Being a syndicated show, it came on late night in the Detroit area. To a person, like myself, who doesn't go out partying very much, it was a refreshingly entertaining show for late night watching on the weekends. In fact, it was an "appointment" show for me.
The premise was simple: common folks want to live their fantasy, have their 15 minutes of fame, and perform as their favorite artist. They are made up, and costumed to simulate that artist, and they sing with THEIR OWN VOICES. The premise was nice. The hosts always mentioned at the top of each show that the show's concept originated in Europe. Therefore, the idea was not new. Dick Clark and his production company did not develop a new idea, but it was great to bring that idea to North America.
The wide range of artists that were imitated was impressive: Gladys Knight, Elton John, Aretha Franklin, Louis Armstrong, The Beatles, Cher, Lionel Ritchie, Janet Jackson, The Bangles, Kenny Rodgers, Tina Turner, Frankie Valli, etc. At times, performances were excellent. At other times, performances were not so good. One major strength of the show was the background singers, dancers, and instrument players. Naturally, they were professional entertainers, and "Your Big Break" was a job, but those people were talented. They, at times, made the performers appear to be better than they were.
I occasionally became upset that certain contestants lost when they should have won. The audience voted. I sometimes thought, "What were these people thinking?"
Then there were the hosts. The first season of the show was solid. Christopher "Kid" Reid was a very capable host. Alphonso Ribero was not as impressive in the second season.
Because "Your Big Break" was my "appointment" show, I saw many of the performances. In the first season, the performances were original. In the second season, the same performances began to be repeated. Cher, Frankie Valli, Gladys Knight, Louis Armstrong, Whitney Houston, James Brown, Neil Diamond, are the ones I remember. Not only the same performers, but the same songs as well. In these cases, the performances were much weaker than the same acts in the first season. In fact, all of the performances, in general, were weaker. The show became stale.
The producers, naturally, realized this, and decided to end the show. It was a decent 2 years. However, the people running the show did not do enough to keep the show fresh.
The premise was simple: common folks want to live their fantasy, have their 15 minutes of fame, and perform as their favorite artist. They are made up, and costumed to simulate that artist, and they sing with THEIR OWN VOICES. The premise was nice. The hosts always mentioned at the top of each show that the show's concept originated in Europe. Therefore, the idea was not new. Dick Clark and his production company did not develop a new idea, but it was great to bring that idea to North America.
The wide range of artists that were imitated was impressive: Gladys Knight, Elton John, Aretha Franklin, Louis Armstrong, The Beatles, Cher, Lionel Ritchie, Janet Jackson, The Bangles, Kenny Rodgers, Tina Turner, Frankie Valli, etc. At times, performances were excellent. At other times, performances were not so good. One major strength of the show was the background singers, dancers, and instrument players. Naturally, they were professional entertainers, and "Your Big Break" was a job, but those people were talented. They, at times, made the performers appear to be better than they were.
I occasionally became upset that certain contestants lost when they should have won. The audience voted. I sometimes thought, "What were these people thinking?"
Then there were the hosts. The first season of the show was solid. Christopher "Kid" Reid was a very capable host. Alphonso Ribero was not as impressive in the second season.
Because "Your Big Break" was my "appointment" show, I saw many of the performances. In the first season, the performances were original. In the second season, the same performances began to be repeated. Cher, Frankie Valli, Gladys Knight, Louis Armstrong, Whitney Houston, James Brown, Neil Diamond, are the ones I remember. Not only the same performers, but the same songs as well. In these cases, the performances were much weaker than the same acts in the first season. In fact, all of the performances, in general, were weaker. The show became stale.
The producers, naturally, realized this, and decided to end the show. It was a decent 2 years. However, the people running the show did not do enough to keep the show fresh.
