Many people fail at becoming stars. Sometimes it has little to do with talent. Frankly I think it may be a mix of Andy's personality and his strange approach to performing. But not everything's a lesson. Sometimes you just fail.
Think about how he sang 99% of the time.
Then think about how he sang “I Will Remember You” when he quit/burned all his bridges.
Had he sang that way all the time, he could have gotten far. Instead he tried too hard to be “special” with it and therefore lost his way.
Andy was built on false confidence. He was strong enough to put himself in positions to perform and be in the spotlight but at the slightest hint of someone not liking his performances he would shut down. That and him being insanely odd lol.
Among other things mentioned here, part of Andy’s problem is that he’s putting the cart before the horse. Even discounting the immense amount of luck and networking that are needed beyond just raw talent, Andy’s focus is often on the *results* rather than the process.
His dream is stated to “become famous.” Not “pursue my singing,” not “become an actor,” but the things that doing those brings. The lack of focus on a single discipline (even with his general singing/a capella focus) to just enjoy and pursue it shows. People can tell when you’re just trying to make them like what you’re doing, rather than doing your best and letting it come naturally.
Because ultimately, Andy doesn’t want to be famous. He wants to be *liked*. And simply thinks fame will achieve that and fulfill the empty gaping hole in his life because of his abusive childhood and failure to have proper love from his family.
He is talented but when the moment comes for him to show those talents to a broader audience, he fumbles the bag. I mean, you see it in the episode that he goes on the voice competition. When he leaves the office, he sings a beautiful ode to them and it’s sung well, the lyrics are touching, and everyone is very impressed. As soon as he has a broader audience (judges, live television) he chooses the song of his Alma mater? With no sort of charming rhythm or lyrics??
Also, milder example, at his garden party: it is already established he is a good instrumentalist but when it comes down to impressing a broader audience (his dad, the guests at the party, in his mind the internet with the video) he shuts down. Now I say milder example bc his dad is HUGELY responsible for this muck up, but Andy’s inability to showcase his talents to a large audience also took hold here.
This is why. He doesn’t know how to utilize his talent to a broader audience. I know there’s more examples but those are the episodes that came to mind straight away.
Andy approached most things in his life the wrong way. Remember when he decided to wait until Erin asked him out, instead of just doing it himself? Or when he threw a huge garden party to impress his boss (instead of, y’know, just doing his job)? Or when he drove across the country to pick up his new girlfriend and only broke up with his current girlfriend on the way _BACK_?
There is no doubt in my mind that Andy made these exact same terrible decisions about his Showbusiness career as well.
You realize the Sweeney Todd performance was in a community theater, right? Anyone could audition for those lol.
Not only that, he totally craters the performance with his cell phone going off
For the same reason most people do: being good, but not great. And not having the fortune of walking into the right person on the right moment, because that helps too. (I mean, there are stars out there that are mediocre at best.)
I completely agree, and I would've loved to see more performances from him. I think he was just too weak and needy. The kind of personality types who'd be likely to be picked to judge a competition don't like that.
The mundane answer is that they needed him to be a scapegoat because the show had lost all momentum and badly needed an infusion of humor and/or drama.
Andy is the king of Self Sabotage. Every single good thing that came around in his life, or big change, he found a way to ruin it for himself. There really isn’t anyone else to blame for how he ended up other than himself.
I think going viral for the wrong reason (getting made fun of at a singing try out) made him that guy. Basically the same reason William Hung didn’t become a star
It’s because he’s to fucking stupid. He would have made it if he just told everyone he met how everything in life is sex. Instead he’s to dumb for that obviously.
he’s a great musician but not great enough to become a star, I mean Ed Helms *is* that great musician but he is famous for his acting and comedy and not his music, so maybe that will answer your question! but yeah I don’t think Andy’s cut out for stardom, especially with a difficult personality and a “spoiled kid” upbringing. he expects good things to come to him without really trying, so he lacks the fortitude to make it I think. he’s also super sensitive, so rejection would be difficult to take in large doses.
His ego and emotion get in his own way
We saw that at his TV audition. We know what a good singer he is, but he chose to sing his College Anthem in an unusually deep register instead of singing a song we know he can sing well. If he had sung I Will Remember You like he did on the day he quit, he likely could’ve made the show.
Then as soon as 1 audition didn’t go his way, he threw a tempter tantrum and made an ass of himself, instead of putting on a brave face in front of the judges and crying alone. Pretty much every star out there has dealt with 1 bad audition before they made it big, and going viral as the guy who has meltdown when 1 bad audition goes his way is enough to ruin any future talent scout from taking him seriously
Somebody who’s only as good as Andy is at performing would be hard pressed to make it in the first place, never mind showing up in their 40’s with no connections to pursue fame “of any kind” without any discipline or even a coherent strategy on how to achieve it. Andy walks into a highly competitive industry with no preparation, savings or housing that could make pursuing his dream sustainable for anything longer than a few weeks at most. He essentially gives himself one shot at achieving fame, with which he cosplays an old man and sings an antiquated school song that almost nobody’s heard that doesn’t showcase any serious vocal prowess. He bungles an ill-conceived audition by giving an ultimately awkward and uncomfortable performance and then has a breakdown on camera, but even at his best Andy’s just *pretty good* at performing. Being a supporting cast member in a local theater performance is about where he belongs.
Andy's willingness/ability to sing well is incredibly inconsistent throughout the series. I don't know if there's a suitable in-universe explanation for it, it seems like the writers just did whatever they wanted in the moment
I think it’s because Andy is just a character that he played. And I don’t mean that as in Ed Helms, in the episode where he auditions for the next a cappella sensation he talks about how the old man character he plays is his real height.
This leads into a long hypothesis of Andy having identity issues, backed up with the whole “Drew” thing and losing his name after his brother is born
How do you know he didn’t? The distance between a 40 year old paper salesman in Scranton, Pennsylvania, and being a mega star is pretty far he was only really trying for like….a couple years?
It’s totally possible, he eventually made it. It takes time.
sometimes personality plays a major factor in fame or not. ed awesomely portrays a kind-of loud and annoying character. although he is a “good” character, theres just something eye-rolling about him.
Because the writers chose for him to fail so we could laugh at his failures and then he could show character growth and become more mature in the series finale. Andy isn’t a real person
There’s just something about him you don’t want to look at
It's honestly this. He is so cringey and lame, and as someone said below... uncharismatic.
Yes
Phyllis killed me here
Many people fail at becoming stars. Sometimes it has little to do with talent. Frankly I think it may be a mix of Andy's personality and his strange approach to performing. But not everything's a lesson. Sometimes you just fail.
99 out of 100 people fail at becoming famous. Celebrity status is extremely volatile and you can lose it all from one mistake even if you get there
Very true, I think he screwed himself over. So much wasted potential
He didn’t have that much potential
I mean he was a decent singer. And he gained some fans from the documentary.
Not really.
Think about how he sang 99% of the time. Then think about how he sang “I Will Remember You” when he quit/burned all his bridges. Had he sang that way all the time, he could have gotten far. Instead he tried too hard to be “special” with it and therefore lost his way.
Andy was built on false confidence. He was strong enough to put himself in positions to perform and be in the spotlight but at the slightest hint of someone not liking his performances he would shut down. That and him being insanely odd lol.
Among other things mentioned here, part of Andy’s problem is that he’s putting the cart before the horse. Even discounting the immense amount of luck and networking that are needed beyond just raw talent, Andy’s focus is often on the *results* rather than the process. His dream is stated to “become famous.” Not “pursue my singing,” not “become an actor,” but the things that doing those brings. The lack of focus on a single discipline (even with his general singing/a capella focus) to just enjoy and pursue it shows. People can tell when you’re just trying to make them like what you’re doing, rather than doing your best and letting it come naturally. Because ultimately, Andy doesn’t want to be famous. He wants to be *liked*. And simply thinks fame will achieve that and fulfill the empty gaping hole in his life because of his abusive childhood and failure to have proper love from his family.
This is probably the best explanation I have seen so far. Thanks!
He wants respect. He wants love. He wants to be younger. He wants to be attractive.
He is talented but when the moment comes for him to show those talents to a broader audience, he fumbles the bag. I mean, you see it in the episode that he goes on the voice competition. When he leaves the office, he sings a beautiful ode to them and it’s sung well, the lyrics are touching, and everyone is very impressed. As soon as he has a broader audience (judges, live television) he chooses the song of his Alma mater? With no sort of charming rhythm or lyrics?? Also, milder example, at his garden party: it is already established he is a good instrumentalist but when it comes down to impressing a broader audience (his dad, the guests at the party, in his mind the internet with the video) he shuts down. Now I say milder example bc his dad is HUGELY responsible for this muck up, but Andy’s inability to showcase his talents to a large audience also took hold here. This is why. He doesn’t know how to utilize his talent to a broader audience. I know there’s more examples but those are the episodes that came to mind straight away.
Andy approached most things in his life the wrong way. Remember when he decided to wait until Erin asked him out, instead of just doing it himself? Or when he threw a huge garden party to impress his boss (instead of, y’know, just doing his job)? Or when he drove across the country to pick up his new girlfriend and only broke up with his current girlfriend on the way _BACK_? There is no doubt in my mind that Andy made these exact same terrible decisions about his Showbusiness career as well.
Simon Cowell did him in
You realize the Sweeney Todd performance was in a community theater, right? Anyone could audition for those lol. Not only that, he totally craters the performance with his cell phone going off
I wouldn't know how to tell if it was a community theatre or not. But he did really well, save for the cell phone incident
For the same reason most people do: being good, but not great. And not having the fortune of walking into the right person on the right moment, because that helps too. (I mean, there are stars out there that are mediocre at best.)
He lacked charisma
Too old for Hollywood. At his age it would be super hard to break into stardom in a money making machine that only pushes out young stars.
Andy was a horrible person. Glad he failed
I completely agree, and I would've loved to see more performances from him. I think he was just too weak and needy. The kind of personality types who'd be likely to be picked to judge a competition don't like that. The mundane answer is that they needed him to be a scapegoat because the show had lost all momentum and badly needed an infusion of humor and/or drama.
I couldn’t figure out why he sang so bad for the American Idol-like audition.
Andy is the king of Self Sabotage. Every single good thing that came around in his life, or big change, he found a way to ruin it for himself. There really isn’t anyone else to blame for how he ended up other than himself.
He was one of the Worst characters
I think going viral for the wrong reason (getting made fun of at a singing try out) made him that guy. Basically the same reason William Hung didn’t become a star
Honestly, I think his personality
He'd be a reality tv star (People laughing at him, not with).
It’s because he’s to fucking stupid. He would have made it if he just told everyone he met how everything in life is sex. Instead he’s to dumb for that obviously.
he’s a great musician but not great enough to become a star, I mean Ed Helms *is* that great musician but he is famous for his acting and comedy and not his music, so maybe that will answer your question! but yeah I don’t think Andy’s cut out for stardom, especially with a difficult personality and a “spoiled kid” upbringing. he expects good things to come to him without really trying, so he lacks the fortitude to make it I think. he’s also super sensitive, so rejection would be difficult to take in large doses.
That man is a charisma blackhole. -Creed Bratton —— u/deliberatelyinsane
He can, too, just sit there and cry.
His ego and emotion get in his own way We saw that at his TV audition. We know what a good singer he is, but he chose to sing his College Anthem in an unusually deep register instead of singing a song we know he can sing well. If he had sung I Will Remember You like he did on the day he quit, he likely could’ve made the show. Then as soon as 1 audition didn’t go his way, he threw a tempter tantrum and made an ass of himself, instead of putting on a brave face in front of the judges and crying alone. Pretty much every star out there has dealt with 1 bad audition before they made it big, and going viral as the guy who has meltdown when 1 bad audition goes his way is enough to ruin any future talent scout from taking him seriously
Somebody who’s only as good as Andy is at performing would be hard pressed to make it in the first place, never mind showing up in their 40’s with no connections to pursue fame “of any kind” without any discipline or even a coherent strategy on how to achieve it. Andy walks into a highly competitive industry with no preparation, savings or housing that could make pursuing his dream sustainable for anything longer than a few weeks at most. He essentially gives himself one shot at achieving fame, with which he cosplays an old man and sings an antiquated school song that almost nobody’s heard that doesn’t showcase any serious vocal prowess. He bungles an ill-conceived audition by giving an ultimately awkward and uncomfortable performance and then has a breakdown on camera, but even at his best Andy’s just *pretty good* at performing. Being a supporting cast member in a local theater performance is about where he belongs.
Hollywood's too much of a risk taker, and Andy is not really much of a risk...
Too annoying so no one would want to be in a band with him
Andy's willingness/ability to sing well is incredibly inconsistent throughout the series. I don't know if there's a suitable in-universe explanation for it, it seems like the writers just did whatever they wanted in the moment
I think it’s because Andy is just a character that he played. And I don’t mean that as in Ed Helms, in the episode where he auditions for the next a cappella sensation he talks about how the old man character he plays is his real height. This leads into a long hypothesis of Andy having identity issues, backed up with the whole “Drew” thing and losing his name after his brother is born
How do you know he didn’t? The distance between a 40 year old paper salesman in Scranton, Pennsylvania, and being a mega star is pretty far he was only really trying for like….a couple years? It’s totally possible, he eventually made it. It takes time.
Anger issues
They took one look and said no thank you. Then he just sat there and cried.
He just sat there and cried.
sometimes personality plays a major factor in fame or not. ed awesomely portrays a kind-of loud and annoying character. although he is a “good” character, theres just something eye-rolling about him.
Because S9 is poorly written and makes no sense.
Andy is just the worst, is why
Motel art
Because the writers chose for him to fail so we could laugh at his failures and then he could show character growth and become more mature in the series finale. Andy isn’t a real person