Stan Walker is Australia Idol V.7.
The New Zealand bred contestant tonight beat Hayley Warner to grab the Australian Idol title, not that that is a good thing considering the past history of Idol and latter successors of “losers” Anthony Callea and Jessica Mauboy.Losing idol and coming second in Idol for Callea and Mauboy proved to be a greater prize than first place. Walker will have to suffer the “paint by numbers” debut release of the ‘Black Box’ single followed by a vanilla Winners album.
Warner now has the opportunity to go into the studio and like Callea and Mauboy before her, create a work that is indicative of her own style away.
Anthony Callea found his true style was not in the Idol cookie-cutter format but better suited to the theatre. Likewise, Rob Mills has found success in theatre instead of the pop world. Jessica Mauboy fitted R&B rather than manufactured pop while original Australian Idol Guy Sebastian rediscovered his real talents in soul on his Memphis album and drew on those influences for his return to pop on the recent ‘Like it Like That’.
Stan Walker basically won a challenge. Hayley Warner won a future.
Winning Australian Idol has only ever been about winning fame. It has never been about winning respect. Guy Sebastian, Jessica Mauboy, Anthony Callea had to earn their respect after Idol. 2006 winner Damien Leith is still struggling to find his despite beating Jessica Mauboy.
2008 winner Wes Carr, who had a credible musical background with Silverchair’s Ben Gillies in Tambalane is generating respect on the road currently with Cold Chisel’s Ian Moss. At least he had a history to draw from.
It is going to be hard for Stan Walker. He really does have a challenge ahead of him. Congrats to Hayley Warner. You probably don’t even know it, but you are the real winner.
