what kind of an album that would be, but let's just say it has to be good, marketable music with a wider appeal. 

A realistic possibility is that Jackie could fade into the shadows in the coming years—still performing, but in smaller venues and without large orchestras. She does have to get through high school and college, after all, so maybe it's enough to simply keep her name and reputation intact, and be poised for a comeback of sorts—not in the sense of climbing out of a hole, but of announcing that she's "back" with a great album (nothing short of great will allow her to pull this option off, I think). Somehow I don't think this is what will happen, but it does seem more likely than continuing on a rocket ride to ever-increasing fame. The latter can happen, but let's face it, she needs the big names like David Foster and Robert Redford to continue to believe in her and throw opportunities her way.

A not-as-glamorous but still realistic possibility is that Jackie could end up with a long and successful career as a club act. Jazz musicians (even very famous ones) have been doing this for years, and some of them make a very good living at it. I'd hate to see Jackie doing the club and casino circuit by bus, but if she loves performing, and gets paid well for it, and it's the best she can get, it would't be the end of the world to have a decent-paying career doing something you love.

Fantabulosa
 If the E team does their job (and I'm sure that Jackie is now surrounded with paid professionals that will coach, teach and advise her ad nausium), I believe the Jackie Evancho that we see take the stage at the Colorado event on Oct. 19 will be sporting a brand new image and brand.
The new Jackie will, IMO, surprise us with a more mature stage presence and a song selection that encompasses old favorites, new covers and new material.
This performance, I believe, will be the way in which she sheds the adorable little girl with the big voice and replaces that image with a poised, more mature professional singer, and also, I believe, will set the stage for a change in her fan base from mostly older males to a more even sampling across demographics.
This performance, I believe, will be followed, in the not too distant future, by a new album.
The content of this album is anyone's guess, but in order for Jackie to become successful, I'm with you - it has to WOW bigtime.
Time will tell!!!

Thanks for your reply.

After seeing Jackie in Minneapolis in January, I came away with a few ideas about where she at now in her career as it relates to the live shows.

-She didn't seem overly enthusiastic about the song selections - I don't know if it is true, but perhaps she didn't feel as engaged in the songs from SFTSS as she did those from DWM

-Her onstage banter was severely lacking...along the point Bristol was making...I wrote in my review at JEFC that I felt that she needed an emcee to keep the show moving along. Personally, I felt uncomfortable between songs. Jackie was doing her best, but trying to make the audience laugh while taking a sip of water wasn't very funny for me. There was a very awkward moment at the end of the concert in which she wasn't sure whether the concert had ended, so she just walked offstage, causing the conductor to follow her there, and they went into conference. Jackie came back out, took a bow, and announced that the concert was over.

I did attend the Las Vegas and Cleveland shows, and she did make some improvements, but I still couldn't say that her banter was smooth. Actually, in Las Vegas in particular, I didn't care about the banter because she really brought her A game to the singing that night. Hopefully she will get better at communicating with the audience over time.

Sometimes I am afraid that Jackie will change her approach too much to appeal to broader audiences rather than the older male fan base that she has. I can listen to her sing songs like Nella Fantasia, Imaginer, Lovers, Pie Jesu, Ave Maria and Ombra Mai Fu all day long. It is a mystery as to why it is that a lot of older males enjoy that sound more than other groups.

I agree with you guys that the next CD is important - I'd like to see her sing some songs with more meat on them than some of those on SFTSS, although that CD is starting to grow on me a bit more. Personally, I enjoy songs that have deeper meaning, like Vincent, Danny Boy, and most of those from DWM.

Semprelibere

Thanks for your reply.
It's nice to hear from someone who has actually attended her concerts.
It puts a whole new perspective on the ideas and theories that I have put together in my mind re: what she needs to do going forward to remain successful.
After reading your experiences, I am now even more convinced that intense coaching, both stage presence and voice, will be the Evancho's priority before Colorado. During her 10, 11 and 12 yo performances, I don't believe she put any limitations on her voice.
All you have to do is listen to her June 2011 Britain's Got Talent performance of Nessun Dorma. She blew them away.
But, late in her 12th year and after her 13th birthday, it was obvious that some limitations were being applied.
I don't think we'll hear those limitations on October 19.
Also, I'm afraid that the song choices, costume and stage presence going forward will appeal to a new demographic. The majority of her fan base before her 13th birthday (and you can personally attest to this), consisted of males, over 40, occupying the most expensive seats, and young female hopefuls or Jackie wannabe's occupying the rest.
When she takes the stage in Colorado, I believe she will be prepped to appeal to a wider range of demographic, but still retain her current fan base.
If any of this does not come to fruition in Colorado, I believe we will not have much more time to enjoy Jackie Evancho.
Just my opinion.

Willyiam wrote:.... The majority of her fan base before her 13th birthday (and you can personally attest to this), consisted of males, over 40, occupying the most expensive seats, and young female hopefuls or Jackie wannabe's occupying the rest.....

Actually, I think there are very, very few female hopefuls or Jackie wannabe's. I think males over 40 occupy the most expensive seats and males over 40 occupy several of the other seats as well, some accompanied by spouses, children or grandchildren, many of whom were dragged along by said males. And there are a smattering of young female wannabe's, quite young, likely not mid to late teens or above, because let's face it, Jackie is not "cool" with the younger crowd. 

I am quite sure this has not gone unnoticed by Jackie's family and management, you can bet on that, and they are just as mystified by the older male fascination as we are. In fact, I think they may be somewhat alarmed, hence the security we hear about at times and rushed M&Gs with rules like no more than one male in the room with her, etc. 

There is absolutely no question they are less than enthralled with the older male fan base. I can understand this, and I am part of that fan base. The majority of concert goers and workers are a bit more objective than most of us enthusiastic fans, and I think a 13 year old girl with a fan base of mostly middle aged and older males seems quite bizarre to them. Most of us are well intentioned, but I believe they question that. 

This  all makes me think that a move more towards a pop direction with the next album is in the cards. That is the only way to attract younger fans and break up the older male fan base that has now become a hindrance rather than an asset. Personally, I would still stick with her if she moves towards pop and I think some others would as well, but it would definitely leave some of the "Old Boys Club" in the dust. And that seems to be consistent with the JEFC membership lockdown, and discontinuance of purchased M&Gs and premium ticket pre-sales. 

The next few weeks and months will be interesting times indeed.

bluebird;
I totally agree with your assessment of the current fan base, but, I've been giving this a think lately, and it seems to me that as she ages, the older fans will drop off. I wonder if the older crowd has waned any over the last few years, as she went from adorable little girl to teenager. I would bet it has.
A more subjective view of the older fan base might be that these fans tend to occupy the most expensive seats (because they can afford them), which puts more revenue in the Evancho's coffers, whereas, a younger fan base would leave the expensive seats empty.

bluebird wrote:Actually, I think there are very, very few female hopefuls or Jackie wannabe's. I think males over 40 occupy the most expensive seats and males over 40 occupy several of the other seats as well, some accompanied by spouses, children or grandchildren, many of whom were dragged along by said males. And there are a smattering of young female wannabe's, quite young, likely not mid to late teens or above, because let's face it, Jackie is not "cool" with the younger crowd. 

I am quite sure this has not gone unnoticed by Jackie's family and management, you can bet on that, and they are just as mystified by the older male fascination as we are. In fact, I think they may be somewhat alarmed, hence the security we hear about at times and rushed M&Gs with rules like no more than one male in the room with her, etc. 

There is absolutely no question they are less than enthralled with the older male fan base. I can understand this, and I am part of that fan base. The majority of concert goers and workers are a bit more objective than most of us enthusiastic fans, and I think a 13 year old girl with a fan base of mostly middle aged and older males seems quite bizarre to them. Most of us are well intentioned, but I believe they question that. 

This  all makes me think that a move more towards a pop direction with the next album is in the cards. That is the only way to attract younger fans and break up the older male fan base that has now become a hindrance rather than an asset. Personally, I would still stick with her if she moves towards pop and I think some others would as well, but it would definitely leave some of the "Old Boys Club" in the dust. And that seems to be consistent with the JEFC membership lockdown, and discontinuance of purchased M&Gs and premium ticket pre-sales. 

The next few weeks and months will be interesting times indeed.

 That is probably the most realistic view of where things are at that I have read. The situation kind of makes me sad, because we (the older males) can't do anything about our age, but we also can't help the fact that we enjoy great music. I just don't understand why other demographic groups can't hear what we hear, or why they are not open-minded to the Jackie sound.

What is a little sad is that Team E most likely feels compelled to move Jackie towards a different fan base. I wonder what that will do to the quality of what Jackie does and to the passion for the music she has exhibited up to this point.

Last night a few of us fans got together to celebrate the 3rd year anniversary of her AGT appearance. We watched lots of youtube videos (using bluebird's fantastic playlists), and one of those was "A Time for Us", a recording in Atlanta. You could tell Jackie just loved performing and singing the song. Her love for the music is a big part of her appeal. If young females can't find the beauty in Jackie's performances of songs like "A Time for Us" or songs like "Imaginer", something is wrong with them.

Instead of an entire shift in strategy in order to lose the older male fans, hopefully there is a way to build on the existing fan base and attract wider audiences. I'm not sure exactly what that would entail, but I'm crossing my fingers.

SempreLibere wrote: That is probably the most realistic view of where things are at that I have read. The situation kind of makes me sad, because we (the older males) can't do anything about our age, but we also can't help the fact that we enjoy great music. I just don't understand why other demographic groups can't hear what we hear, or why they are not open-minded to the Jackie sound.

What is a little sad is that Team E most likely feels compelled to move Jackie towards a different fan base. I wonder what that will do to the quality of what Jackie does and to the passion for the music she has exhibited up to this point.

Last night a few of us fans got together to celebrate the 3rd year anniversary of her AGT appearance. We watched lots of youtube videos (using bluebird's fantastic playlists), and one of those was "A Time for Us", a recording in Atlanta. You could tell Jackie just loved performing and singing the song. Her love for the music is a big part of her appeal. If young females can't find the beauty in Jackie's performances of songs like "A Time for Us" or songs like "Imaginer", something is wrong with them.

Instead of an entire shift in strategy in order to lose the older male fans, hopefully there is a way to build on the existing fan base and attract wider audiences. I'm not sure exactly what that would entail, but I'm crossing my fingers.

 Most other demographics will admit that Jackie has "a nice voice" but they are not enthralled enough to pursue that any further. Partly because of her type of music, which they all consider to be "opera" so they then say "I don't like opera singing" and write her off. Also, most people who did not initially see her on AGT and go through that whole experience do not feel the same connection to her.

Jackie's musical interests have changed a lot in the last couple of years, she used to say she listened to Sarah Brightman, Josh Groban, etc. when asked and now it is the Beatles, Marilyn Manson, etc. So whether she still feels as strongly about her CC roots is a question mark. 

Glad you had a good time last night, sounds like fun. I was in the chat room at JEFC which is OK but I find the criticism and cutting down of any other artists and the excessive deification of Jackie is becoming somewhat trying.  

I got a chuckle at your comment about young females, of course there is something wrong with them! They are only interested in boy singers they think are cute and girl singers who act out and push the limits as they want to do the same. 

Time will tell how the Jackie saga plays out, I just hope it works out beneficially for her.

Some interesting thoughts have been presented in the previous posts.  I understand clearly how and why there are feelings about change and fan base stagnation.  I also believe there are several other ways of viewing things as we review some of the past facts about Jackie.

First, she is still only just 13 and it is my understanding that a place like Julliards would not provide vocal training to a person until they are 14.  Their feeling is that vocals are in a state of flux and have not fully made the change through puberty yet.  I think we need to wait another year before we can get a true sense of Jackie's direction if she is entertaining such thoughts that differ from CC.

Jackie has stated before that when she immerses herself in her songs she really has no idea what her arms and hands are actually doing.  If she had full control over her hands and arms then I am certain that she would not grab her dress from time to time in the manner that she has.  At this point in time I believe that she should continue to focus upon her songs and not divert some focus to other things.  I truly believe that her arm and hand movements emphasize the feelings she gathers from the song and adds to her expressions of emotions.  She does this better than any other vocalist that I have seen as her emotions are genuine and they are hers and not some composers.

Jackie has recently indicated that the next CD that is currently in the planning stage will contain some new original material.  This may very well be a move to attract a wider audience. 

CC is still not as popular a genre as most any other genre that is getting air time. However, I have been noticing the attention that AGT's Forte trio is generating among young people I am convinced we are on the threshold of change.  Anything is a step forward from Rap which at best is a distant second to the sound of a 2x4 being struck on a hollow log.

Whatever the future holds for Jackie it is for certain that she will be the driving force to getting there.  Each year Jackie will assume a little more control of her destiny and Lisa a little less, but it will be by mutual agreement and understanding.  Lisa clearly is the best parent that Jackie could ever imagined.