Joanna Pacitti Out on AMERICAN IDOL…Why?
February 12, 2009 by Kath Skerry
Last night Joanna Pacitti was all smiles and happy tears as she was named one of the top 36 finalists on Season 8 of AMERICAN IDOL. But when Fox released the official list of IDOL contestants, Pacitti’s name wasn’t on the list. A footnote at the end of the press release simply said:
“It has been determined that Joanna Pacitti is ineligible to continue in the competition. AMERICAN IDOL contestant Felicia Barton has replaced Ms. Pacitti as part of the Top 36.”
Leaving the question, why?
Joanna Pacitti probably has had the most buzz out of any contestant this season, but it hasn’t all been good. There were rumblings about her eligibility early on when it was revealed that Joanna Pacitti had already released an album on Geffen records. And as more details about her career to date emerged, the more fans questioned if Pacitti was the “untapped talent” that the IDOL producers claimed they were trying to capture.
In addition to release an album, Pacitti has also been featured on the soundtracks for “Legally Blonde” and the “Bratz” movie – on which she sang “Out from Under”, a song which has since been rerecorded and can be found on Britney Spears latest release, “Circus”.
If all that wasn’t enough, then came word that Pacitti had actually recorded songs written by none other than IDOL judge Kara DioGuari.
There is precedent for IDOL contestants with records deals. Season Six singers Kristy Lee Cook and Carly Smithson both released their own albums in the past. And both, especially Smithson, faced similar criticism. But both were allowed to continue in the competition.
So why was Joanna Pacitti released? I think more details will emerge today, but I have a feeling we will find that perhaps Ms. Pacitti wasn’t as upfront with the IDOL producers about her current contracts as maybe she should have been. Or, giving her the benefit of the doubt, maybe she didn’t read the fine print of her former record deal and she is still beholden to the label. No IDOL contestant can be signed by a record label at the time of the show.
I guess we’ll find out soon enough.
So Joanna Pacitti is out and Felicia Barton is in. Welcome to the Top 36 Felicia. Best of luck to you, Joanna.
Do you think based on the info we know that Joanna should have been eliminated? Don’t you think that the producers could have made this decision before she made it to the Top 36? Was this a publicity ploy on part of the producers? Your thoughts and speculation…until the facts are revealed.
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I had a feeling this was coming, Unfortunately this girl seems to have a black cloud over her. No matter how talented she is. I saw her shortly before she was fired from Annie in Boston, and she just had one of those voices that pulls you in. I’m curious though if there is a lot of behind the scenes stuff, maybe an overbearing stage mom? or a two-faced agent? It just seems like any big thing that happens for her, gets quickly pulled away.
Or, she has a sneaky management team that knew she would be pulled out of AI and just did this to get more exposure. Either way, she’s talented.
I’m sort of glad she’s gone – the whole premise behind Idol is to give people the chance of a lifetime – a chance she’s already had. It always annoyed me when they let people on the show who’d already recorded or had contracts – those people had a shot that the rest of the contestants never had, and it wasn’t fair to give them a second shot.
[…] No, she’s not. Joanna Pacitti is off of AMERICAN IDOL. In her place will be Felicia […]
i agree with anne..
but im sure she will get far in life now though.. just cuz she is off american idol doesnt mean someone wont pick her up..
we will see her again im sure
too bad Paciitti got booted from Idol; at least she got a ton of publicity out of staying on this long, hopefully she still makes it in the entertainment biz
Honestly, while I am not promoting dishonesty in anyway during the ‘screener’ phase of Idol, if it went ‘uncaught’ this long, I think that is more or less the ‘producers’ problem than the contestant. She still tried out the same as every other contestant, and through her hard work and efforts, advanced to the top 36. By this time, I think its to late to decide to remove her, especially without an ample explaination, especially to the public! Its almost like they figured they would just ‘sneak’ her out of the show and put someone else in her place, and with all of the commotion no one would notice. I think Ryan Seacrest or someone else on the show should have explained to us why this happened, or even allowed her a chance to speak on the show in her defense. She had a beautiful voice and a wonderful stage presence, Its a shame that the number 37th spot, who actually didnt deserve to be in the top 36 now gets a chance.
I am totally shocked about Joanna being out from Idol . Without a doubt she deserves to be on that show . Everybody needs a second chance . She’s one of my favourite on the show . But past is past and i wish her all the best in life .
I am totally shocked about Joanna being out from Idol . Without a doubt she deserves to be on that show . Everybody needs a second chance . She’s one of my favourite . But everything happens for a reason and i wish her all the best in life .