Ten-year-old singing sensation Jackie Evancho sails this week into the semifinals of Americas Got Talent, a serious contender for the ultimate prize. Evancho, a fourth-grader, astonished judges Piers Morgan, Sharon Osbourne and Howie Mandel with a sophisticated, pitch-perfect rendition of the aria O mio babbino caro.
Morgan, normally the hardest judge to impress, said Jackie had given one of the most extraordinary performances Ive ever seen, and it wasnt long before the little Pennsylvania girl was being called the next Susan Boyle.
Boyle, of course, is the global superstar who captivated millions in 2009 with her version of I Dreamed a Dream on Britains Got Talent. But though the video of her performance got more than 360 million hits on YouTube, and she went on to sell nine million CDs, what followed her television debut wasnt all the dream shed dreamed.
For one thing, she didnt actually win the Britains Got Talent contest. The award went instead to a dance group, Diversity. Devastated by her second-place finish, Boyle checked into a psychiatric hospital the next day after suffering what was termed an emotional breakdown. (At the time, her brother Gerry told the Daily Mail, Susan panicked because the show had come to an end and she did not know what the future held for her.)
Its very unlikely that Jackie will go through anything like this. Boyle was a 49-year-old single woman who lived with her ailing mother in public housing. Although she had to a voice coach and sang in a local choir, shed never had any wider exposure. On the other hand, by the time Jackie went on the show, her career was already on its way. Shed appeared on PBS and recorded a CD, Prelude to a Dream. (Within twelve hours after Jackies first Americas Got Talent appearance on Aug. 10, the CD had gone to number one on Amazons classical and pop charts.) She also has at least two voice coaches who know that they need to treat her young voice gently and not overstrain it. And shes had a much easier time on stage than Boyle did initially. The plain, heavy-set Scottish woman drew a contemptuous look from Piers Morgan and laughs from at least some audience members before she started singing. But the mockery stopped as soon as she sounded her first notes.Questions have been raised, though, about both Boyles and Jackies performances. A Scottish newspaper, Deadline, reported this month that Boyles voice had been smoothed out in her audition with the help of Auto-Tune software. A Britains Got Talent producer refused to comment. And there have been rumors that Jackie is lip-syncing. A producer denied that rumor, telling USA Today, Her mouth is moving a different way from the words coming out. It is weird, but its just how she sings.
Whatever the truth is, it doesnt seem to have affected the singers fans. These days, Boyle is busy. For one thing, shes going to be performing on Sept. 16 for Pope Benedict XVI, whos coming to Scotland as part of an official four-day visit to the UK. During a huge open-air Mass in Glasgow, Boyle, a devout Catholic, will perform hymns. Shell also sing Dream. Her new CD, The Gift, will be released on Nov. 29, in time for the Christmas shopping rush. One of her fans, Amber Stassi, an American medic, won a worldwide contest and will duet with Boyle on one track, Silent Night. Boyles producer, Steve Mac, told AOL, She doesnt want to sing about anything that hasnt happened to her or that she cant relate to.And Boyle is publishing an autobiography, The Woman I Was Meant to Be, which goes on sale this fall. "My story demonstrates that you shouldn't just look at the label, she said, according to the BBC. You should look at the whole personand I hope that telling it will show that dreams are not impossible, if you've got courage and a willingness to go on." As for Jackie, shell be digitally releasing a song in the next few months and is set to appear at a Carnegie Hall Christmas concert this December.Each performer has her own style, her own history and her own success, but it was inevitable that someone (in this case, Fox News) set up a Susan vs. Jackie poll. The winner, getting 92 percent of the vote: Susan Boyle.
