Addison (Addie) Carver of Mississippi is Miss Teen USA 2024! My prediction wins the crown!!
Addie, your daddy is smiling down on you from Heaven!
The new Miss Teen USA, Mississippi's Addie Carver lost her father three years ago due to lung cancer when she was 13 years old and she is now 16 years old and an accomplished dancer, dance teacher and choreographer who had graceful moves and a breathtakingly, angelic gown. This is the second win for the Magnolia state after 37 long years since the stunning Kristi Lynn Addis won Mississippi's first Miss Teen USA crown in 1987 (one of the best Miss Teen USA pageants ever). I'm glad I was able to see Addie's win coming so clearly! Woohoo! 2024 marks the fifth time I correctly predicted the winner of Miss Teen USA. The previous years I correctly predicted the winner of Miss Teen USA were: 2010, 2012, 2016 and 2020 (all the recent leap years coincidentally)!
Now, let’s just go back to something I wrote in last year’s Miss Teen USA commentary: My friend Paulo said to me, “the NJ/NY top 2 reminded him of Miss America 1984 where famously these two states were the last ones standing thanks to Vanessa Williams and Suzette Charles. (Let's just hope nothing outrageous happens to the new Miss Teen USA like it did to Vanessa!). I'm sure UmaSofia will have a fine reign as Miss Teen USA!” But… boy, was I wrong (like always…) but what an interesting plot twist! In some weird way with New Jersey and New York being the final two at both Miss Teen USA 2023 and 40 years prior, Miss America 1984 (the pageant was held in September 1983 with the winner, New York’s Vanessa Williams later relinquishing her title as Miss America in July 1984 after nude photos of her were released to Penthouse magazine to save the pageant’s reputation and then New Jersey’s Suzette Charles assuming the 1984 Miss America title with just 7 weeks remaining until the new Miss America was crowned), it was almost like history repeated itself with a final two consisting of delegates from New Jersey and New York at Miss Teen USA 2023 only to have the 2023 titleholder resign! New Jersey’s UmaSofia Srivastava gave up her crown as Miss Teen USA 2023 on May 9, 2024 with less than 3 months left in her reign standing in solidarity with her sister queen, Noelia Voigt who resigned a few days prior from her position as Miss USA 2023 citing a toxic work environment and mental health issues. UmaSofia’s runner-up, New York’s Stephanie Skinner declined to assume the Miss Teen USA title saying it was a decision that she did not take lightly.
She said what comes before a crown is character and her character will always be a
priority to her and she is a firm believer is letting her actions speak louder than
words and hopes her decision is respected. The 2nd runner up for Miss Teen USA,
Pennsylvania’s Maggie Ross also did not accept the title and I'm not sure that she was even asked or could be reached so
the position of
Miss Teen USA remained vacant so Savannah Gankiewicz served double duty and crowned the new Miss
Teen USA and the new Miss USA. UmaSofia’s Mouawad crown was even broken but was never fixed and the new Miss Teen USA was crowned with a crown designed by Ricardo Patraca. I guess what this taught us is that we should always expect an unusual year if New York and New Jersey are the final two in any other pageants…
Laylah Rose Loiczly took over directorship of the Miss USA and Miss Teen USA pageants from Crystle Stewart’s Miss Brand after a two year stint for 2021 and 2022 that was fraught with controversy after many accusations of favoritism for the 2022 Miss USA winner, R’Bonney Gabriel from Crystle’s home state of Texas but also that Crystle’s husband allegedly acted inappropriately with some contestants so then president of the Miss Universe organization, Paula Shugart said they were taking back control of Miss Teen USA and Miss USA after it was released to Crystle for 2021 and Paula indicated that there was no wrongdoing found after an investigation and the 2022 Miss USA winner, R’Bonney Gabriel of Texas would go on to win Miss Universe 2022. Crystle and Paula both gave up their respective pageants in 2023 and Laylah Rose Loiczly took over in August 2023 with a last minute scramble to get the pageants ready for September 2023 but she managed to get Miss USA on a better television network than fyi which was the CW but Miss Teen USA was relegated to a webcast yet again but only available on the CW app which wasn’t even available in Canada but Laylah worked a deal and now both the 2024 Miss Teen USA and Miss USA pageants aired on the CW network marking the first time that Miss Teen USA came back on the air since 2007 (a whopping 17 years ago! How teen appropriate! Most of today’s contestants weren’t even born yet when Miss Teen USA was on TV.) This was quite the achievement for Laylah. The pageant was webcast from 2008 to 2022 with the CW app stream in 2023. Miss Teen USA started in 1983 and aired on CBS until 2002, then NBC aired the Miss Teen USA pageants from 2003 to 2007. 2007 turned out to be a pivotal year when ‘Pageant Place’ which was a spinoff show that aired on MTV followed the Miss Universe, USA and Teen USA titleholders during their reign. Remember those days?? Well, the 2007 pageant suffered a ratings blow despite the notable answer about maps given by South Carolina’s Lauren Caitlin (Caite) Upton that went viral on this new-fangled thing called YouTube and was mocked on some late night talk shows and featured on various other shows giving Caite Upton some stardom making appearances at special events and even being cast on The Amazing Race in 2010 finishing in 3rd place with her then boyfriend, Brent Horne. People’s viewing habits have changed dramatically since that time and very few special events can hold the audiences they once did. Miss Teen USA had some stiff competition and finished 5th for the night of August 1 with the ratings measuring 470,000 viewers in the USA. NBC, ABC, CBS and FOX all ranked above it for that night. Miss USA pulled in slightly more (582,000 on August 4) ranking 4th for that night ahead of FOX. Of course, NBC airing the Olympics was the most dominant in the ratings race which pulled in 15.53 million viewers on August 1 but there are loyal pageant fans out there. I totally understand the decline in interest though. Even though I have been doing commentaries for years on Miss Teen USA, I have seen the interest in it completely dying over the years so I don’t put in as much effort to reporting on it as I do for Miss Universe and Miss USA. Miss Teen USA is just not what it once was in the 80s and 90s which was a large spectacle filled with great choreography, special performers and just better entertainment value. The 2000s saw a dip in quality over time. It’s like a state pageant now and it has become generic and stale and just lacking the ‘energy to burn’ that it once had but I hope it stays on the air so we shall see what the future holds.
This is the seventh year in a row that Miss Teen USA and Miss USA were concurrent events happening in the same week at the same venue which has been done since 2018 so both pageants were held at the Peacock Theater in Los Angeles, California. The pageant began with the delegates walking out in their nice metallic Sherri Hill cocktail dresses in a simple circle formation to get back to their place as each delegate’s name and state was read out by a female announcer. The hosts then came out and they were Justin Sylvester of E! News and Rachel Lindsay who was the Bachelorette in 2017. Rachel’s bit temporarily going into Bachelorette mode was funny saying the ladies were seeking a ring or rose. The special commentators were: Miss USA 2022-Morgan Romano and Miss USA 2023-Savannah Gankiewicz both inheriting their titles in very different ways but they did a decent job but you could tell they were reading prompters. Something about the way Savannah speaks reminds me a lot of Puerto Rico’s Joyce Giraud who was 2nd runner up at Miss Universe 1998. The video packages were nice seeing the ladies enjoying their visit to an amusement park during their short visit to California. The all-female panel of judges consisted of: actress Francia Raisa, professional dancer Rylee Arnold, influencer Alyssa Carson, Kaliegh Garris – Miss Teen USA 2019 from Connecticut and Shree Saini – Miss World USA 2021 and first runner up at Miss World 2021/22 from Washington and Shree was originally supposed to judge last year but she made it this year. Did you notice that both Connecticut and Washington didn’t place at Teen despite having titleholders from their states in the judging panel whereas Michigan and South Carolina both placed at Miss USA having Michigan’s Carole Gist-Miss USA 1990 and South Carolina’s Lu Parker-Miss USA 1994 amongst their judges? Funny how that works, isn’t it?
At least, they got the winner right but what the hell was this random top 20?? I've long known that we should expect very random choices at Miss Teen USA as we have seen many times. There were a lot of achieved beauties left standing in the background. Like Trump once said, "I am so sick of some of the most beautiful women in the world standing in the background as others are chosen." So what's to blame? Was it really interview? Is it poor judging? Or is it that some of the real contenders didn't really want to win and possibly purposely blew interview given the controversies of both the original Miss USA 2023-Noelia Voigt and the original Miss Teen USA 2023-UmaSofia Srivastava resigning? Or was it that there was a clear winner in Mississippi this year and they wanted to pad the semifinalists with less competition by surrounding her with weaker delegates? I liken this scenario to the top 10 of Miss USA 2000 with a clear winner in Lynnette Cole who could shine even brighter amongst a weakened top 10. Even though I predicted the winner, I picked only 8 of this top 20 plus 3 alternates (New York, Maryland and Rhode Island), 4 honorable mentions (Kansas, Nebraska, Alabama and West Virginia), 2 next tier delegates (District of Columbia and Virginia) and the 3 that I missed were: Missouri, Montana and South Dakota. The 12 ladies in my list that didn't place were: Nevada, North Dakota, Maine, Iowa, Ohio, New Mexico, California, Florida, South Carolina, North Carolina, New Jersey and Pennsylvania. We had an all-female panel of judges this year so maybe the results would have been different with some male judges. Nevada, North Dakota and Maine were all blondes and all very photogenic and all three had amazing gowns and I can’t really see any of them not doing well in interview either. Nevada’s red flower gown and her fun skipping in active wear and beaming smile made her a standout and Maine had an amazing look with her off-shoulder flowy pink gown and her hair in a high ponytail so I have no clue what happened there. I thought the judges would love Iowa even though I wanted to see a slightly better gown but she is very talented as she can play five instruments and wrote a children’s book so her exclusion was a mystery too. Ohio seemed refreshing and just had a naturally sweet and friendly demeanor and a distinct look with the tanned skin and lighter hair so I thought she was a standout. New Mexico had previously been a runner-up at Miss Texas Teen USA and she had one of the best headshots but I guess maybe needed a better gown? California was a good overall candidate but I did think the slit in her gown was too high for Teen. Florida seemed really bubbly and she is tall so I’m not sure what happened here. South Carolina and North Carolina normally do well and both these ladies were achieved but perhaps not as strong facially. New Jersey looked decent overall but perhaps it was interview. Pennsylvania was tall but maybe too tall for Teen?
In a special award ceremony post-pageant, Kansas apparently won both fitness and interview so that she didn't make top 5 was somewhat curious. West Virginia did indeed pull a Miriam Quiambao and parlayed a fall in the orchestra pit on the stage during the preliminary active wear competition to a top 5 position. Florida won the State Costume award for Teen. Maryland won Photogenic. Delaware (who has down syndrome) won Congeniality as many would expect. Best in gown was Tennessee (coincidentally Tennessee won gown both Teen and Miss and placed 3rd runner up in each pageant also!) and the People's Choice Award went to New York which secured her entry into the top 20.
Illinois followed and she was one of the more entertaining ones to watch because of her bouncy ponytail and the skip in her step was very Teen and she looked like she was enjoying herself. District of Columbia is actually quite photogenic but body-wise, I’m sure she was more of a diversity pick. Maryland followed being one of two delegates of Indian descent competing this year. She is an economics student at the University of Michigan so interview likely went well for her and I’m sure judge Shree took a liking to her. Texas was great and very fresh, fun and friendly so I was surprised that she didn’t advance to top 10. South Dakota, I’m assuming they threw this state a bone this year as this state rarely places and this is only the 4th time they have placed. This spot could have gone to someone better. Alabama looked very Teen and just stopped herself from during a twirl when it was posing time for the judges. Kansas apparently won best in active wear and I can see that as she is indeed quite fit. Missouri followed and I didn’t see this one coming but this was as far as she would go. Next up, our star of the evening, Mississippi who just sparkled and looked spectacular just like a rightful Miss Teen USA should! Arkansas followed being the other of two delegates of Indian descent and she was deserving and a great overall candidate. I think we will see Siyona at Miss USA in the near future. Virginia was next and I did see her being favored by others but I didn’t really see it. Tennessee followed and this girl is quite accomplished as she is an executive producer of an Amazon/Roku Channel and has an online clothing boutique. Georgia also was a favorite this year so it was no surprise to see this Afro-Latina-Asian diverse young lady do so well. Next up, West Virginia pulled a Miriam Quiambao (who was 1st runner up at Miss Universe 1999 representing the Philippines and also fell in the preliminary gown competition but recovered from it nicely and parlayed that fall into a high placement) so Olivia also fell in the orchestra pit during the preliminary active wear competition but she jumped out of the pit giving a thumbs up and letting us know she was okay. It was a standout moment in an otherwise boring competition so she was rewarded handsomely and a newly covered-up barriered orchestra pit meant no falls this time! During the state costume competition later on the evening of July 31 after Teen preliminaries, Ohio and Pennsylvania’s delegates also fell in the orchestra pit and apparently so did the CEO herself, Laylah Rose so I’m sure she decided to take quick action on covering those orchestra pits up! Rhode Island was next and I was getting strong vibes that she would place when I only made her an alternate in my list but as is always the problem with predicting is who do you take out but then you find out later, you had many options! Utah was next and I liked the blond hair extensions and how she whipped them around and her spins. It was all very fun. Arizona followed being one of the few contestants of Samoan descent and she looked very Teen and had a distinct look so it was nice to see Arizona place this year when their delegate last year was my choice for winner but mysteriously went unplaced. Montana followed and they placed for only the 2nd time in history with the first being their only winner, Katie Blair in 2006 but this spot could have gone to another delegate instead of Montana being thrown a bone. Finally, New York is a Trini, Carnival is her thing. She knows how to party! Valarie won the online vote but I think she could have placed on her own, she brought the diverse teen look to the mix.
After the top 10 was announced, it was time for the gowns. Arizona was up first wearing a light purple ball gown with a sparkly bodice and a nicely pleated ruffles on the sides of the train and It was actually a great choice for Teen. Alabama’s gown was also a great teen gown as it was light pink with a ruffly attachment over the bust with sparkled lines on it and flowery sparkle designs running down one part of the lower part of the ballgown so it was quite unique and she looked happy to be wearing it. West Virginia followed in a sky-blue silk gown with a full tulle train and jeweled bodice with a jeweled cuff neck and off-shoulder beaded straps and it was a nice gown and very teen appropriate. Tennessee followed in a great white gown with pink and silver beaded floral designs on the bodice and a full white tulle train and it was simply divine. Usually, print gowns get punished but a gown of this calibre could only be praised which would be why she won best in evening gown but I actually think this award should have to gone to the next delegate, Mississippi, who deservedly won the big prize anyway so it doesn’t matter but Addie’s white flowy gown was easily the best gown of the competition with an open jeweled lowered neckline and a jeweled crisscross design in the midsection and it was sheer perfection (reminiscent of Miss USA 2017-Kára McCullough’s gown) and you can tell she’s a dancer because of how she worked the gown and her moves on stage were so graceful and elegant. White used to be such a popular color for gowns especially in Teen and recent years have been getting away from that but as Julie Moran said during Miss Teen USA 2000, white and petal pink really pop on screen. Kansas followed in an orange gown with a full train and jeweled neckline and midsection and pleating at the bust and orange is a rare gown color so I guess it stands out more. But I guess it’s not so rare because here comes Maryland also in an orange gown with a criss-cross neckline and jeweled bodice and a ruffled skirt and a solid orange belt above the waistline. The delegates of Indian descent were called back to back and Arkansas followed Maryland in a jeweled light teal gown with a cape that had a bunch of bows at the elbows and light teal material running down to the floor. I think the cape-like attachment would have been better without the bows especially since many of them looked out of place but it’s probably suitable for Teen and while Siyona won her state title with a similar gown with the bowed arm-piece cape, the gown she wore for Miss Teen USA had a cuffneck whereas the gown she wore at her state pageant didn’t have the cuffneck design. Georgia followed in a classic yellow ball gown with a jeweled off-shoulder bodice and it was great. Illinois followed in another of the better gowns of this competition. It was a flowy lavender gown with a jeweled bodice and a v-cut neckline but the sleeves changed at the elbows to a flowy lavender cape extension to match the skirt with feathers on the end and showed it off with a nice spin. It was a divine gown and Arianna carried it lovelily. Is that a word? Well, I’m making it a word now! Lovelily means in a manner that is lovelier than lovely…
Now it was time to announce the final 5: West Virginia, Tennessee, Georgia, Arizona and Mississippi and each had to answer the final question, What is the biggest challenge facing today’s young people and how do we overcome it? This question reminds me of the judge’s question posed to Colombia’s Carolina Gomez during Miss Universe 1994 which was ‘What is the greatest problem facing young people in the world today?’ West Virginia’s answer was, “I think the mental health stigma is a huge challenge facing young people today but as a future psychiatrist, I’m so proud to say that I think that it’s not a stigma anymore. We are accepting that mental health is a real thing and we’re accepting that people need treatment for it and to speak out whenever you need help. As the next Miss Teen USA, I would love to travel the nation and spread this message of mental health and keeping a positive mindset and putting yourself first. You know, last night, I fell in that pit and I had two choices: get up or let it defeat me and I didn’t let it defeat me. (laughs and audience cheers) Life will throw you curveballs but it’s all about the comeback!” What a great answer! And she incorporated that fall in the prelims in her answer and Miriam Quiambaoed her way into the top 5. So why was she 4th runner up? Honestly, it was likely the fall that got her that far so I guess the judges wanted to bring her to the top 5 for such a nice recovery from that fall. Next was Tennessee who answered, “The biggest challenge facing us today is our addiction to technology and through my initiative, Technology Timeout, I encourage people to find balance in their life, to take a 60 minute break from technology every day to prevent the sedentary lifestyles that social media causes in our lives.” I’m getting all these 90s throwbacks because I immediately think of Miss USA 1998-Shawnae Jebbia competing for Miss Universe 1998 when I hear the phrase ‘sedentary lifestyle’ and this was a very real and relevant answer but clearly prepared. Georgia answered, “I believe that self-love has definitely made a really big impact on my generation. I’ve seen some of my closest friends struggle with loving themselves but the reason why I created Beautiful Differences was because I, myself, didn’t love myself and who I was. I… Growing up, I was multicultural and I was consistently bullied about it but I created my Beautiful Differences initiative which has helped me make an impact in my community and it’s helped me love myself. It’s helped me educate others on celebrating all differences because what makes you different is what makes you beautiful. Thank you.” A great message in this answer and well delivered. Arizona answered, “I would have to say the challenge that’s facing most young people today would be embracing our true selves. Growing up as a first generation Polynesian American, I always struggled so much to embrace my Samoan heritage but now leaning back on my culture and knowing that I have a family behind me at [Dad’s?] and I have a family back in the islands has taught me so much strength inside myself. Starting my organization, Rachael’s Aoga Project where I give back to my communities and the preschools within Arizona (bell dings) all the way down to Samoa knowing that if I lean on my culture and embrace (bell dings) it, I can accomplish truly amazing (bell dings) things. I thought those three bell dings during her answer would mean that she would be 4th runner up but I guess the judges were a little more forgiving. Finally, Mississippi answered, “Not just mental health but learning how to cope with mental health struggles that we all face. Whenever I was just 13 years old, my dad passed away of lung cancer and as all of you can imagine, that was not easy for me to have to go through and my mental health struggled severely but I was able to find hope again and that was through the art of dance which is why I created my own organization called Dance To Empower which is founded on bringing the joy of dance to everyone and as the next Miss Teen USA, I want to make it my mission to know that every little girl who was just like me once is never alone.” As expected, Addie mentioned her father’s passing in this answer and her message was inspirational but hey, when you’re it, you’re it and Addie was definitely it. Absolutely a deserving Miss Teen USA.
Then the final five during their final look accompanied by a video package. West Virginia said, “Winning Miss Teen USA means so many different things. It means new doors open and new opportunities and the chance of a lifetime. Coming from a small state where sometimes our awesome people are overlooked, I would be proof that you do not have to live in the shadow of what others might mistakenly believe. Instead, set your goals high, work tirelessly and block out negativity to prove who you are and what you bring the table.” Tennessee said, “As a small business owner, I understand the job of Miss Teen USA and I will work to strengthen the brand assets of the organization to ultimately leave my position better for my successor. I will be encouraging teens to take a chance on themselves to open doors of possibility within our organization.” Was this statement a little dig at UmaSofia? It probably wasn’t intended to be that but the ‘leave my position better for my successor’ statement kind of gave me that impression. Georgia said, “To me, it would mean making 7-year-old Ava proud and especially my Nana. She came to America for the American dream and that means a lot to me. Knowing that I can represent the state of Georgia for the first time as Miss Teen USA, it means a lot to me to even be here and have this opportunity and knowing that I live by this everyday as a mentor and as Miss Teen USA.” I’m glad she at least knows that Georgia has never won Miss Teen USA. If you believe it, Ava is the fourth 1st runner up that Georgia has had at Miss Teen USA so they have come closer than any other state to winning without actually winning! Arizona said, “It would mean being a representative for an organization that uplifts women in spaces where women are not always welcome like myself, a first-generation Samoan-American, female pilot and a founder of my own non-profit organization. This is a year to encourage and empower everyone and not just myself.” Finally, Mississippi said, “Winning Miss Teen USA would be life-changing and that is exactly what I want to do as a titleholder, change lives. Being the next Miss Teen USA also means using this platform to show everyone that no matter what challenges you may face in your life, the sky is never the limit. It’s just the starting point.” After we were done feeling all inspired and empowered, it was time to announce the results.
