Predictions For American Idol Season 4

Now for my American Idol Season 4 predictions:

-There will be at least one controversy regarding the way the voting went for a contestant. That's the American Idol way. It may be perceived as racial as the last ones were (Tamyra Gray booted, Ruben vs. Clay, three black women in the bottom three) or maybe, as a twist, it will involve something else. Maybe one of the contestants (a very good one at that) will be revealed as being openly gay. Then, he/she will be put in the bottom or he/she will be eliminated. Those "red states" will claim that the country can't have an openly gay American Idol while "blue states" will complain about intolerance. Gay activists will protest and boycott the show. It the controversy isn't about sexual orientation or race, then it could be about genres. Remember that last season, people were angry that John Stevens (who only could "sing" when it was a crooner-type song) lasted as long as he did. If a rock singer lasts for a while, we could see the same thing happen again.

-There will be at least one contestant who will coast their way through the show solely based on looks. Teenage girls who think that some random guy is hot will text message him to near-victory. It happened for whats-his-name, so it can happen for someone this year too.

-There will be at least one black female and one black male in the top 10. Then again, maybe the lack of black people in the top 10 will be the new controversy.

-There will be at least one very good white contestant in the top 10. I'm talking Kelly Clarkson or better quality here...or at least Clay Aiken quality. No Diana DeGarmos here.

-Someone will complain that the Wildcard pick has been eliminated. It raises the stakes but it also means that that diamond in the rough won't make it to the next level. Remember, Clay Aiken was a Wildcard pick.

-A contestant will have a sordid past of some kind. FOX's background check people are the worst in all of network TV.

-The next American Idol won't be black. Even though lots of black people watch this show, it just won't happen whether a black person deserves it or not. There have been two already, so a non-black person is due to win it again. Besides, both Kelly Clarkson and RUNNER-UP Clay Aiken are doing better than Ruben or Fantasia. (I made this prediction last season and I was wrong...but I think I'll be right this time.)

There are other predictions I could make but I won't. For example, I was going to say that the next American Idol will be a guy, but even with the new way they are balancing out the people, I'm still not certain that will make a guy a contender this year. Also, I thought about predicting that a contestant would be older than 25 (since the age limit went up to 28) but I'll have to wait and see on that. So, come May, let's see how right (or wrong) my predictions are.