Idol Chatter & Voice Views

Alyssa Raghu holding the golden ticket that’s caused an uproar since Sunday’s episode of American Idol (ABC Photo)

And I recall being surprised at how little Alyssa Raghu — already a two-time contestant on Idol — was doing to promote her upcoming appearance.

Perhaps, just maybe, she knew what was coming.

Alyssa was at the Season 22 Idol auditions to support friend, roommate and aspiring rock star Julia Davo.

But when the audition room cleared, Alyssa was the one with golden ticket in hand. The judges said “no” to Julia.

And the clip that aired made Alyssa look more concerned about getting a third shot at Idol fame than in her friend’s disappointment.

I remember thinking, ‘Dang, regardless of what you thought of her voice, Alyssa came off looking pretty bad in that clip.’

Which is a shame, because she’d been very impressive as a teen competing on the show back in 2018 and 2019, when she finished in the Top 8.

To say she’s been getting hammered on social media ever since Sunday’s episode aired would be putting it mildly. Her Facebook page has vanished.

Entertainment Tonight even ran a story about the clip with the headline: ‘American Idol’ Contestant Alyssa Raghu Steals Audition From ‘Best Friend’ as Katy Perry Walks Off.

This week, Alyssa struck back, posting a 6-minute video about the “truth about what really happened” at that Idol audition.

She called the edit disappointing, saying “editors rearranged conversations and left out crucial details to create a false narrative of betrayal for the sake of controversy and ratings.”

I will say this, the clip Idol aired Sunday seemed oddly disjointed. And I knew they’d cut out a good bit because Idol public relations provided a photo of Alyssa performing behind a piano, something that never happened during the audition that aired.

And while Idol has provided some wonderful moments in Season 22 so far, I’ve wondered, while watching, how many of those moments happened naturally and which ones were created with a bit of producer manipulation.

Sorry to burst anyone’s Idol bubble, but some of them have strained the bounds of credulity.

And the questions judges ask of contestants, guiding their story or conversation this way or that, makes it clear they know more about who’s standing in front of them than viewers are led to believe.

As for the fans suggesting that Alyssa just tear up her golden ticket since she’s so disappointed with the way the audition aired … well, those folks simply don’t understand how this show works.

The auditions we’re watching now were filmed months ago. Hollywood Week has been filmed as well. In fact, the judges have picked their Top 24. All of those episodes are pre-recorded.

In other words, for Alyssa, watching then reacting wasn’t an option. At least not in reaction to her golden ticket.

Fans might also remember that Alyssa last auditioned in Season 17.

Who won Season 17? Laine Hardy.

How did he land on Season 17? By accompanying a friend (Ashton Gill) into the audition room in a supporting role.

He wound up being talked into auditioning. And wound up upstaging that friend.

My suggestion to Idol fans: Alyssa has released a good bit of music since she first appeared on Idol. Check it out. Judge her on that. Not the clip that aired on Idol.

Same for Julia, who has released a full cover of “Life on Mars.” And sounds much better on it than in the tiny snippet of her audition we heard on Idol.

Meanwhile, that old saying about the third time being the charm.

Alyssa Raghu might disagree. At least where American Idol is concerned.