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American Idol season 10

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Template:Infobox reality music competition The tenth season of American Idol premiered on January 19, 2011, on Fox. This will be the first season for which 15 year-olds may audition.[1] The show has undergone a number of changes since season nine, which include the reduction of the judging panel to just three judges (two of whom are new), a new executive producer and music director as well as multiple format changes. For the first time, Idol will air on Wednesdays and Thursdays as opposed to the previous schedule of Tuesdays and Wednesdays.

Nigel Lythgoe returns to the senior production team as executive producer for the series.[2] American singer Steven Tyler and American singer-actress Jennifer Lopez join the judging panel as replacements for Simon Cowell, Ellen DeGeneres, and Kara DioGuardi who all left at the end of season nine.[3] Ray Chew replaces Rickey Minor as the show's musical director and leader of the Idol's live band. Universal Music Group has replaced Sony Music Entertainment, as Idol's official partner record label.

As a result one of Universal Music's executives Jimmy Iovine, a songwriter and producer in his own right, was made in-house mentor to work with the contestants on a weekly basis. He will be supported by associated producers: Rodney Jerkins, Alex da Kid, and Timbaland who will all help contestants tailor their song choices to their chosen genre of performance, as well as work in producing arrangements for the contestants and offering original material to be sung live. Other changes are set to include online voting and a Las Vegas round and judges' wild card contestants.

Changes in season 10

There were a number of major changes in season 10, from the judges to the format of the show. Nigel Lythgoe returned as the executive producer, and Ray Chew has been hired as the show's new musical director, replacing Rickey Minor, who left the show along with Dorian Holley to become the musical director of The Tonight Show with Jay Leno.[4]

Judges

Simon Cowell, a judge from the start of the show announced on January 11, 2010, that he would not be returning as a judge for this season in order to focus on launching the American version of hit British singing competition The X Factor.[5] Ellen DeGeneres officially announced her departure on July 29, 2010, and judged only for one season, because she felt the show was not the “"right fit" for her.[6] Kara DioGuardi then announced on September 3, 2010, that she would also not return this season due to her pursuing new projects.[7] On September 22, 2010, it was announced that Jennifer Lopez and Steven Tyler will join the judging panel.[8]

New challenges

"Theme weeks will also get a makeover. We’re not going to ask a country singer to sing an R&B song, or an R&B singer to do Led Zeppelin, ... If the theme is ’80s or Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, every song will be customized to that contestant... What's most important, is that the song suit the finalist's voice."

— Ron Fair[9]

Then beginning in November 2010, returning producer, Nigel Lythgoe, revealed that there would be other significant format changes. New challenges include "contests [having] to make the best music video, to promote themselves, and to work with a band and dancers for an awards show-style performance."[10] Entertainment Weekly reported that the challenges would replace the traditional semi-finals portion of the competition meaning that finalists would go on to compete in the top-twelve for the live shows.[11] However it was later revealed that the music videos challenge was only ever an idea but there were no plans to make it part of season ten of Idol.[12] Entertainment Weekly reported further changes on January 4, 2011. The Hollywood round will return to narrow the contestants down to sixty potential finalists. Those who made the final sixty were then taken to Las Vegas where they were asked to sing songs from The Beatles. Forty contestants left the competition at the end of this round, before the judges placed the remaining twenty contestants, in two groups of ten, before the American public, for a semi-final sudden death round to find ten finalists - five girls and five boys - for the live shows in the finals. Additionally, the judges have been given wild card picks.[13][14]

Partnership with Universal Music

Following Cowell's departure at the end of season nine, Sony Music Entertainment's affiliation to Idol also ended. The partnership was superseded by a new deal with Universal Music Group, meaning that the winner will now be signed to Interscope Records. Interscope's sister labels, A&M Records and Geffen Records, will also be involved in promoting and distributing the albums of the show's finalists.[15][16] Chairman of the Interscope-Geffen-A&M label group, Jimmy Iovine, will work directly with contestants having been given a role on the show as the in-house mentor.[16] Additionally, Billboard revealed that a team of Universal Music-associated producers and songwriters, such as Rodney "Darkchild" Jerkins, Timbaland and Alex da Kid, will work alongside the contestants. It was reported that the new creative team would allow contestants to take on original material and arrangements, not just cover versions, when singing live.[17] The Hollywood Reporter also indicated that other changes for season ten will include online voting and finalists releasing music as the season progresses, rather than waiting for the summer to record an album.[9] Despite previous reports that Idol producers had axed the weekly music theme,[18] in-house mentor Fair, confirmed that the themes would remain.[9]

Regional auditions

The judges sit in this order from left to right: Steven Tyler, Jennifer Lopez, Randy Jackson

This is the first season in which the contestant age limit was reduced to 15-years-old. The maximum age a participant remains to be 28.[19]

Auditions were held in the following cities:[19]

Episode air date Audition city First audition date Audition venue Callback audition date Callback venue Golden ticket totals
January 19, 2011 East Rutherford, New Jersey August 3, 2010 Izod Center September 28–29, 2010 Liberty House Restaurant 51
January 20, 2011 New Orleans, Louisiana July 26, 2010 New Orleans Arena October 17–18, 2010 Hilton Riverside Hotel 37
January 26, 2011 Milwaukee, Wisconsin July 21, 2010 Bradley Center October 2–3, 2010 Milwaukee Art Museum 53
January 27, 2011 Nashville, Tennessee July 17, 2010 Bridgestone Arena October 25–26, 2010 Ryman Auditorium 54
February 2, 2011 Austin, Texas August 11, 2010 Frank Erwin Center October 8–9, 2010 Barton Creek Resort & Spa 50
February 3, 2011 Los Angeles, California September 22, 2010 The Forum November 9–10, 2010
February 9, 2011 San Francisco, California August 19, 2010 AT&T Park November 3–4, 2010
Total Tickets to Hollywood 245

In addition to the above cities, for the first time contestants were allowed to audition via Myspace / Facebook / Twitter. To audition, they were required to upload a 40-second audition clip of them singing a pre-approved song.[20]

Reception

Ratings

Episode Airdate U.S. viewers
(millions) 		Weekly rank Share (%) Rating/Share
(18-49)
Auditions 1[21] January 19 26.23 3 22 9.7 / 26[22]
Auditions 2[21] January 20 22.90 4 20 7.8 / 21[23]
Auditions 3[24] January 26 25.33 1 22 9.2 / 24[25]
Auditions 4[24] January 27 22.48 2 20 7.7 / 21[26]

Controversy

During the first episode of the season, a young girl's breast was exposed while speaking with Seacrest while her relative auditioned. FOX has yet to comment on the situation. On February 1, 2011, host Ryan Seacrest tweeted that a producer's apology would be made during the February 2, 2011 show. Steven Tyler made an apology because of his outrageous behavior and has been warned not to say bad language.

References

  1. ^ "American Idol lowers its age limit". BBC News. 2010-06-22. Retrieved 2010-08-05.
  2. ^ Nigel Lythgoe's return to 'American Idol' a done deal
  3. ^ "J-Lo, Steven Tyler new 'Idol' judges". Fox43/Associated Press. 2010-09-22. Retrieved 2011-01-21.
  4. ^ "Meet "American Idol's" New Bandleader: Ray Chew". NBC Philadelphia. 2010-12-23. Retrieved 2011-01-04.
  5. ^ CNN Staff (January 11, 2010). "Simon Cowell leaving 'American Idol'". CNN Entertainment. CNN. Retrieved September 22, 2010. {{cite news}}: |author= has generic name (help)
  6. ^ Brian Stelter (July 29, 2010). "Ellen DeGeneres Leaving 'American Idol'". The New York Times. Retrieved September 22, 2010.
  7. ^ Ann Donahue (September 3, 2010). "Kara DioGuardi Leaving 'American Idol'". Billboard. Retrieved September 22, 2010.
  8. ^ 'American Idol' Adds Jennifer Lopez, Steven Tyler As Judges
  9. ^ a b c "EXCLUSIVE: 8 Big Changes Coming to 'American Idol' - Idol Worship". Hollywoodreporter.com. 2011-01-04. Retrieved 2011-01-10.
  10. ^ "Exclusive: Nigel Lythgoe Reveals New Challenges for American Idol's 10th Season". TVGuide.com. Retrieved November 18, 2010.
  11. ^ Labrecque, Jeff (2010-11-18). "'American Idol' new challenges include music videos | Inside TV | EW.com". Insidetv.ew.com. Retrieved 2011-01-04.
  12. ^ "Music videos are out, Top 20 semifinals in for 'Idol' Season 10, says EW.com - Idol Chatter: American Idol News, Rumors, & Information". Content.usatoday.com. Retrieved 2011-01-04.
  13. ^ "American Idol Returns, January 19". Content.americanidol.com. 2011-01-11. Retrieved 2011-01-11.
  14. ^ Vary, Adam B. "'American Idol' exclusive: Exec. producers say no music videos, a single Top 20 semi-final round, and the end of gender parity | Inside TV | EW.com". Insidetv.ew.com. Retrieved 2011-01-04.
  15. ^ Lee, Chris (August 4, 2010). "'American Idol' signs recording deal with Universal Music Group". latimes.com. Retrieved 2010-08-05.
  16. ^ a b Williams, Paul. "Iovine to mentor Idol contestants". Music Week. Retrieved 2010-09-23.
  17. ^ Up for Discussion Jump to Forums (2009-09-14). "'American Idol' Makes Big Changes: Original Songs, Faster Release Schedule". Billboard.com. Retrieved 2011-01-10.
  18. ^ "American Idol dumps theme weeks: best move the show has ever made : Beatweek Magazine". Beatweek.com. 2010-09-24. Retrieved 2011-01-10.
  19. ^ a b "Fox Announces American Idol Season 10 Auditions, Lowers Age Limit". Tvbythenumbers.com. Retrieved 2010-08-05.
  20. ^ "'American Idol' on MySpace: Blake Lewis reacts to the news of video tryouts". Los Angeles Times. September 17, 2010. Retrieved September 27, 2010.
  21. ^ a b tvbythenumbers Jan 25, 2011
  22. ^ tvbythenumbers Jan 20,2011
  23. ^ tvbythenumbers Jan 21,2011
  24. ^ a b tvbythenumbers Feb 01, 2011
  25. ^ http://tvbythenumbers.zap2it.com/2011/01/27/wednesday-final-ratings-blue-bloods-adjusted-up-cougar-town-live-to-dance-adjusted-down/80518
  26. ^ http://tvbythenumbers.zap2it.com/2011/01/28/thursday-final-ratings-american-idol-adjusted-up/80640

External links

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