American Idol Season one

Kelly Clarkson, the winner of Season One

Main article: American Idol (Season 1)
The first season of American Idol debuted without hype as a summer replacement show in June 2002 on the Fox Network 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 ending with a finale viewed by an estimated fifty million viewers in September 2002. Following such a success, the second season was moved to air the upcoming January during the higher profile 2003 fall schedule. 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 debuted at #1. As part of the promotion planned for the show's first winner, the song had been prerecorded 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 movie musical, 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 [1] during its short run in theatres. A DVD with additional footage was released and the movie airs periodically in the US and other countries.

Season One is the only season 19 Management signed contestants other than the top two finishers. Also signed were Nikki McKibbin (3rd), Tamyra Gray (4th), and Christina Christian (6th). It is also 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 Two. 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 was dropped when she refused to record a country album. She has since made appearances on various Reality TV shows, and is finishing her debut album. Tamyra Gray was dropped by Jive Records before releasing an album. Then signed by American Idol's Simon Fuller's new label 19 Entertainment, her self-written debut album was released in 2004. She was dropped by the label in 2005. 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 independently released a single "My Religion". She is expected to release her debut album in 2006 or 2007. Jim Verraros the first openly gay contestant to appear on 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 (eight) have had little exposure after the show.

American Idol Overview Final Twelve

Season 5 contestant Chris Daughtry listens as judge Randy Jackson discusses his performance during the final four performance night.

In the finals, which last eleven weeks, each finalist performs a song live in primetime 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, Gloria Estefan, Elton John, Stevie Wonder, Queen and Elvis Presley.

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 Two, 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. The bottom three vote-getters are separated from the remaining contestants. Over the course of the episode, two are revealed as being "safe" for the week, and the loser is sent home after performing one final song to end the episode. This process is repeated each week until the one remaining contestant is declared the winner. The stage is moved to the Kodak Theatre for the finale showdown, where the 2 remaining contestants perform for an audience of at least 3,400.

American Idol Overview On to Hollywood

Katharine McPhee, one of 175 contestants to make it to Hollywood in season 5, performs before the judges at the Orpheum theatre in Los Angeles, CA.

Once in Hollywood, the three judges narrow the initial field of several hundred down to a group of 24 semifinalists (30 season 1, 32 seasons 2 and 3) (complete list). In season 1, the 30 semifinalists were split into 3 groups of ten and the top 3 of each group advanced to the final 10. This left 9, so the 10th finalist was chosen in a wild-card show in which the 5 performers that were originally eliminated but the judges felt deserved a second chance performed again, allowing one to still advance to the golden ten. In seasons 2 and 3, the 32 semifinalists were split into 4 groups of 8, who would compete for 2 slots in the finals. After 8 were chosen, a wild-card round featuring singers who were previously eliminated but whom the judges felt deserved a second chance gave the audience the chance to select one additional contestant through viewer voting, while each judge selected an additional singer to advance to the finals, filling the field of 12. It is worth noting that the season 2 runner up, Clay Aiken, was the viewers' wild card choice, having originally fallen short to eventual winner Ruben Studdard and third-place finisher Kimberley Locke in the second round of 8. Starting with the 4th season, the semifinalists were split into male-only and female-only. On three consecutive weeks, the male semifinalists perform only against the other men, and the women only against the other women. Each contestant performs live (in the eastern and central time zones), in primetime, a song of his or her choice, and receives critiques from the judges, who, from this point on, serve almost entirely in an advisory capacity, with little 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. Viewers with Cingular Wireless cell phones (Cingular is the official cellular service provider for American Idol) may also send text messages to vote. 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. (Cell phone voters who have tried voting while on business/vacation/etc. in other time zones have reported on various fan forums that their votes were rejected if they tried to vote outside the time zone assigned to their cellular number.) On the following night's episode the results of the nationwide vote are announced, and the bottom two vote-getters are eliminated each week. At the end of the semifinal rounds, the six men and six women who remain advance to the finals.

Semifinalists (and in some cases, other contestants as well) must submit to background checks and may be summarily disqualified for past behavior deemed undesirable, such as an arrest record. Several finalists have been disqualified for revelations that surfaced late in the competition. Semifinalists are also subjected to drug tests, in order to avoid scandals involving drug usage. Contestants who failed the test have not been allowed to proceed in the competition.

Under terms of the personal release contract, contestants agree to be "conclaved" from the outside world. This ceases contestants from using cell phones (unless between family members or during an emergency), the Internet (especially chatting and message boards), leaving the Hollywood jurisdiction, leaving their apartments without consent, communicating with third-parties, watching TV (especially News and Sports), listening to radio stations, and reading newspapers during their duration in the competition.

American Idol Overview Early auditions

In the show, hosted by Ryan Seacrest, hopeful contestants are screened by preliminary panels to be selected for singing talent or humorous potential and human interest. Those who pass the prelims are potentially aired on the show. They then audition before the three main judges - Simon Cowell (one of the judges from Pop Idol), 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. Past audition cities have included; New York City, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Miami, Atlanta, New Orleans, Chicago, Philadelphia, Greensboro, Washington, DC, Houston, Honolulu, Denver, Detroit, St. Louis, Boston, Las Vegas, Orlando, Nashville, Memphis, Dallas, Cleveland and Austin. (Contestants from the season 5 Austin auditions were flown to San Francisco to audition before the judges due to the effect of Hurricane Katrina evacuees on the city.) In order to be eligible, the contestants are not permitted to have any current recording or talent management agreements (but may have had one at some point in the past). Based on turnout and availability, producers select a certain number from the crowd to audition before the three judges (this usually takes 2-4 rounds). Contestants are required to sing a cappella. Those who impress the majority of the judges 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). The contestants selected despite lack of singing talent for appearance before the panel provide a major attraction to the viewing audience as they simultaneously proclaim their talent while turning out gut-wrenching performances which are ridiculed by the judges.

American Idol contestant Tessie Mae Reid reacts to Simon Cowell's negative critique during the auditions round in San Francisco.

Much like the original Pop Idol version, one of the most popular portions of each season are initial episodes showcasing American Idol hopefuls auditioning before the panel of judges. These early episodes focus mainly on the poorest performances from contestants who often appear oblivious to their lack of star talent. These "contestants" have been selected by the preliminary panels in a negative sense; a typical combination is lack of singing ability combined with vanity regarding their "talent." Others are selected for human interest potential: the 2005 auditions featured a "cannibal" who had sampled human flesh in an anthropology class and an aspiring female prize fighter. Other examples include a man dressed in pajamas with no shoes (whose comments made Cowell explode with laughter) and a transvestite who kisses Cowell on the cheek after his (or her) audition wraps up. Poor singers often face intense and humbling criticism from the judges, and especially from Cowell, who can be harsh and blunt in his rejections. Typically the judges express disgust or dismay or suppressed laughter. Some poor performances have attained notoriety on their own; these have included season one's portrayal of "Lady Marmalade", season two's performance of Madonna's "Like a Virgin" by Keith Beukelaer and season three's rendition of Ricky Martin's "She Bangs" by William Hung.

Contestants must be permanent resident U.S. citizens elligible 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. For 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. In early 2003, a 50-year-old college professor named Drew Cummings filed a complaint with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, charging the show with age discrimination because producers denied him an audition due to his age. His case was not taken up by the EEOC. Auditioning contestants must bring with them to auditions a valid proof of age (and citizenship) such as a birth certificate and a driver's licence or a birth certificate and 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 Internet 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 found out to have given false information will be disqualified.

American Idol judge Simon Cowell reacts to a contestant's poor audition.

Those who are ineligible are: those who have current talent representation or a recording contract; have made it to a top 30 on season 1, top 32 on season 2 and 3, or top 44 on season 4; or are affiliated with FOX, Fremantle, 19, its sponsors, its subsidies and parent companies. 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.

American Idol Background

Originally, the show could have been called Pop Idol, as in the UK, but the title was changed to American Idol as a symbol of patriotism. For the first season in 2002, auditions took place in the late summer of 2001. There was not much patriotism before that time, but September 11th, 2001 changed everything when two hijacked planes crashed into the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center in New York City, when Flight 93 crashed into Somerset County, Pennsylvania, and when another airline crash severely damaged and killed over 130 people at The Pentagon in Washington, D.C. After 9/11, the nation became much more patriotic, and thus the title of the show was changed to American Idol. Had it not been for 9/11, the show would have still been called Pop Idol, and may not have found as much success as it does today. The show is noted for helping promote and preserve American unity years upon the aftermath of the September 11, 2001 attacks. Since its debut, the show is highly regarded as a national fad or trend. The show won a 2005 Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Award for favorite television show. In the same year the show won the #1 spot on Nielsen Ratings for two years in a row, favored over the NBA Playoffs, Super Bowl, Grammy Awards, Academy Awards, and the Olympics. The show also inspired other nations to produce their own variations and became the subject of numerous parodies. American Idol has produced successful recording artists who, had it not been for the show, would have never had the chance or opportunity to be recognized in the public spotlight.

American Idol

American Idol, known formally as American Idol: The Search for a Superstar, is an American television show. It is a replica of the UK show Pop Idol, a singing talent contest to determine the best "undiscovered" young singer in the country.

American Idol is on the Fox Network in the United States. It is created by Simon Fuller (manager of the Spice Girls and S Club 7) and Simon Jones (of Thames Television). The directors are Bruce Gowers (director of Queen's original "Bohemian Rhapsody" video), Nigel and Simon Lythgoe (directors of Survivor) and Ken Warwick (Gladiators and Grudge Match).

American Idol is produced by Fremantle North America which is owned by German Bertelsmann. Each contestant may sign a contract with one of Bertelsmann's many music labels because Bertelsmann owns half of Sony BMG. American Idol is managed by 19 Entertainment which is owned by the international joint venture CKX, Inc.

American Idol Results

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American Idol Show

This show is a talent search contest that mimics the British show "Pop Idol". Viewers vote each week to decide which two singing performers to advance to the next round. Judges assess each act before viewers vote two performers off the show each week until only two remain for a final competition top determine the winner. The 2002 American Idol was Kelly Clarkson who beat finalist Justin. The finalists for AI2 were Ruben and Clay with Ruben being named American Idol. AI3 finalists were Fantasia and Diana with Fantasia being named American Idol. AI4 finalists were runner up Bo Bice and American Idol Carrie Underwood.