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Revision as of 12:47, 10 June 2007
| American Idol | |
|---|---|
| File:AmericanIdoltitlecard.jpg American Idol title card | |
| Created by |  Simon Fuller |
| Directed by | Bruce Gowers |
| Presented by |  Ryan Seacrest Brian Dunkleman (Co-host Season One 2002) |
| Starring | Simon Cowell Paula Abdul Randy Jackson |
| No. of episodes | 202 (list of episodes) |
| Production | |
| Executive producers | Nigel Lythgoe Ken Warwick Simon Fuller |
| Running time | Varies |
| Original release | |
| Network | FOX |
| Release | June 11 2002 – Present Renewed Through 2009 |
American Idol is an annual American televised singing competition, which began its first season on June 11, 2002. Part of the Idol franchise, it originated from the UK reality program Pop Idol.
The program seeks to discover the best young singer in the country, through a series of nationwide auditions. The outcomes of the latter stages of this competition are determined by public voting by phone. The format features three judges who critique the contestants' performances in order to facilitate the voting: record producer and bass player Randy Jackson; former pop star Paula Abdul; and producer and manager Simon Cowell. Ryan Seacrest is the host.
The show usually airs on Tuesday and Wednesday nights and has millions of viewers. In its six seasons, its six winners have been, in order of their season, Kelly Clarkson, Ruben Studdard, Fantasia Barrino, Carrie Underwood, Taylor Hicks, and Jordin Sparks. All of the American Idols are from the Southern U.S, five from the South and one, Jordin Sparks, from the Southwest. Hicks was the oldest winner at 29, Sparks the youngest at just 17.
American Idol is televised on the Fox Network in the United States and on Fox Network and CTV in Canada. The Idol series was first created by Simon Fuller (manager of the Spice Girls and S Club 7) and developed by Simon Jones of FremantleMedia. The directors are Bruce Gowers (director of Queen's original "Bohemian Rhapsody" video), Nigel Lythgoe (a judge on So You Think You Can Dance) and Ken Warwick (Gladiators and Grudge Match).
Rules
Damir Kovacevic is the lead director of the Fox television show American Idol. Contestants are not permitted to have any current record deals or talent management agreements (though they may have had one at some point in the past). Contestants must be U.S. citizens eligible to work full-time and, for the first three seasons, had to be 16 to 24 years of age on October 19 of the year of audition. Since the fourth season, the upper age limit was raised to 28 with an earlier cutoff date, August 4, to attract more mature and diverse contestants.
Auditioning contestants must bring with them to the audition a valid proof of age and citizenship, such as a birth certificate, driver's license or a passport, and minors under the age of 18 must be accompanied by a parent or guardian. All auditioning contestants are required to sign on to the Web at www.americanidol.com and print out a copy of the release form to fill out and turn in at the audition in order to grant permission to be seen and heard by the producers' cameras. Contestants who were found out to have given false information are disqualified. It should be noted that after auditioning - regardless of the outcome (even if eliminated on the very first cut) - contestants are under contract with the show until three months after the final episode.[1]
Others who are ineligible include: those have made it to a top 30 on Season 1, top 32 on Seasons 2 and 3, or top 24 on Seasons 4 and 5; affiliates of Fox, Fremantle, 19, (e.g., its sponsors, subsidiaries and parent companies); and non-US citizens. Even if a person is eligible, he or she may not have a chance to audition or be seen because the show can see only a limited number of people in each city.
In an interview with Anderson Cooper on the CBS TV current affairs show 60 Minutes on March 17, 2007 (repeated in extended format on CNN's AC 360 program on March 27, 2007), judge Simon Cowell openly declared that the underlying primary purpose of the Idol franchise (including American Idol) was for 19 Entertainment (the parent corporation that produces the Idol TV shows) to discover new singing talent that can be signed to recording agreements that the corporation maintains with a major record company (Sony/BMG) and benefit from the record sales of contestants and winners who are exposed to the worldwide marketplace through the TV shows. Cowell indicated that revenue from recordings by performers associated with the Idol franchise has already exceeded US $100 million. 19 Entertainment also retains exclusive right of refusal for management and merchandising of any contestant. Exercising management rights is at the sole discretion of 19 Entertainment; in the alternative the contestant performer is free to pursue his or her own career.
Early auditions
In the show, hopeful contestants are screened by preliminary panels to be selected for singing talent or humorous potential and human interest. The audition process is long and tedious, beginning with tens of thousands of candidates strategically interviewed and eliminated before being individually auditioned by show producers Ken Warwick and Nigel Lythgoe (often slide shows of horrendously terrible candidates are shown from this interview).
Contestants then audition before the three main judges - Simon Cowell, Paula Abdul, and Randy Jackson - in selected cities across the United States. Sometimes a celebrity fourth judge may be added. These are generally held at large convention centers where thousands of people wait in line for auditions. Contestants are required to sing a short one-minute a cappella snatch. Those who impress the judges enough move on to the second-round auditions, which take place in Hollywood (typically only several dozen out of the thousands in each city move on).
Much like the original Pop Idol, one of the most popular segments of each season are initial episodes showcasing Idol hopefuls auditioning before the panel. These early episodes feature a mixture of the finer auditioning singers and many of the outright "rejects"; these included Season 1's portrayal of Lady Marmalade, Season 2's performance of Madonna's Like a Virgin by Keith Beukelaer and Season 3's rendition of Ricky Martin's She Bangs by William Hung.
Idol audition cities
Hollywood and semifinals
Once in Hollywood, the three judges narrow the initial field of a few hundred down to a group of 24 semi-finalists (30 in Season 1 and 32 in Seasons 2 and 3). Beginning with the fourth season, the semi-finalists were split into two groups separating the male contestants from the female contestants, promoting an equal number of each sex to the finals. The judges, from this point on, serve almost entirely in an advisory capacity, with no direct influence on the results.
Viewers have two hours following the broadcast of the show in their time zone to phone in votes for their favorite contestant by calling a toll-free number. Callers are allowed to vote as many times as they like for any number of contestants, as long as they vote within the voting window for the time zone assigned to their phone's area code.
The contestants sing a song of their choice and the two from each gender with the lowest public vote total are eliminated from the competition.
Final twelve
In the finals, which last eleven weeks, each finalist performs a song live in prime time from a weekly theme (two songs in later rounds) at CBS Television City in Los Angeles, California in front of a live studio audience. Themes have included Motown, disco, big band music, and Billboard #1 hits. Some themes are based on music recorded by a particular artist, and the finalists have a chance to work with that artist in preparing their performances. Artists around whom themes have been based include Billy Joel, Neil Sedaka, The Bee Gees, Barry Manilow, Rod Stewart, Gloria Estefan, Elton John, Stevie Wonder, Queen and Elvis Presley. Once in the top 5, the contestants sing two songs each.
When there are three finalists remaining, themes are no longer used. Instead, each contestant sings three songs: one of their own choice, one chosen by the judges, and one chosen by record executive Clive Davis. However, in Season 2, in the final three, one song was chosen randomly from a bowl, with one chosen by the performer and one by the judges.
In any case, each week on the following night's live "results" episode, the contestant with the fewest votes is sent home. Then in the finale, one remaining contestant is declared the winner. The stage is moved to the Kodak Theatre for the finale showdown, where the two remaining contestants perform for an audience of at least 3,400. The winner is announced at the end of the show. The winner receives a one million (US) dollar record deal with a major label, and is managed by American Idol-related 19 Management. In some cases, non-winners have also been signed by the show's management company (who has first option to sign finalists) and received record deals with its major label partner.
Each season a compilation album with the top twelve finalists (top ten for Season One) is also released. Other compilations, such as a Christmas album, have also been released. Top ten finalists participate in a post-season American Idol promotional concert tour.
Season synopses
Season 1
The first season of American Idol debuted without hype as a summer replacement show (with the full title American Idol: The Search For A Superstar) in June 2002 on the Fox Broadcasting Company after being rejected by numerous other networks. The show's co-hosts were Ryan Seacrest and Brian Dunkleman. Through word of mouth generated by the appeal of its contestants and the presence of acid-tongued British judge Simon Cowell, the show grew into a phenomenon. An estimated fifty million people watched the Season 1 finale in September 2002. Following such a success, the second season was moved to air the upcoming January. The number of episodes increased, as did the show's budget and the charge for commercial spots.
Winner Kelly Clarkson signed with RCA Records, the label in partnership with American Idol's 19 Management. Immediately post-finale, Clarkson released two singles, most notably the coronation song "A Moment Like This" which climbed to number 52, but marked the biggest jump in Billboard Hot 100 history when it shot to number one, breaking a record set by The Beatles. As part of the promotion planned for the show's first winner, the song had been pre-recorded ready to air on radio stations the day after the finale. Appearances on numerous entertainment/news shows followed, as did videos for the singles that began airing on MTV's TRL. Clarkson has subsequently had two successful albums, Thankful and Breakaway, and several hit singles mostly from her more successful second album Breakaway. While her first album failed to sell outside of North America, her second was a global success and garnered two Grammy Awards in 2006.
The show inspired a 2003 musical film, From Justin to Kelly, featuring Kelly Clarkson and runner-up Justin Guarini. The musical love story, produced by American Idol's Simon Fuller, was filmed in Miami, Florida over a period of six weeks shortly after the season ended. Released several months later in June 2003, the film failed to make back its budget[2] during its short run in theatres and is often ranked among the worst movies ever made. A DVD with additional footage was released and the movie airs periodically in the U.S. and other countries.
Besides Clarkson and Guarini, also signed were Nikki McKibbin (3rd), Tamyra Gray (4th), RJ Helton (5th), and Christina Christian (6th). It is the only year the runner-up did not release a single following the show's finale.
Runner-up Justin Guarini also signed with RCA Records. Contract restrictions required him to reject outside offers received and delay solo projects following the season finale, eventually debuting an album in 2003 after the conclusion of Season 2. RCA dropped him shortly after its debut. Guarini formed his own entertainment company and independently released a second album in 2005, with a third album and an independent movie scheduled for release in 2006. Nikki McKibbin signed with RCA, but quit because she refused to record a country album. She has since made appearances on various Reality TV shows and is working on her debut album. Tamyra Gray was signed to RCA but was dropped when she demanded to write the album. She then signed with Idol creator Simon Fuller's new label 19 Entertainment. Gray's self-written debut album was released in 2004. In 2005, she was dropped by the label. She had a supporting role in the 2005 movie The Gospel. RJ Helton released a Christian album, but sales were lackluster. Ryan Starr had trouble getting out of her contract with RCA Records but managed to independently release a single, My Religion, which sold 360,000 downloads via iTunes. She is expected to release her debut album in 2007. Jim Verraros, who came out of the closet after being voted in American Idol, starred in an indie film and released a dance-pop album, charting a dance hit on Billboard. Christina Christian, EJay Day (tenth), and AJ Gil (eighth) have had little success after the show.
Starting September 30 2006, the first season of American Idol is being repackaged as "American Idol Rewind" and syndicated on select T.V.D. stations in the US.
| Date | Bottom Three | ||
| July 17 | EJay Day | Jim Verraros | Nikki McKibbin |
| July 24 | A.J. Gil | Ryan Starr | Christina Christian |
| July 31 | Ryan Starr (2) | Justin Guarini | Nikki McKibbin (2) |
| August 7 | Christina Christian (2) | RJ Helton | Nikki McKibbin (3) |
| Bottom Two | |||
| August 14 | RJ Helton (2) | Nikki McKibbin (4) | |
| August 21 | Tamyra Gray | Nikki McKibbin (5) | |
| Final Three | |||
| August 28 | Nikki McKibbin (6) | ||
| September 4 | Justin Guarini (2) | Kelly Clarkson | |
Season 2
In Season 2, Seacrest surfaced as the lone host. Dunkleman reportedly hated working on the show and the studio was dissatisfied with his performance. Kristin Holt was a special correspondent. This time, Ruben Studdard emerged as the winner with Clay Aiken as a very close runner-up. Out of 24 million votes recorded, Studdard finished just 130,000 votes ahead of Aiken. The accuracy of the reported results is still disputed. There was much discussion in the communication industry about the phone system being overloaded, and that more than 150 million votes were dropped, making the voting suspect.[3] Since then, the voting methods have been modified to avoid this problem.
In an interview prior to the start of the fifth season, executive producer Nigel Lythgoe revealed for the first time that Aiken had led the fan voting from the wild card week onward until the finale.[4] Clay Aiken became the first American Idol non-winning contestant to have a U.S. Hot 100 number-one with "This Is the Night", written by British songwriter Chris Braide with Gary Burr and Aldo Nova. Studdard and Aiken both released albums in the fall of 2006. Kimberley Locke has also enjoyed radio success after American Idol with her debut album, One Love. Her next album is also rumored to be released early in 2007.
Fourth-place finisher and former Marine Josh Gracin has had huge success as a country artist. His first album spawned three hit singles, including the number-one U.S. country song, "Nothing to Lose". He is signed with Lyric Street Records.
One contestant, Frenchie Davis, was disqualified and removed from the competition after topless photos of her surfaced on the Internet. She later appeared in the Broadway musical Rent.
During the course of the contest Studdard became known for wearing 205 Flava jerseys representing his area code. Shortly after the end of the contest, Studdard sued 205 Flava, Inc. for $2 million for using his image for promotional purposes. Flava responded by alleging that Studdard had accepted over $10,000 in return for wearing 205 shirts, and produced 8 cashed checks to validate their claim. The allegations, if true, indicate a clear violation of the American Idol rules.[5] The lawsuit was settled out of court.[6]
The rumor mills were buzzing once again in 2005 when Season 2 contestant Corey Clark, who the producers say was kicked off the show because of a police record he had not disclosed earlier, alleged that he had an affair with judge Paula Abdul during his time on the competition and that's the reason he was kicked off. Clark also alleged that Abdul gave him preferential treatment on the show because of their alleged romance. A subsequent investigation by an independent councel hired by Fox "could not corroborate the evidence or allegations provided by Mr. Clark or any witnesses". [7]
| Date | Bottom Three | ||
| March 11 | Vanessa Olivarez | Julia DeMato | Kimberley Locke |
| March 18 | Charles Grigsby | Corey Clark | Julia DeMato (2) |
| March 25 | Julia DeMato (3) | Kimberly Caldwell | Rickey Smith |
| Corey Clark (disqualified) | |||
| April 1 | Carmen Rasmusen | Trenyce | Kimberly Locke (2) |
| April 8 | Rickey Smith (2) | Kimberly Caldwell (2) | Kimberley Locke (3) |
| April 15 | Kimberly Caldwell (3) | Carmen Rasmusen (2) | Trenyce (2) |
| April 22 | Carmen Rasmusen (3) | Joshua Gracin | Trenyce (3) |
| Bottom Two | |||
| April 29 | Trenyce (4) | Ruben Studdard | |
| May 6 | Joshua Gracin (2) | Kimberley Locke (4) | |
| Final Three | |||
| May 13 | Kimberley Locke (5) | ||
| May 20 | Clay Aiken | Ruben Studdard | |
Season 3
The third season of American Idol premiered on January 19, 2004. The winner of this season of American Idol was Fantasia Barrino, later known professionally as simply "Fantasia," and the runner-up was Diana Degarmo. This was also the season that Golden Globe Award-winning and Academy Award-winning actress Jennifer Hudson was discovered.
The early part of the season introduced William Hung, a UC Berkeley student, who received widespread attention following his off-key rendition of Ricky Martin's "She Bangs." His performance, as well as his positive attitude facing Simon's criticisms (a stark contrast to other contestants' confrontational, angry reactions), landed him a record deal with Koch Entertainment and made him over $500,000 in record sales. He also starred in a Cingular Wireless commercial with host Ryan Seacrest.
During the season, controversy over the legitimacy of the contest increased as rocker Jon Peter Lewis and young crooner John Stevens stayed afloat while others were unexpectedly eliminated. Jasmine Trias, despite negative comments from Simon Cowell over her later performances, survived elimination and took the third spot over Latoya London. Trias later released a CD and attracted fans in her home state of Hawaii, the Philippines, Singapore, Guam and other South East Asian countries. The third season was also shown in Australia on Network Ten about half a week after episodes were shown in the U.S.
After a nationwide vote of more than 65 million votes in total - more than the first two seasons combined - Fantasia Barrino won the American Idol title over runner-up Diana DeGarmo. She released her first single in June 2004 on the RCA record label. The single included "I Believe" – cowritten by former Idol contestant Tamyra Gray (who also sang backup) – which Fantasia performed on the finale of Idol, the Aretha Franklin hit "Chain of Fools" (released before on an American Idol compilation), and her signature version of "Summertime". The single entered the Billboard Hot 100 at #1, making Fantasia the first artist in the history of Billboard to debut at number one with their first single.[8][9] The song remained at the number one for one week (it topped the sales chart for 11 weeks in the US and 10 weeks in Canada). Fantasia's CD, I Believe, went on to become the top selling single of 2004 in the U.S and has since been certified double platinum by the CRIA and received 3 Billboard Awards. In 2006, she received 4 Grammy nominations for her double platinum debut album Free Yourself.
Sales of Diana DeGarmo's first CD, Blue Skies, suffered partly from a lack of promotion by RCA. DeGarmo eventually asked to be released from her RCA record contract. She received a role in the Broadway production of Hairspray, where she played the part of Penny Pingleton from February 7-May 21 to positive reviews. DeGarmo then starred with Melba Moore in the national tour of Brooklyn the Musical through mid-August. On September 8, she returned to the Broadway production of Hairspray to once again assume the role of Penny Pingleton for a six month period. DeGarmo is also working independently on a second album while performing in the musicals.
Second Runner-up Jasmine Trias signed with an independent label. Although she has failed to achieve commercial success in the mainland USA, she has become a major celebrity in other countries, such as the Philippines and Japan, where she is signed with Universal Records.
Latoya London signed with Peak Records and released an R&B/soul album, "Love & Life," selling 55,000 copies. Her single, "Appreciate/Every Part of Me/All by Myself," charted at number 8 on the Billboard Singles Sales Chart, and her songs, "Appreciate," "Every Part of Me," and "State of My Heart," all received moderate success on urban and adult contemporary radio. She starred in the Los Angeles revival of the retro-musical, "Beehive," and also starred with Angie Stone and Kim Fields in the tour of the play, "Issues: We All Got 'Em." Latoya will begin playing the role of Nettie in the touring edition of the Broadway musical, The Color Purple, which will begin with an extended run in Chicago, Illinois in April, 2007. The musical also stars Michelle Williams of Destiny's Child.
George Huff signed with Word Records to release a gospel album and has since had mild success in that genre. John Stevens landed a deal with Maverick Records but was dropped due to low album sales.
Jennifer Hudson starred alongside Beyoncé Knowles and Jamie Foxx in the 2006 feature film Dreamgirls and won several honors and awards, including a Golden Globe for her performance and an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress. The film, which also won the Golden Globe for Best Picture (Comedy or Musical), was released to preview audiences on December 15, 2006, in New York, San Francisco and Los Angeles, drawing sellout crowds. On its first day in wide release (Christmas Day 2006), Dreamgirls sold 8.8 million dollars worth of tickets to claim the top spot at the box office. It was the single highest daily gross for a musical in motion picture history. The soundtrack to Dreamgirls, featuring Hudson's acclaimed version of "And I Am Telling You I'm Not Going," reached Number One on the Billboard Top 200 album chart on January 10, 2007, after five weeks in release. Hudson, who signed a recording contract with Clive Davis' Arista label in late 2006, is expected to release her debut album sometime in 2007.
Camile Velasco returned to the Philippines in December 2004 after 17 years for a whirlwind tour of television appearances and a concert with Martin Nievera. In 2005, she signed to Motown Records, but left the label after a lack of promotion for her first single. Camile performed at several concerts in Hawaii, California and Illinois, maintaining her ambition to become an artist. In 2006, she appeared in a Black Eyed Peas video and performed in Hawaii, California, Nevada, New Jersey, New York and the Philippines. Camile is now writing and producing her own songs on UHype Records.
Eleventh place contestant Matthew Rogers is now a TV personality, starring alongside Mikalah Gordon on American Idol Extra, which went behind the scenes of American Idol's fifth season.
In May 2005, Telescope announced that the third season had a total of approximately 360 million votes.
| Date | Bottom Three | ||
| March 17 | Leah LaBelle | Jennifer Hudson | Amy Adams |
| March 24 | Matthew Rogers | Camile Velasco | Diana DeGarmo |
| March 31 | Amy Adams (2) | Jennifer Hudson (2) | LaToya London |
| April 7 | Camile Velasco (2) | Jasmine Trias | Diana DeGarmo (2) |
| April 15 | Jon Peter Lewis | John Stevens | Diana DeGarmo (3) |
| April 21 | Jennifer Hudson (3) | Fantasia Barrino | LaToya London (2) |
| April 28 | John Stevens (2) | George Huff | Jasmine Trias (2) |
| Bottom Two | |||
| May 5 | George Huff (2) | Jasmine Trias (3) | |
| May 12 | LaToya London (3) | Fantasia Barrino (2) | |
| Final Three | |||
| May 19 | Jasmine Trias (4) | ||
| May 26 | Diana DeGarmo (4) | Fantasia Barrino | |
Season 4
The fourth season of American Idol premiered on January 18, 2005. It was the first season in which the age limit was raised to 28, in order to increase variety. All Season 4 contestants had to be between the ages of 16 and 28 on August 4, 2004, born on or between August 5, 1975 and August 4, 1988.[10][11] Among those who benefited from this new rule were Constantine Maroulis (born September 17, 1975) and Bo Bice (born November 1, 1975), considered to be the eldest and somewhat most experienced of the season's Idol contestants. They were also constantly mentioned by Seacrest and in the media as "the two rockers", since their long hair and choice of rock songs made them stand out from conventional Idol standards. The presence of more rock-oriented contestants has continued with Chris Daughtry in Season 5, who was inspired to audition for the show by Bice.
This season also implemented new rules for the final portion of the contest. Instead of competing in semi-final heats in which the top vote-getters are promoted to the final round, 24 semi-finalists were named; 12 men and 12 women, who competed separately, with 2 of each gender being voted off each week until 12 finalists were left.
Mario Vazquez, who was originally one of the top 12, dropped out of the competition on March 11, just days before the top 12's first performance, citing "personal issues", opening a spot in the final 12 for Nikko Smith (son of Baseball Hall of Famer Ozzie Smith), who had been voted off in the semi-finals the previous week.
The winner was Carrie Underwood, a country singer, the first winner since Kelly Clarkson to not only win but avoid being in the bottom three for the entire competition. Carrie Underwood's first single, "Inside Your Heaven", was released on June 14, 2005. The single debuted at #1 on the Billboard Hot 100, with first-week sales of 170,000 copies, and briefly stopped Mariah Carey's run at #1 with "We Belong Together". One week later, runner-up Bo Bice released his version of the song, which debuted at #2. The B-side of Underwood's CD was "Independence Day", a cover of the Martina McBride hit. On November 15, 2005, Carrie released her debut album, Some Hearts, which peaked and debuted at #2 on Billboard. It has currently sold over 5 million copies, and has gone 6X platinum. Underwood's first single, Jesus, Take The Wheel was made available for radio airplay on October 18, 2005. It received so much airplay that it debuted at #39 on the Billboard Country Chart in its first week, setting a record. As it climbed, it finally reached #1 for 6 consecutive weeks, just two weeks shy of Connie Smith's record of an 8 week run back in 1964-1965. The single also debuted at #48 on the Billboard Hot 100 where it peaked at #20. Underwood's second single, "Don't Forget to Remember Me", peaked at #2 on the Billboard Hot Country Charts, as well as, #49 on the Billboard Hot 100. Underwood's third single "Before He Cheats" not only hit #1 on the Billboard Hot Country charts, but also is currently at #11 on the Billboard Hot 100 becoming a crossover pop hit. Currently, Underwood has the most successful debut album sales out of the American Idol finalists. Some Hearts has sold over 5 million copies as of January 2007, beating the previous most sales 2nd place record held by Clay Aiken's Measure of a Man, which sold 2.7 million copies. Underwood's fourth single "Wasted" has become her 3rd #1 single on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart.
Bo Bice's first single "The Real Thing" has appeared on American Top 40 radio. Although Bice's sales did not match that of Underwood, he stands as the third-most successful recording artist to not win the American Idol title with RIAA platinum status. Third-place contestant Vonzell Solomon landed a role in a film, Still Green and a single on a Christmas album. Fourth-place contestant Anthony Fedorov has appeared in television shows such as Fear Factor, where he competed with Season 2 contestant Carmen Rasmusen, winning second place, and has finished taping several episodes for a new MTV show to air in the fall. Federov will be performing in The Fantasticks on off-Broadway May through July of 2007. Sixth-place contestant Constantine Maroulis has redone his rendition of "Bohemian Rhapsody" for a Queen tribute album, and his first solo debut will come out in early 2007. Since August 2006, Maroulis has appeared in the Broadway musical The Wedding Singer and the now closed off-broadway play Jacques Brel is alive and well and living in Paris. Seventh-place contestant Anwar Robinson has released his self-titled EP on an independent label. Twelfth-place contestant Lindsey Cardinale's first single, "Nothing Like A Dream", was released in March 2006.
In May 2005, Telescope announced that the fourth season had a total of approximately 500 million votes.
On February 11, 2007, Carrie Underwood became the first winner of American Idol to sweep all three major music awards (American Music, Billboard, and Grammy Awards) in a single season (for 2006-07).
| Date | Bottom Three | |||
| March 16 | Lindsey Cardinale | Mikalah Gordon | Jessica Sierra | |
| March 23 | Mikalah Gordon (2) | Nadia Turner | Anthony Federov | |
| March 30 | Jessica Sierra (2) | Anwar Robinson | Nadia Turner (2) | |
| April 6 | Nikko Smith | Scott Savol | Vonzell Solomon | |
| April 13 | Nadia Turner (3) | Bo Bice | Scott Savol (2) | |
| April 20 | Anwar Robinson (2) | Anthony Federov (2) | Scott Savol (3) | |
| April 27 | Constantine Maroulis | Anthony Federov (3) | Vonzell Solomon (2) | |
| Bottom Two | ||||
| May 4 | Scott Savol (4) | Anthony Federov (4) | ||
| May 11 | Anthony Federov (5) | Vonzell Solomon (3) | ||
| Final Three | ||||
| May 18 | Vonzell Solomon (4) | |||
| May 25 | Bo Bice (2) | Carrie Underwood | ||
Season 5
The fifth season of American Idol began on January 17, 2006; this was the first season of the series to be aired in high definition. Auditions were in Austin, Boston, Chicago, Denver and San Francisco, with Greensboro, North Carolina and Las Vegas, Nevada included after the cancellation of the Memphis auditions due to Hurricane Katrina. The season used the same rules as Season 4. [12] [13]
Taylor Hicks was named American Idol on May 24, 2006; he was the third contestant to never fall into any week's "bottom three". His first post-Idol single, "Do I Make You Proud", would debut at #1 and be certified gold. [14] Hicks' album, Taylor Hicks, has sold 684,000 copies to date.
On May 30, 2006, Telescope announced that a total of 63.5 million votes were cast in the finale round. A total of 580 million votes were cast in the entire season.[15] Taylor Hicks is the second American Idol winner from the city of Birmingham, Alabama (the first being Ruben Studdard), and the fourth finalist with close ties to the city. The finale had surprise performances from stars such as Live, Mary J. Blige, and Toni Braxton singing duets with the members of the final 12. The unannounced appearance and live performance of Prince was said in the media to have perhaps signaled the music industry's acceptance of Idol as a promotional tool for established artists as well.
As of June 2007, the fifth-season contestant with the most commercial success has been fourth-place finisher Chris Daughtry, now lead singer of the band Daughtry. Their eponymous debut album has sold over 2.5 million copies to date - surpassing former winners Studdard and Fantasia's respective two-album totals - and produced two top-five singles. The album, which spent two weeks at #1 in the US, is also the fastest-selling debut rock album in Soundscan history.[16]
Runner-up Katharine McPhee's debut album has sold 333,000 copies; she has two Top 40 Billboard hits to date. Also notable: sixth-place finisher Kellie Pickler, whose Small Town Girl reached #1 on the Billboard Top County Albums chart, selling 530,000 copies to date; strong early sales have also been achieved by mid-2007 eponymous album releases by third-place Elliott Yamin and eighth-place Bucky Covington.
| Date | Bottom Three | |||
| March 15 | Melissa McGhee | Lisa Tucker | Ace Young | |
| March 22 | Kevin Covais | Bucky Covington | Lisa Tucker (2) | |
| March 29 | Lisa Tucker (3) | Katharine McPhee | Ace Young (2) | |
| April 5 | Mandisa | Elliott Yamin | Paris Bennett | |
| April 12 | Bucky Covington (2) | Ace Young (3) | Elliott Yamin (2) | |
| April 19 | Ace Young (4) | Chris Daughtry | Paris Bennett (2) | |
| Bottom Two | ||||
| April 26 | Kellie Pickler | Paris Bennett (3) | ||
| May 3 | Paris Bennett (4) | Elliott Yamin (3) | ||
| May 10 | Chris Daughtry (2) | Katharine McPhee (2) | ||
| Final Three | ||||
| May 17 | Elliott Yamin (4) | |||
| May 24 | Katharine McPhee (3) | Taylor Hicks | ||
Season 6
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American Idol Season 6 began on Tuesday, January 16, 2007. The premiere episode of the season drew a massive audience of 37.7 million viewers, peaking in the last half hour with more than 41 million viewers.[17]
The Top 24 Contestants were, females: Alaina Alexander, Amy Krebs, Antonella Barba, Gina Glocksen, Haley Scarnato, Jordin Sparks, LaKisha Jones, Leslie Hunt, Melinda Doolittle, Nicole Tranquillo, Sabrina Sloan, and Stephanie Edwards. males: AJ Tabaldo, Blake Lewis, Brandon Rogers, Chris Richardson, Chris Sligh, Jared Cotter, Nicholas Pedro, Paul Kim, Phil Stacey, Rudy Cardenas, Sanjaya Malakar, and Sundance Head.
On February 22, 2007, around 32 million votes were cast and 4 contestants were eliminated, those being: Amy Krebs, Nicole Tranquillo, Paul Kim, and Rudy Cárdenas. The following elimination week, A.J. Tabaldo, Nicholas Pedro, Alaina Alexander, and Leslie Hunt were voted off. The final week of eliminations before the Top 12 was announced ousted Antonella Barba, Sabrina Sloan, Jared Cotter and Sundance Head.
As usual, the Top 12 will slowly dwindle down one by one each week before the next American Idol is crowned. The theme of the March 13, 2007 show was a tribute to Diana Ross. On March 14, 2007, Brandon Rogers was voted off. However, DialIdol, a prediction site, had Brandon listed in 5th place overall — with Stephanie Edwards in last place for the second week in a row. On March 19, 2007, all 11 remaining contestants performed to the theme of "The British Invasion." The next day, Stephanie Edwards was announced as being voted off. After that, Chris Sligh, Gina Glocksen, then Haley Scarnato were voted off.
Sanjaya Malakar was the season's most talked about American Idol contestant,[18][19] as he continued to survive elimination for several weeks. The weblog Vote for the Worst had Malakar as its current "pick" for the sixth season, while the satellite radio personality Howard Stern also joined the push for Sanjaya. However, on April 18, Sanjaya was eventually voted off.
The Top 6 singers performed inspirational music as a part of the first ever "Idol Gives Back" telethon-inspired event which raised more than $60 million in corporate and viewer donations.[20] None of the singers were eliminated, and the votes from that week were added to the votes from the following week to eliminate two singers. Both weeks saw an extension of the regular two hour voting window, which was increased to four. In the end, both Phil Stacey and Chris Richardson were sent packing.
The following week, the Top 4 caught the Disco Fever. The contestants were coached by the famous Barry Gibb, who then performed "To Love Somebody" on May 9, 2007. None of the contestants received rave reviews for their performances, and ultimately LaKisha Jones was sent home.
The top 3 each performed 3 songs each the next week. Simon Cowell and Randy Jackson predicted that Melinda Doolittle and Jordin Sparks would advance to the final 2 and that Blake will be eliminated. On results night, Ryan announced that over 60 million votes were cast. He first told Jordin that she was proceeding to the finale. Then, he called out Melinda and announced that she was ending her idol journey at the top 3 and that Blake had made it to the finale with Jordin. Simon was obviously disappointed since he had supported Melinda the previous night. Ryan then referred Melinda as "one of the best voices ever in American Idol", and she definitely needed to take the stage one last time. As she sang for the last time "I'm a Woman", she received a standing ovation from the crowd.
In the finale, both Jordin and Blake started the night off strong. However, the final song of the night was the winner of the American Idol song writing contest. Since the song was written specifically for the American Idol finale, neither contestant was allowed to make it their own. Many people complained that this song was written in Jordin's style of singing giving her a huge advantange over Blake. The next night, Simon predicted that Jordin would win purely on this final song. At the end of the episode, Ryan confirmed both Randy's and Simon's predictions announcing Jordin Sparks the Season 6 winner of American Idol.
This season of American Idol produced two Top 3 contestants that were never in bottom 2 or 3, Jordin Sparks (the Season 6 winner) and Melinda Doolittle (third place). They will join Kelly Clarkson, Clay Aiken, Carrie Underwood and Taylor Hicks as Top 3 contestants never to have been in the bottom 2 or 3.
On May 23, 2007, at 10:05 EST Jordin Sparks was declared the American Idol.
| Date | Bottom Three | ||
| March 14 | Brandon Rogers | Sanjaya Malakar | Phil Stacey |
| March 21 | Stephanie Edwards | Chris Richardson | unannounced |
| March 28 | Chris Sligh | Haley Scarnato | Phil Stacey (2) |
| April 4 | Gina Glocksen | Haley Scarnato (2) | Phil Stacey (3) |
| April 12 | Haley Scarnato (3) | Phil Stacey (4) | Chris Richardson (2) |
| April 18 | Sanjaya Malakar (2) | LaKisha Jones | Blake Lewis |
| Bottom Two | |||
| May 2 | Phil Stacey (5) | Chris Richardson (3) | |
| Final Four | |||
| May 9 | LaKisha Jones (2) | ||
| May 16 | Melinda Doolittle | ||
| May 23 | Blake Lewis (2) | Jordin Sparks | |
Season 7
The seventh season of American Idol will air in January 2008.
Media sponsorship
American Idol is often noted for advertising its sponsors during the show's runtime. Being the number one rated show in the United States, it costs around $705,000 for a 30-second commercial[21]
Coca-Cola is a major sponsor in the U.S., and all the judges, hosts, and contestants are seen consuming beverages out of cups bearing the Coca-Cola logo, while contestants and host Ryan Seacrest gathering for a Keeping it Real segment between songs in the Coca-Cola Red Room, the show's equivalent to the traditional green room. (During rebroadcast on ITV in the UK, the Coca-Cola logo is obscured in the shots.) In seasons 1 through 4, after every Wednesday results show, the remaining contestants and host meet in the Coca-Cola Red Room to discuss next week's theme; the footage of this meeting is shown at the start of the following Tuesday's performance show.
Text voting is made possible by AT&T Mobility, formerly Cingular Wireless. It was provided by AT&T Wireless Services before Cingular acquired that company.
Kellogg and Pop-Tarts are also two major sponsors, especially of the cast tour that follows the end of every season[22].
Products from the Ford Motor Company also receive prominent product placement; contestants appear in Ford commercials on the results shows, and the final two of Seasons 4, 5 and 6 each won free Mustangs. Previous contestants Kelly Clarkson and Taylor Hicks have also been tapped to do commercials for Ford. Also, in the top 24's studio, in the red room there is a glass table with a Ford tire inside of it. The camera routinely captures the logo
Contestants will occasionally don Old Navy clothing during performances[23], and celebrity stylist Steven Cojocaru appeared in two previous seasons to assist contestants with picking out wardrobe pieces from Old Navy. Clairol hair care products also sponsors the show, with contestants usually getting Clairol-guided hair makeovers after the first two or three episodes during the round of 12 [24].
The show's marketing reach is not limited to the hours of broadcast. Edy's Icecream is tapping into the buzz with a campaign to have people vote for their favorite 'Idol' inspired Ice Cream. [5]
Controversy
- American Idol has come under fire for maintaining what some claim to be total control of the careers of the winners of the contest. Former co-host Brian Dunkleman referred to the show as "owning" the winning contestants, noting that winners sign contracts to only record with companies owned by the show's producers and to allow related agencies to manage their careers.
- Former contestant Corey Clark told reporters in April 2005 that he and Idol judge Paula Abdul had a "secret affair" prompting an investigation by external counsel hired by Fox, FremantleMedia and 19 Entertainment. The 600-hour investigation spanning three months cleared Abdul of all charges levied by Clark.[25]
- During season three, controversy arose at the poor showing during the semi-finals of three highly praised African American contestants, Jennifer Hudson, LaToya London and Fantasia Barrino - collectively known during that season as the 'Three Divas'. After the surprise elimination of Hudson, Sir Elton John, who was a guest judge for that season criticized the vote as 'incredibly racist' in a press conference.[26] The elimination of both Hudson and London relatively early in the competition has been pointed out as a classic demonstration of vote splitting in the American idol vote.[27] Barrino would eventually go on to win the competition.
- Since the 2004 season, American Idol producers have battled online community services such as the weblogs DialIdol.com, Worldsentiment.com, and VotefortheWorst.com. DialIdol predicts the winner of each week's contest based on how often an automatic dialer encounters a busy signal for each contestant; Worldsentiment uses very large samplings and algorithms to predict the outcome of the vote-off; and VotefortheWorst exhorts viewers to vote for what the site deems to be the worst contestant, rather than the best. Some in the media have implied that Las Vegas odds makers exert behind-the-scenes influence in protecting the services. [28][29]
- A series of provocative photos surfaced on the Internet of Season 6 Top 24 Contestant Antonella Barba.[30]
- According to the Howard 100 News LaKisha Jones's departure (Season 6) was not because of America's vote, but rather a predetermined outcome. Their source claims that travel arrangements for LaKisha to return home were made prior to the start of the May 8, 2007 performance show, well before the phone lines were opened. The source also claims that a significant sized crew was sent to Flint, Michigan for reaction shots, however crews were not sent to the remaining contestants' home towns.[31]
Television ratings
U.S.
Seasonal rankings (based on average total viewers per episode) of American Idol on FOX.
- Each U.S. network television season starts in late September and ends in late May, which coincides with the completion of May sweeps.
| Season | Premiered | Ended | TV Season | Timeslot | Rank | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Date | Viewers (in millions) |
Date | Viewers (in millions) | ||||
| 1st[32] | June 11-12, 2002 | 9.90 | Final Performances: September 3, 2002 | 18.69 | 2002 | Tuesday 9:00PM (performance show) |
#30 |
| Season Finale: September 4, 2002 | 22.77 | Wednesday 9:30PM (results show) |
#25 | ||||
| 2nd[33] | January 21-22, 2003 | 26.50 | Final Performances: May 20, 2003 | 25.67 | 2003 | Tuesday 8:00PM (performance show) |
#5 |
| Season Finale: May 21, 2003 | 34.24 | Wednesday 8:30PM (results show) |
#3 | ||||
| 3rd[34] | January 19-20, 2004 | 28.56 | Final Performances: May 25, 2004 | 25.13 | 2004 | Tuesday 8:00PM (performance show) |
#2 |
| Season Finale: May 26, 2004 | 28.84 | Wednesday 8:30PM (results show) |
#3 | ||||
| 4th[35] | January 18-19, 2005 | 33.58 | Final Performances: May 24, 2005 | 28.05 | 2005 | Tuesday 8:00PM (performance show) |
#1 |
| Season Finale: May 25, 2005 | 30.27 | Wednesday 8:00PM (results show) |
#3 | ||||
| 5th[36] | January 17-18, 2006 | 35.53 | Final Performances: May 23, 2006 | 31.78 | 2006 | Tuesday 8:00PM (performance show) |
#1 |
| Season Finale: May 24, 2006 | 36.38 | Wednesday 8:00PM (results show) |
#1 | ||||
| 6th[37][38][39] | January 16-17, 2007 | 37.7 | Final Performances: May 22, 2007 | 25.33 | 2007 | Tuesday 8:00PM (performance show) |
#2 |
| Season Finale: May 23, 2007 | 30.74 | Wednesday 8:00PM (results show) |
#1 | ||||
American Idol does not have a ranking for the 2001-2002 season because it aired in the summer of 2002. If it had aired within the official 2001-2002 U.S. television season, the Wednesday results show would have ranked #25 and the Tuesday performance show would have ranked #30, assuming it would have had the same rating as it did in the summer.
American Idol has bucked the trend of most successful television programs, past and present, by growing in audience numbers in its fifth season. According to the overnight ratings for May 24, 2006, an average of 42.94 million viewers[40] tuned in to the final half-hour of the fifth season finale when Taylor Hicks was announced as the 2006 American Idol.
Season Six: On the season finale of the sixth season, the ratings of American Idol saw a drop of 19 percent [41] from last year, when Taylor Hicks was crowned as the 2006 Idol. However, the results are preliminary as the ratings were measured between 8pm-10pm. Ratings of the season finale peaked at 34.9 million viewers at 10pm, just five minutes before Jordin Sparks was declared the winner of Idol.[42]
International
American Idol is broadcast to over 100 nations outside of the United States, including many with their own version of Idol; however, it is not a live broadcast and may be tape delayed by several days or weeks (excluding Pakistan, India, Israel, Canada, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, and the United Arab Emirates in which it is also aired live).
International networks broadcasting American Idol
- In Australia, the show screens on Network Ten.
- In Bulgaria, the show screens on bTV.
- In Brazil, the show screens on Sony Entertainment Television. A local version of the show also screens on SBT.
- In Canada, the show screens on CTV and Fox Network.
- In China, the shows screens on Xing Kong starting on season 5.
- In Chile, the show screens on Sony Entertainment Television.
- In Colombia, the show screens on Sony.
- In Czech Republic, the show screens on TV Nova.
- In Denmark, the show screens on TV3.
- In Ecuador, the show screens on Sony Entertainment Television.
- In Estonia, local version of American Idol, called Estonia Looks for Superstar, screens on TV3.
- In Finland, the show screens on Subtv.
- In Germany, a local version of the show screens on RTL Television.
- In Ghana, the show screens on Metro TV.
- In Hong Kong, it airs live on Star World and Xing Kong.
- In Iceland the show screens on Sirkus.
- In India it airs live on Star World. India has its own extremely popular version, Indian Idol, telecast in Sony Entertainment Television.
- In Indonesia, the show screens on RCTI,Global TV as well as on Star World live satellite feed.
- In Ireland, the show screens on TV3 Ireland.
- In Israel, the show screens on HOT and YES channel 3, as well as on Star World.
- In Italy, the show screens on Fox Life.
- In Japan, the show screens on FOX TV Japan(from the 5th season) and FOXLIFE HD.
- In Kazakhstan, a local version of the show screens on Perviy Kanal Evraziya.
- In Malaysia, the show screens on 8TV as well as on Star World live satellite feed.
- In the Middle East, the show airs Live on Star World.
- In New Zealand, the show screens on Television New Zealand (TV2)
- In Nigeria, the show screens on AIT and M-Net Series
- In Norway, the show screens on TV2 Zebra.
- In Pakistan, the show airs live on Star World.
- In Panama, the show airs live on Sony.
- In the Philippines, the show screens on Associated Broadcasting Company as well as on Star World live satellite feed.
- In Singapore, the show screens on Channel 5, as well as on Star World.
- In Slovakia, the show screens on Jednotka.
- In Slovenia, the show screens on TV3.
- In South Africa, the show screens on M-Net Series.
- In South Korea, the show screens on On Style.
- In Sri Lanka, the show screens on ETV.
- In Sweden, the show screens on TV4.
- In Thailand, the show airs live on Star World.
- In Turkey, the show screens on e2.
- In the United Kingdom, the show screens on the digital channel ITV2, with Cat Deeley hosting extra British-oriented programming (and linking material on the regular editions) as of season six. The show has more recently occasionally been repeated on ITV1
- In the United States on Fox Network.
- In Venezuela, the show screens on Sony Entertainment Television. The same channel screens the show for the rest of Latin America.
- In Vietnam it airs live on Star World.
Top-selling American Idol alumni
Gold, Platinum, and/or Multi-platinum (US Sales Only)
| Idol Winner/Finalist Total Sales |
Debut Album | Second Album | Third Album | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | Kelly Clarkson (Season 1, Winner) 8.2 Million |
Thankful (April 15, 2003) 2,500,000 2x Platinum Peak: #1 |
Breakaway (November 30, 2004) 5,700,000 6x Platinum Peak: #3 |
My December (June 26, 2007) N/A N/A Peak: N/A |
| 2. | Carrie Underwood (Season 4, Winner) 5.57 Million |
Some Hearts (November 15, 2005) 5,570,275 6x Platinum Peak: #2 |
TBA (Fall, 2007) N/A N/A Peak: N/A |
|
| 3. | Clay Aiken (Season 2, Runner-Up) 4.77 Million |
Measure of a Man (October 13, 2003) 2.8 Million 3x Platinum Peak: #1 |
Merry Christmas with Love (November 16, 2004) 1.4 Million Platinum Peak: #4 |
A Thousand Different Ways (September 19, 2006) 511,000 Gold Peak: #2 |
| 4. | Chris Daughtry/Daughtry (Season 5, 4th Place) 2.7 Million |
Daughtry (November 21, 2006) 2,670,619
|
||
| 5. | Ruben Studdard (Season 2, Winner) 2.44 Million |
Soulful (December 9, 2003) 1,780,823 Platinum Peak: #1 |
I Need An Angel (November 23, 2004) 437,114 N/A Peak: #20 |
The Return (October 17, 2006) 220,359 N/A Peak: #8 |
| 6. | Fantasia Barrino (Season 3, Winner) 2.08 Million |
Free Yourself (November 23, 2004) 1,687,346 Platinum Peak: #8 |
Fantasia (December 12, 2006) 388,586 N/A Peak: #19 |
|
| 7. | Bo Bice (Season 4, Runner-Up) 0.834 Million |
The Real Thing (December 13, 2005) 833,746 Gold Peak: #4 |
||
| 8. | Taylor Hicks (Season 5, Winner) 0.684 Million |
Taylor Hicks (December 12, 2006) 684,000 Gold Peak: #2 |
||
| 9. | Josh Gracin (Season 2, 4th Place) 0.647 Million |
Josh Gracin (June 15, 2004) 646,500 Gold Peak: #11 |
All About Y'all (2007) N/A N/A Peak: N/A |
|
| 10. | Kellie Pickler (Season 5, 6th Place) 0.539 Million |
Small Town Girl (October 31, 2006) 539,793 Gold Peak: #9 |
||
| 11. | Katharine McPhee (Season 5, Runner-Up) 0.333 Million |
Katharine McPhee (January 30, 2007) 333,000 Gold Peak: #2 |
A comprehensive list of other American Idol alumni album sales reflects that commercial success can be achieved through association with American Idol and with post-Idol promotion, although the degree of success varies considerably:
| Former Contestant | Total Sales | Albums | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 12. | William Hung (Season 3, Rejected at Auditions) |
295,000 |
|
| 13. | Elliott Yamin (Season 5, 3rd Place) |
257,325 |
|
| 14. | Kimberley Locke (Season 2, 3rd Place) |
223,300 |
|
| 15. | Diana DeGarmo (Season 3, Runner-Up) |
200,000 |
|
| 16. | Bucky Covington (Season 5, 8th Place) |
152,719 |
|
| 17. | Justin Guarini (Season 1, Runner-Up) |
150,000 |
|
| 18. | Tamyra Gray (Season 1, 4th Place) |
122,000 |
|
| 19. | LaToya London (Season 3, 4th Place) |
55,000 |
|
| 20. | George Huff (Season 3, 5th Place) |
36,000 |
|
| 21. | Jasmine Trias (Season 3, 3rd Place) |
30,000 |
|
| 22. | Mario Vazquez (Season 4, Top 13) |
23,000 |
|
| 23. | RJ Helton (Season 1, 5th Place) |
21,000 |
|
| 24. | John Stevens (Season 3, 6th Place) |
18,000 |
|
| 25. | Corey Clark (Season 2, 9th Place) |
12,500 |
|
| 26. | Paris Bennett (Season 5, 5th Place) |
6,434 |
|
| 27. | Jim Verraros (Season 1, 9th Place) |
3,800 |
|
| 28. | Ayla Brown (Season 5, Top 16) |
2,500 |
|
Major Award Winning, American Idol alumni
| Idol Winner/Finalist & Season | American Music Awards | Billboard Music Awards | Grammy Awards | Academy Awards |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kelly Clarkson, Season 1 Winner | 4 | 12 | 2 2006 Best Female Pop Vocal Perf. 2006 Best Pop Vocal Album |
0 |
| Clay Aiken, Season 2 Runner-Up | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| Fantasia Barrino, Season 3 Winner | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| Jennifer Hudson, Season 3 finalist | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 2006 Best Supporting Actress |
| Carrie Underwood, Season 4 Winner | 1 | 8 | 2 2007 Best New Artist 2007 Best Female Country Vocal Perf. |
0 |
On a detailed note, Kelly Clarkson and Carrie Underwood are the only 2 Idols to win at all 3 of these major music awards shows. Carrie Underwood also is the only Idol to sweep up honors at all these Awards Ceremonies in the same season (2006-2007), and the only Idol to win Best New Artist at the Grammy's. Underwood also is the quickest Idol to pick up Grammys, with only about a year and 4 months in between the Grammy wins and her Debut Album, Some Hearts release. There are also awards show wins for these Idol's and other Idols, Such as... Jenifer Hudson: Oscar for Best Supporting Actress, Fantasia: NAACP Image Awards for Outstanding Female Artist, Kelly Clarkson and Carrie Underwood: People's Choice Awards for Favorite Female Performer(Kelly) and Favorite Female Singer/Favorite Country Song(Carrie). Kelly Clarkson has also won 5 Teen Choice Awards, and Carrie Underwood has won 1. Lastly, Carrie Underwood has won: 4 CMT Music Awards, 2 Academy Of Country Music Awards, and 2 Country Music Association Awards (Female Vocalist and Horizon).
American Idol Hot 100 singles
 |
The following Idol songs charted either on the charts or the Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles charts. Of the 53 songs that have made the Hot 100, Kelly Clarkson has the most charted hits, with 10 (plus 1 bubbling-under hit). She also has the most Hot 100 top 20 and top 10 hits with 8 and 7 respectively. Clarkson, Clay Aiken, and Chris Daughtry are all tied with having the most top 5 hits, each with two.
Contestants from season five have produced the most hits with 12. The second season and season one have produced the second most hits, each with 10, followed by season four with 9, then season three with 7, with season six producing the least so far, with 5. Overall 53 hits have been produced by contestants from all six seasons (plus two more sung by the finalists). Note: titles on a gray background peaked on the Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles charts without entering the Hot 100, or are expected to appear on the charts soon. Titles on a yellow background are active singles, which appear on the Hot 100 of the current issue of Billboard Magazine. Artists' names listed in bold indicate their Hot 100 debut single.
| Entry Date | Single | Artist | Peak | Weeks on Hot 100 |
RIAA Cert. | Known Sales Figures | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 9/21/2002 | A Moment Like This (b/w "Before Your Love") |
Kelly Clarkson (Season 1, Winner) |
#1 | 20 | Gold | |
| 2 | 5/03/2003 | God Bless the U.S.A. | American Idol Finalists (Season 2 Finalists) |
#4 | 8 | Gold | |
| 3 | 5/17/2003 | Miss Independent | Kelly Clarkson | #9 | 20 | Gold | |
| 4 | 6/28/2003 | This Is the Night (b/w "Bridge Over Troubled Water") |
Clay Aiken (Season 2, Runner-Up) |
#1 | 16 | Platinum | |
| 5 | 6/28/2003 | Flying Without Wings (b/w "Superstar") |
Ruben Studdard (Season 2, Winner) |
#2 | 10 | Gold | |
| Superstar | Ruben Studdard | #112 | 0 | ||||
| 6 | 9/20/2003 | Low | Kelly Clarkson | #58 | 11 | ||
| 7 | 11/22/2003 | Invisible | Clay Aiken | #37 | 20 | Gold | |
| The Trouble with Love Is | Kelly Clarkson | #101 | 0 | ||||
| 8 | 1/03/2004 | Sorry 2004 | Ruben Studdard | #9 | 20 | ||
| 9 | 3/27/2004 | 8th World Wonder | Kimberley Locke (Season 2, 3rd Place) |
#49 | 20 | ||
| 10 | 4/03/2004 | Solitaire (b/w "The Way") |
Clay Aiken | #4 | 8 | ||
| 11 | 7/03/2004 | I Want to Live | Josh Gracin (Season 2, 4th Place) |
#45 | 14 | ||
| 12 | 7/10/2004 | I Believe | Fantasia (Season 3, Winner) |
#1 | 11 | Gold | |
| 13 | 7/17/2004 | Dreams | Diana DeGarmo (Season 3, Runner-Up) |
#14 | 5 | ||
| 14 | 8/28/2004 | Breakaway | Kelly Clarkson | #6 | 46 | Gold | 788,592 (digital sales) |
| 15 | 12/18/2004 | Since U Been Gone | Kelly Clarkson | #2 | 46 | Platinum | 1,327,012 (digital sales) |
| 16 | 1/22/2005 | Nothin' to Lose | Josh Gracin | #39 | 20 | Gold | |
| 17 | 1/22/2005 | Truth Is | Fantasia | #21 | 20 | ||
| 18 | 2/12/2005 | Baby Mama | Fantasia | #60 | 12 | ||
| 19 | 4/23/2005 | Behind These Hazel Eyes | Kelly Clarkson | #6 | 34 | Gold | 821,128 (digital sales) |
| 20 | 4/30/2005 | Free Yourself | Fantasia | #41 | 20 | ||
| 21 | 5/07/2005 | When You Tell Me That You Love Me | American Idol Finalists (Season 4 Finalists) |
#39 | 4 | Gold | |
| 22 | 7/02/2005 | Inside Your Heaven (b/w "Independence Day") |
Carrie Underwood (Season 4, Winner) |
#1 | 12 | Platinum | |
| 23 | 7/09/2005 | Inside Your Heaven (b/w "Vehicle" featuring Richie Sambora) |
Bo Bice (Season 4, Runner-Up) |
#2 | 7 | Gold | |
| 24 | 8/13/2005 | Stay with Me (Brass Bed) | Josh Gracin | #47 | 16 | ||
| 25 | 9/03/2005 | Because of You | Kelly Clarkson | #7 | 37 | Gold | 736,355 (digital sales) |
| 26 | 11/19/2005 | Jesus, Take the Wheel | Carrie Underwood | #20 | 24 | Platinum | 914,153 (digital sales) |
| 27 | 1/21/2006 | Walk Away | Kelly Clarkson | #12 | 29 | Gold | 608,623 (digital sales) |
| 28 | 3/25/2006 | The Real Thing | Bo Bice | #56 | 16 | 148,644 (digital sales) | |
| 29 | 5/06/2006 | Don't Forget to Remember Me | Carrie Underwood | #49 | 17 | ||
| 30 | 6/10/2006 | Wanted Dead or Alive | Chris Daughtry (Season 5, 4th Place) |
#43 | 3 | 49,202 (digital sales) | |
| 31 | 6/10/2006 | Takin' It to the Streets | Taylor Hicks (Season 5, Winner) |
#69 | 4 | 15,931 (digital sales) | |
| Moody's Mood for Love | Elliott Yamin | #101 | 0 | 10,108 (digital sales) | |||
| Think | Katharine McPhee | #121 | 0 | 7,695 (digital sales) | |||
| 32 | 7/01/2006 | Do I Make You Proud | Taylor Hicks | #1 | 7 | Gold | 397,772 (physical sales) 86,573 |
| 33 | 7/15/2006 | Somewhere Over the Rainbow | Katharine McPhee (Season 5, Runner-Up) |
#12 | 4 | 103,008 (physical sales) | |
| 34 | 7/15/2006 | My Destiny | Katharine McPhee | #60 | 2 | ||
| 35 | 7/29/2006 | Gallery | Mario Vazquez (Season 4, Top 12 Dropout) |
#35 | 20 | ||
| 36 | 9/16/2006 | Before He Cheats | Carrie Underwood | #8+ | 40+ | Platinum | 1,339,043 (digital sales) |
| 37 | 11/18/2006 | Change Me | Ruben Studdard | #94 | 1 | ||
| 38 | 11/18/2006 | Red High Heels | Kellie Pickler (Season 5, 6th Place) |
#64 | 11 | 84,711 (digital sales) | |
| 39 | 11/28/2006 | It's Not Over | Daughtry | #4+ | 28+ | Platinum | 1,294,577 (digital sales) |
| Hood Boy | Fantasia featuring Big Boi |
#103 | 0 | ||||
| 40 | 1/13/2007 | And I Am Telling You I'm Not Going | Jennifer Hudson (Season 3, 7th Place) |
#60 | 13 | 13,845 (digital sales) | |
| 41 | 2/17/2007 | Over It | Katharine McPhee | #29 | 16 | 364,135 (digital sales) | |
| 42 | 2/17/2007 | Wasted | Carrie Underwood | #37 | 18+ | 213,153 (digital sales) | |
| 43 | 3/17/2007 | Movin' On | Elliott Yamin (Season 5, 3rd Place) |
#61 | 1 | 26,395 (digital sales) | |
| 44 | 3/17/2007 | Home | Daughtry | #5+ | 14+ | Gold | 668,482 (digital sales) |
| 45 | 4/07/2007 | Wait for You | Elliott Yamin | #31+ | 7+ | 180,826 (digital sales) | |
| 46 | 4/21/2007 | When I See U | Fantasia | #55+ | 9+ | 34,225 (digital sales) | |
| 47 | 5/05/2007 | A Different World | Bucky Covington (Season 5, 8th Place) |
#63+ | 7+ | 15,623 (digital sales) | |
| 48 | 5/12/2007 | I'll Stand By You | Carrie Underwood | #6+ | 6+ | 339,147 (digital sales) | |
| 49 | 5/12/2007 | Never Again | Kelly Clarkson | #8+ | 6+ | 385,199 (digital sales) | |
| 50 | 5/12/2007 | Up to the Mountain | Kelly Clarkson featuring Jeff Beck |
#56+ | 2+ | 46,196 (digital sales) | |
| 51 | 6/09/2007 | This Is My Now | Jordin Sparks (Season 6, Winner) |
#15+ | 2+ | 127,922 (digital sales) | |
| 52 | 6/09/2007 | You Give Love A Bad Name | Blake Lewis (Season 6, Runner-Up) |
#18+ | 2+ | 130,473 (digital sales) | |
| 53 | 6/09/2007 | A Broken Wing | Jordin Sparks | #66+ | 2+ | 21,903 (digital sales) | |
| 54 | 6/09/2007 | I Who Have Nothing | Jordin Sparks | #80 | 1 | 18,162 (digital sales) | |
| 55 | 6/09/2007 | Time of the Season | Blake Lewis | #99 | 1 | 14,748 (digital sales) | |
| I Wonder | Kellie Pickler | #101+ | 0+ | ||||
| This Love | Blake Lewis | #102+ | 0+ | 13,288 (digital sales) | |||
| When the Stars Go Blue | Blake Lewis | #110+ | 0+ | 11,434 (digital sales) | |||
| I Need To Know | Blake Lewis | #119+ | 0+ | 8,814 (digital sales) |
American Idol video games
- American Idol - PlayStation 2, personal computer, Game Boy Advance, mobile phone
- Karaoke Revolution Presents American Idol - PlayStation 2
Spin-offs
See also
|
External links
- American Idol Official Website (owned by Fox Interactive Media)
- American Idol SMS Voting Statistics
- On ‘Idol,’ the South Rises Again ... and Again
- TVWeek.com Producer Shop Talk With Exec Producer Nigel Lythoe
- Unofficial Contestant Ranker on AOL Television
- Jim Verraros Interview
- American Idol TV Listings on TVGuide.com
- Vote For The Worst web site
- Radar Online: American Idols - Worthy of Worship?
- Infoplease/TIME magazine 2006 Almanac of Bestselling Albums by American Idol Alumni
Footnotes
- ^ http://www.realityblurred.com/realitytv/archives/american_idol_5/2006_Feb_16_top_24
- ^ http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0339034/business
- ^ http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA417981.html?display=Top+of+the+Week
- ^ http://www.realitynewsonline.com/cgi-bin/ae.pl?mode=1&article=article9455.art&page=1
- ^ http://www.realitytvworld.com/index/articles/story.php?s=1518
- ^ http://www.realitytvworld.com/news/ruben-studdard-settles-lawsuit-against-birmingham-jersey-maker-205-flava-2109.php
- ^ link saying evidence or allegations could not be corroborated
- ^ [1], Retrieved on 2007-05-28
- ^ [2], Retrieved on 2007-05-28
- ^ http://www.americanidol.com/archive/season3/showinfo/rules.htm
- ^ http://www.americanidol.com/archive/season3/showinfo/audition71404.pdf
- ^ http://www.americanidol.com/archive/season4/showinfo/rules_721.htm
- ^ http://www.americanidol.com/archive/season4/showinfo/ai5_release.pdf
- ^ "Deep in the bowels of J Records". Gray Charles: The Official Taylor Hicks Weblog. 2006-09-29. Retrieved 2006-12-21.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|date=(help) - ^ http://www.telescope.tv/press_idol_06.html
- ^ http://www.daughtryofficial.com/news/daughtry-soars-1-spot-billboard-top-200
- ^ "'Idol' Death Star Returns - Premiere ratings build on last year's ginormous numbers". tv.zap2it.com. 2007-01-17. Retrieved 2007-01-17.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|date=(help) - ^ http://www.usmagazine.com/sanjaya_out
- ^ http://buzz.yahoo.com/buzzlog/67409/sanjayas-hair-raising-searches
- ^ [3]
- ^ [4].
- ^ [www.americanidol.com]
- ^ [www.americanidol.com]
- ^ [www.americanidol.com]
- ^ Fox investigation clears Paula Abdul of Corey Clark's 'Idol' charges, UPI via realitytvworld.com, 2005-08-12, Retrieved on 2007-03-02.
- ^ Elton John Says 'American Idol' Vote Is 'Racist', Reuters via Yahoo.com, 2004-04-28, Retrieved on 2007-03-02.
- ^ American Idol voting, Votefair.org, Retrieved on 2007-03-02.
- ^ http://www.votefortheworst.com
- ^ http://www.dialidol.com
- ^ http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2007/02/24/entertainment/ap/main2509675.shtml
- ^ Transcript, 'The Howard Stern Show' for May 10, Howardstern.com, 2007-05-10, Aired on 2007-05-10.
- ^ "Reality TV World: Ratings: ABC's 'Dancing With The Stars' finale hits summer highs not seen since 'Idol'". July 10, 2005.
{{cite news}}: Unknown parameter|source=ignored (help) - ^ "Cincinnati Enquirer: Television networks face reality check". May 25, 2003.
{{cite news}}: Unknown parameter|source=ignored (help) - ^ Viewership numbers of primetime programs during the 2004 television season
- ^ Viewership numbers of primetime programs during the 2005 television season
- ^ Viewership numbers of primetime programs during the 2006 television season
- ^ Viewership numbers of primetime programs during the 2007 television season
- ^ http://www.zap2it.com/tv/news/zap-americanidol6finaleratings,0,2388529.story?coll=zap-tv-headlines
- ^ http://www.zap2it.com/tv/news/zap-2006-07finalratings,0,6207523.story?coll=zap-tv-headlines
- ^ Mediaweek: The Programming Insider (May 25, 2006)
- ^ http://www.delawareonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070524/ENTERTAINMENT/70524047
- ^ http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/hr/content_display/news/e3if7c7c5fc893fbc9195df0fff8ad3fd12