Music Idol Is Here!

The exclamation mark in the title is not supposed to signal my excitement at the start of the Bulgarian version of American Idol... but rather my dismay at how U.S. reality/talent shows are suddenly gaining popularity in Bulgaria. Following Big Brother and Survivor, Music Idol (as it is known here) kicked off today.... not very exciting yet, as we were only introduced to the judges in this first "episode", who by the way happen to be: Slavi Trifonov (now known mainly as a talk show host), Gloria (one of the earliest chalga singers), Doni (I guess I would classify his music mostly as pop... and he has the most annoying voice), and Yordanka Hristova (a traditional singer from the older generation). An almost crazy amalgamation, as most Bulgarians will probably attest. I think Slavi is playing the role of Simon... although on a couple of occasions in the qualifying rounds he passed women because they were "sexy" and not necessarily because he thought they had musical talent. To quote him: "Sexy women is what Music Idol needs." I look forward to seeing some of those sexy but talentless ladies in action :)