Being a music lover, I don't like to admit to people that I sometimes enjoy watching the glorified karaoke contest "American Idol" on t.v.  My favorite part is not the "hollywood" phase where the "good" singers go on to compete for the top spots on the show.  No, I enjoy the first couple of weeks where the wack jobs go on for either their 15 minutes of fame or because they are delusional and think that they actually can sing.  Because the show has gotten so big, I believe the delusional are few and far between and now mostly consist of those who are in it for a good laugh.  Regardless, I was watching one of the beginning episodes the other day and they did a brief video bio of one of the contestants before you actually get to see her audition in front of the judges.  This is normally a dead give away of whether the contestant is going to make it on to the Hollywood phase (the sob stories almost always make it forward and the bizarre ones are normally the wackos singing "She Bangs").  The bio was about a girl that use to be on Barney, you know, the big purple dinosaur that you use to watch when you were little (yes, you watched it, don't lie).  Anyways, she goes on to express that she wants to "shed her innocent image".  She proceeds to walk out in this leather getup, whip and all, looking like she just stepped out of the line-up for the Bunny Ranch whorehouse.

So here is my problem: why is it always that "shedding an image in hollywood" always mean that girls have to turn into sluts?  I get the whole "I'm a woman now" thing, but come on, do you really have to take off your clothes to prove to the world that you went through puberty?!?  When I see old babysitters or friends of the family that knew me when I was a little kid, I don't automatically have to prove to them that I grew boobs by wearing the lowest cut top in my closet.  The same goes for child stars.  Britney's Rolling Stones cover, Christina's "Dirty" video (hell, her whole "Stripped" album), Miley's suggestive pictures in Vanity Fair and her pole dance at the TEEN CHOICE AWARDS, and let's not forget Tiffany who posed for Playboy in 2004 or Jamie Foxworthy from Family Matters who decided it was a good idea to do porn.  WE GET IT LADIES, YOU ARE NOT CHILDREN ANYMORE!!! But I think we would have also gotten it if you kept your clothes on and didn't try everything in your power to show us that you have sex and not the kind sex our mothers taught us about, but the real dirty kind.

Alright, I get that sex sells, I'm not an idiot, but I think there is a difference between being a "sex symbol" and looking like you walked out of an S & M porn shoot.  All that these girls are proving to me is not the fact that they are "shedding their image", but that they are masking a bigger problem: they never had very much talent in the first place.  With the exception of Christina Aguilera, most of the child stars that go to extremes of taking off clothing or kissing Madonna on stage are looking for a publicity gimmick to get the dying spotlight back on them.  I believe a decent example of what happens to child stars who don't take it off is Hilary Duff.  Most of Duff's roles since her Disney fame have been straight to DVD flops or her latest film set to air on ABC family (I guess she's going back to her Disney roots after-all).  For all those Britney fans out there, sorry she really doesn't bring much to the table without a good producer and a fancy soundboard.  Madonna?  Though she never was a child star, she made a whole career off of sex and pushing the envelope.  Yes, she did redefine what was acceptable for women to do or say in the industry as far as being sexual beings but can we finally admit that without her over-sexed image, her vocals alone wouldn't have taken her career as far as it has gone?  

So for all of those child stars that are looking to get back into the "biz" a little advise before you take off all your clothes: Start by disappearing for a while, take some acting classes, and do some indy films to build up your 'street cred'.  If the acting coach tells you your good, go to another credible source for a second opinion.  Second source tells you it's a no go?  Please do yourself a favor and go back to school for something other than acting.

The Barney Kid: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9E9XTld54bM 

Did she make it to hollywood?  Sadly, yes.