I've stooped low.....

This image alone makes you able to know what I'm talking about in a fraction of a second.
Idol, or Pop Idol as the original UK concept was called, has been exported to many countries and is thought to be the most successful TV concept ever. The whole thing was created by Simon Fuller and Simon Cowell (the dreaded judge of the competition in both US and UK series), and the first UK season attracted 11 million viewers, according to http://www.tv.com .

In Norway, the 4th season of the show was completed in May as 18 year old Alexander Denstad With sang himself to victory in a sold-out Oslo Spektrum. The last 12 shows had less viewers than the year before and caused ridiculously little attention compared to the first season in 2003. Music journalists say they'll be surprised if the concept of Idol will "live" for another season in Norway.

I have to agree. I bought the DVD of the first 2003 season yesterday (hence the title of the post), just to be able to take a trip down memory lane. The Idol series has been worn out during the last two years and the only season which still stands, fresh and exciting, is the original one - no one had ever heard of it before and even though some people thought "oh it's just some talent show thingy" it seemed completely new and people were instantly hooked. As was I; as the show started in January 2003 I had not yet turned 17.

And there IS another reason for my thinking that the orginal season is the best one.

Kurt Nilsen.

He was the plumber with a music career on the side and played in a rock band called Fenrik Lane. He didn't exactly look like a pop idol - his teeth, or rather the gap between them, became his trademark and he was neither tall or dark. I think Simon Cowell put it best as he commented Kurt's performance in World Idol later that year - "You look like a hobbit, but you sing like an angel".
He came into the audition room in Bergen and sang one of his own songs in front of the judges, who weren't instantly impressed. Ole Evenrude was 'famous' for telling Kurt "You're no pop idol, you belong in a rock band."

But Kurt surprised them all. He grew to become everyone's favourite, with his charming personality and most of all, God-given voice. His soaring falsettos made the audience go wild.
In an April show, Ole Evenrude said "it's April, and I can already tell you're the winner of this whole thing".

And so he did. As the icing on the cake he also won the World Idol competition - an international contest with Idol winners from selected countries. American Kelly Clarkson was the favourite to win, but Kurt once again surprised everyone and with his flawless rendition of U2's "Beautiful Day", he won the whole thing - again.

Today he has three successful releases behind him; one being a live album from a collaboration project with Espen Lind, Alejandro Fuentes and Askil Holm. In June they performed in front of thousands of fans during a free concert in Oslo town square.

So 3 years after he won the title of the Norwegian pop Idol, Kurt Nilsen is still on everyone's lips and selling albums in record-breaking amounts - the mentioned live album sold 40 000 copies in just three days.

But what happened to the other idol winners?

(Picture: The Idol winners - Kurt Nilsen [2003], Kjartan Salvesen [2004], Jorun Stiansen [2005], and Aleksander Denstad With [2006], all captured in the moment of victory.)

Kjartan Salvesen was the Idol winner of 2004. The official Idol single, "Standing Tall", was of course a summer hit that year, but the album release was a flop. During his tour, a concert had to be cancelled due to lack of interest - only 17 tickets had been sold. Today Kjartan seems to have taken a break from the music business and is instead enjoying parenthood along with his girlfriend, Inger Terese Austad.

Jorun Stiansen was so surprised that she'd won the 2005 competition that she was unable to sing the Idol single at the end of the show. Little did she know she was setting the trend for a large part of her tour - she was overworked, got infection after infection, lost her voice and had to cancel numerous shows. The single release was a total flop; it was a rewritten version of Lara Fabian's "The last goodbye", called "This is the night". The album turned out to be an even bigger disaster. Today Jorun is working on starting all over again, changing her lifestyle and writing her own songs.

Aleksander Denstad With won against all odds in May 2006. His rival Jonas Tomassen was voted the ultimate favourite in every online poll. Aleksander's Idol single "A little too perfect" is getting a lot of radio play and today Aleksander is busy touring with a few other ex-Idol contestants, driving 10-11 year old girls giddy.

Only time will tell if Aleksander suffers the same destiny as Kjartan and Jorun, but in the meantime I just have to hand it to Kurt. He is the Pop Idol, in every sense of the word.