A Tribute to Brooke White

In my first year as an "American Idol" recapper I've resorted to the cliché of giving the contestants goofy nicknames. Brooke White though, never got a nickname because I liked her too much to joke about her with a silly moniker. Still, I ended up regularly calling her "my girl Brooke White", because she was the female contestant I loved the most. I defended her even when the rest of the internet "Idol" community started getting tired of her and finding her annoying. I found something to love in every performance, even when I knew she wasn't at her best. I talked her up as much as I could. What was it about this young woman that made her "my girl"? Why could I not turn on her like the majority of the audience?

From the beginning of this disappointing 7th season of "American Idol" Brooke stood out to me. Not only was she pretty, but she said that her best friends were the twin baby girls she was a nanny for. At her audition we also learned that she'd never seen an R-rated movie. In our cynical culture a person like her certainly stands out. I liked her almost instantly. I later learned that her squeaky-clean sweetness was due to the fact that she's a Mormon, but still, I give her credit for living out her beliefs. Simon talked about "bringing her to the dark side", a challenge she welcomed, resolute in her values. He gave up after the first week of Semifinals, apparently because he realized her niceness was a big part of her charm. After her elimination she denied any conversion to the dark side.

She got a good amount of screen time in Hollywood, so I knew she was probably going to last a while. I had to put a lot of stock in her, because most of the other heavily-pimped contestants left me cold.

Her first performance was of The Turtles' "Happy Together". It wasn't great vocally, and she didn't look completely comfortable on stage, but we all knew she wasn't going anywhere based on that early screen time. Her awkward-yet-endearing run was just beginning.

Her performance the next week was of Carly Simon's "You're So Vain", and that was where she really broke out. She accompanied herself on guitar and showed that with the right material she could be really entertaining. There was also some discussion of the song possibly being directed at Simon, which made her time on stage memorable. I was liking her chances of lasting a while more and more.

For the last week of Semifinals she did an all-acoustic version of Pat Benatar's "Love is a Battlefield". By this point she was a lock for the Top 12, so her merely solid performance was enough to allow her to coast on through.

In the Top 12 she had one of her more memorable performances when she played the piano and sang The Beatles' "Let it Be". Brooke has said that it was her favorite performance, and she further established her incredibly emotional persona with her tears at the end. While it wasn't one of my favorites at first, I've grown to appreciate it more over time.

The Top 11 was a turning point for Brooke in the competition, because I think it was the beginning of the end for her. She sang "Here Comes the Sun" in a bright yellow dress and drifted across the stage uneasily. When the judges gave her feedback she kept talking to them and repeatedly saying "It's OK". Truth be told, I hadn't thought much of her talking to the judges until people all over the internet started commenting on how annoying it was. While I didn't think it was her best performance, I still found it enjoyable in a weird sort of way.

Brooke's song choice for the Top 10 was The Police's "Every Breath You Take", where she once again played the piano. Most people seemed to think it was boring and didn't like the arrangement, but I thought it was nice. I really liked her vocals on it. She had to restart after missing the first note. It was relatively minor, but it turned into a big deal. After being shown messing up and having to restart in Hollywood she gained a reputation for not holding her performances together very well.

The Top 9 was where the first signs of trouble became evident. Brooke went first and sang Dolly Parton's "Jolene". Though I hadn't thought about it at the time, several people commented on the inappropriateness of her smiling during a song about a woman who's scared of losing her man. While it was a bit lackluster for me, I didn't think it was awful. Unfortunately, it earned Brooke her first trip to the Bottom 3, where she was the first one sent back to safety.

Brooke finally got the pimp spot for the Top 8, where she sang Carole King's "You've Got a Friend". She seemed pretty nervous the entire time, and while it wasn't spectacular, it was pleasant and kept her safe.

The Top 7 sent Brooke to the Bottom 3 again, where she ended up being in the Bottom 2 this time. She sang Mariah Carey's "Hero", and considering her lack of a huge voice, I thought she made the most of it with what she had. By being in the Bottom 2 though, I knew that she likely wasn't going to make it as far as I'd expected earlier. I'd envisioned her as the runner up, but by then the two Davids seemed destined to be the Top 2.

In the Top 6 Brooke contributed a first to "American Idol" history. After starting her song ("You Must Love Me" from Evita) she forgot the words, stopped, and asked the band to restart. After that mishap the rest of her performance seemed uncomfortable, and most people (including me) thought she was going home. The next night though, she was declared to be safe, and media favorite Carly Smithson was sent packing. It was probably the best moment of the season.

In the Top 5 Brooke got to sing two songs. She did an awesome fun version of The Monkees' "I'm a Believer" which everyone on earth but me thought was unbearably cheesy. Her second song was Neil Diamond's "I Am...I Said", where she showed more confidence and was generally well-received by the judges. Unfortunately, the sympathy vote that got her through the previous week went to Jason Castro, and she was finally eliminated.

As the last remaining contestant whose music and personality made me want to support her, Brooke's elimination was sort of the end of the season for me. I'll still watch the last three weeks, but the magic she brought will be gone. I can only hope that next year we'll have a more interesting bunch to vote for and end up with a good Idol.

Was Brooke incredibly original? No. Was she always the most exciting performer? No. Did she always brighten my day? Yes. She had a charm I found irresistable. Simply put, Brooke White represents the type of woman I've always wanted to marry but have always had trouble finding. I'm just glad that she was able to last as long as she did. She saved this season from being completely depressing after the Top 10.