Wednesday, May 21, 2008
Last night's American Idol was masterful on a number of levels. First, the production of the event as a heavyweight fight, complete with Michael Buffer of all people doing the "Let's Get Ready to Rumble" thing at the beginning, to the boxing commentary interspersed throughout, to giving two of the best possible advisors to the contestants they could possibly have (Clive Davis and Andrew Lloyd Webber) to coach them through the week.
David Cook's version of "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For" was incredible. But there wasn't any stopping David Archuleta's ascendancy to stardom. The guy has seriously got to be one of the most talented vocalists I've ever heard. And obviously his level of preparation, work ethic, and dedication has been equal to his talent every week, as it pretty much has to be to advance this far in the show. The joy he gets from performing comes through every time he takes the stage.
And regarding American Idol itself, it really doesn't matter if people like one feature of the show, don't like another, or whatever...as long as it discovers music talent anywhere even remotely close to David Archuleta or even David Cook, the show's going to last a lot longer than seven seasons.
David Cook's version of "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For" was incredible. But there wasn't any stopping David Archuleta's ascendancy to stardom. The guy has seriously got to be one of the most talented vocalists I've ever heard. And obviously his level of preparation, work ethic, and dedication has been equal to his talent every week, as it pretty much has to be to advance this far in the show. The joy he gets from performing comes through every time he takes the stage.
And regarding American Idol itself, it really doesn't matter if people like one feature of the show, don't like another, or whatever...as long as it discovers music talent anywhere even remotely close to David Archuleta or even David Cook, the show's going to last a lot longer than seven seasons.
Wednesday, May 14, 2008
Today's latest example of mindblowing genius: Nintendo's Wii Fit.
It's getting a lot of press, including a feature in today's Wall Street Journal. But these reviews aren't capturing the genius of this product.
There probably hasn't been any piece of software released for a home video game console that will expand the way Americans think about video games than Wii Fit. Wii Sports, the pack-in game that ships with the Wii hardware, greatly helped in this regard, but I predict that in the end Wii Fit will change hearts and minds to an even greater extent.
You'll see personal trainers, gyms, and other very atypical business interests start to incorporate Wii Fit into their business models. You'll see stories of people getting, well, FIT from the game. You'll see another spike in those fun media stories about non-gamers getting into gaming thanks to Wii Fit. And that sound you'll hear is the cash register exploding as Nintendo continues its remarkable quest to expand the gaming market and challenge popular notions of what a videogamer is.
I've been around videogames my entire life. People who know me know I'm a huge, unabashed fan of videogames, and as I've become a fan of business as I've gotten older, I've seen the videogame market experience unbelievable growth as it attracts some of the best business and creative talent out there. It's been quite fun to watch.
But even masterpieces like the just-released Grand Theft Auto IV, which had a budget of around $100 million dollars to produce, does not carry (at least, to me) the SHEER GENIUS of Wii Fit. The simplicity, the originality, the consistency with Nintendo's core business strategy, the out-of-the-box marketing efforts, the excellent technology incorporated into the packed-in "Balance Board," and the pricing strategy of the SKU all collectively blow me away.
It's fun being a gamer with companies like Nintendo out there which are obviously driven by a vision never seen before, or really ever even contemplated, within the industry...and a vision that is being executed almost to perfection.
It's getting a lot of press, including a feature in today's Wall Street Journal. But these reviews aren't capturing the genius of this product.
There probably hasn't been any piece of software released for a home video game console that will expand the way Americans think about video games than Wii Fit. Wii Sports, the pack-in game that ships with the Wii hardware, greatly helped in this regard, but I predict that in the end Wii Fit will change hearts and minds to an even greater extent.
You'll see personal trainers, gyms, and other very atypical business interests start to incorporate Wii Fit into their business models. You'll see stories of people getting, well, FIT from the game. You'll see another spike in those fun media stories about non-gamers getting into gaming thanks to Wii Fit. And that sound you'll hear is the cash register exploding as Nintendo continues its remarkable quest to expand the gaming market and challenge popular notions of what a videogamer is.
I've been around videogames my entire life. People who know me know I'm a huge, unabashed fan of videogames, and as I've become a fan of business as I've gotten older, I've seen the videogame market experience unbelievable growth as it attracts some of the best business and creative talent out there. It's been quite fun to watch.
But even masterpieces like the just-released Grand Theft Auto IV, which had a budget of around $100 million dollars to produce, does not carry (at least, to me) the SHEER GENIUS of Wii Fit. The simplicity, the originality, the consistency with Nintendo's core business strategy, the out-of-the-box marketing efforts, the excellent technology incorporated into the packed-in "Balance Board," and the pricing strategy of the SKU all collectively blow me away.
It's fun being a gamer with companies like Nintendo out there which are obviously driven by a vision never seen before, or really ever even contemplated, within the industry...and a vision that is being executed almost to perfection.
Monday, May 12, 2008
I'm a huge Jeff Fisher fan, so not a surprise that I was perusing the information earlier today regarding the Coach's annual softball game out at Greer Stadium (home of the Nashville Sounds).
Typical press release...but one particular line caught my eye:
General Admission is $10 and reserved seats are $15. Tickets for children 12 and under are $6. Tickets are on sale now through the Nashville Sounds ticket office or by calling 615-242-4371. Show your KrogerPlus card, Military or Student ID and get $1 off. For additional information, please visit the Nashville Sounds’ web site at: www.nashvillesounds.com.
I could make a comment about $1 off being practically worthless thanks to inflation, but no. Actually, what made me pause was the parity in benefit between our valued military service men and women and KROGERPLUS CARD HOLDERS.
So let me get this straight ... taking bullets for our country earns the same benefit as walking into a local grocery store and filling out a piece of paper to get a KrogerPlus card.
I'm completely ignoring the students part of the discount, in honor of students pretty much ignoring everything, including class.
Whatever. I can make fun of something that is actually one of the best fundraisers in town, and certainly one of the more creative, entertaining ones. And, of course, it signals the impending start of another NFL season. Initial projections have the Titans surpassing last year's record - right now I've got them at 12-4 - but a lot can change between now and the start of training camp.
Changing subjects briefly, heard a great new band recently called Paramore. I know they're pretty well known among people who are better music fans than me, but their new song/video ("That's What You Get") is good stuff. Check it out.
Typical press release...but one particular line caught my eye:
General Admission is $10 and reserved seats are $15. Tickets for children 12 and under are $6. Tickets are on sale now through the Nashville Sounds ticket office or by calling 615-242-4371. Show your KrogerPlus card, Military or Student ID and get $1 off. For additional information, please visit the Nashville Sounds’ web site at: www.nashvillesounds.com.
I could make a comment about $1 off being practically worthless thanks to inflation, but no. Actually, what made me pause was the parity in benefit between our valued military service men and women and KROGERPLUS CARD HOLDERS.
So let me get this straight ... taking bullets for our country earns the same benefit as walking into a local grocery store and filling out a piece of paper to get a KrogerPlus card.
I'm completely ignoring the students part of the discount, in honor of students pretty much ignoring everything, including class.
Whatever. I can make fun of something that is actually one of the best fundraisers in town, and certainly one of the more creative, entertaining ones. And, of course, it signals the impending start of another NFL season. Initial projections have the Titans surpassing last year's record - right now I've got them at 12-4 - but a lot can change between now and the start of training camp.
Changing subjects briefly, heard a great new band recently called Paramore. I know they're pretty well known among people who are better music fans than me, but their new song/video ("That's What You Get") is good stuff. Check it out.
Tuesday, May 06, 2008
Random thought time!
- The Go Phone commercial with Meat Loaf is brilliant.
- Celtic Thunder is awesome. If you don't know what it is, Google it.
- Grand Theft Auto IV is a masterpiece. Just because you can do certain things in the game (like drive drunk) does not subtract from the greatness of the game. It's so good, so expansive, and just so perfect that it will go down as one of the best games of all time.
- Cavaliers in 7.
- The Go Phone commercial with Meat Loaf is brilliant.
- Celtic Thunder is awesome. If you don't know what it is, Google it.
- Grand Theft Auto IV is a masterpiece. Just because you can do certain things in the game (like drive drunk) does not subtract from the greatness of the game. It's so good, so expansive, and just so perfect that it will go down as one of the best games of all time.
- Cavaliers in 7.
