Idol Chatter & Voice Views

What was Tommy Hilfiger doing on my TV screen Wednesday night?

I mean, OK, I had heard that he signed on to American Idol as a fashion consultant for Season 11.

But I had no idea that meant we were going to see clips of him giving fashion advice to the Idols before every performance.

It was the most annoying development on Idol since Nigel Lythgoe decided to air an episode without a single song during Hollywood Week.

And it could become a whole lot more annoying if we’re going to get a repeat performance every Wednesday for the rest of the season.

Of course, based on how Tommy’s efforts turned out on Wednesday, this might be a one-and-done proposition.

I mean, it was pretty funny.

Tommy suggested Colton Dixon change his hairstyle. Colton simply ignored him.

Tommy suggested Elise Testone wear bell-bottom jeans. Elise looked at the jeans. She decided to wear a dress. She looked great.

Tommy warned Phillip Phillips not to wear gray on stage. He wore two different shades of gray.

On the other hand, Tommy convinced Erika Van Pelt to chop off most of her hair and dye it black. I didn’t like the look.

And Tommy turned poor little Hollie Cavanagh into a fashion disaster. She’s 19. With that hairstyle and outfit, she looked like a 35 year old trying to act 19.

In other words, Tommy added nothing to the show. Worse, those segments were a bothersome distraction.

Look, Nigel, if Idol fans want to watch a fashion show, they can tune in to NBC on Tuesday nights and watch Fashion Star.

If you want a fashion show on FOX, create one, for a different time slot.  Or have Tommy deck out your “So You Think You Can Dance” cast in bell bottoms.

I haven’t tuned in to “Fashion Star.”  I have no desire to.  And I don’t like fashion segments serving as filler on what’s supposed to be a singing competition.

Phillip Phillips said it best Wednesday night: “I’m not a guy about the image,” he told Ryan Seacrest. “I want the music to be first. If people don’t like it, it’s cool.  If people do like it, that’s cool, too.”

And I’d add this:  If you have time to fill on Idol, Nigel, make it about the music.

Let the Idols sing a complete song.

And get Tommy Hilfiger off my TV.

Now.