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American Idol is a reality television series created by Englishman Simon Fuller. It is a competition that attempts to find new musical talent. It debuted on Fox on June 11, 2002 and is one of the most popular shows in the United States. American Idol also airs in Canada, Australia, Asia, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Israel, and Latin America.

American Idol judges and producers audition contestants nation-wide and picks the best contestants between the ages of 16 and 28 to compete on the show. Between ten and forty people from each of seven cities are sent to the next round of auditions in Hollywood.

Contestants in Hollywood perform for the judges and eliminations are made daily. They sing both alone and in small groups picked by the judges. Contestants that are not eliminated then go on to perform in the televised finals, which feature each contestant performing a song they select from a weekly theme. Themes range anywhere from Motown to country to big band and has featured artists such as Queen, Michael Jackson, The Beatles, Elvis Presley, Elton John, Dolly Parton, Mariah Carey, and more. Contestants are afforded the opportunity to work with a musical celebrity during the first weeks to better their performance and singing techniques.

Americans are able to vote for their favorite musical talent by calling or texting their vote, and have chosen the following winners since the shows beginning: Kelly Clarkson, Ruben Studdard, Fantasia Barrino, Carrie Underwood, Taylor Hicks, Jordin Sparks, David Cook, and Kris Allen. The winner of American Idol gets a $1 million record deal with a major label.

American Idol hosts a panel of judges that critiques the musician’s performances. This panel was originally comprised of Randy Jackson, a music manager and Grammy award-winning record producer, Simon Cowell, music executive and manager, and Paula Abdul, pop singer and award winning choreographer. A fourth judge, singer-songwriter Kara DioGuardi was added for the eighth season. Paula Abdul was recently replaced during the ninth season with comic Ellen DeGeneres and Simon Cowell recently announced he would be leaving after the 2009-2010 season. The host of American Idol since its beginning has been Ryan Seacrest. The show is currently on track to stay on air for at least another three seasons.

American Idol has received some harsh criticism for what some claim is total control of the winners careers. Elton John accused the show of being racist after the elimination of three African American contestants, while others point to vote splitting. Despite this criticism, the reality show has been one of the best shows to hit American television, spending five years at the number one spot. Even with the amazing viewing numbers the show has posted, there was a 19% drop in viewers during the sixth season and continued into the seventh and eighth season.

American Idol has its own charity even that it puts on every year called “Idol Gives Back.” The annual charity program features selected celebrity performers and takes donations from viewers across the nation. Performances in the past have been given by Kiefer Sutherland, Robin Williams, Celine Dion, Miley Cyrus, Dane Cook, and more.

The biggest and the most popular TV show in the whole of United States of America is the “American Idol” and it has been on the number one slot in terms of popularity among the masses for the past five years according to the Nielsen’s ratings. This television show is actually intent on finding the best musical talents which is spread all across the country and bringing them in to light. Both male and female singers can apply for auditioning in the American Idol TV show.

The great TV show creator Simon Fuller was the creator of this popular television series which was first aired on the Fox network on June 11, 2002 and ever since it’s induction, “American idol” has been in the tip of the tongue for every American, simply because of the quality of the program and the contestants. No wonder, this TV show is the biggest money grosser in home television arena. Though it was adapted from Britain’s Pop Idol (another reality TV show), this has a recognition of its own.

As said before, the American Idol aims at finding new and extremely talented singers every year. And the best way to find talents is to go to each and every corner of the country and conduct auditions. This is what the crew of “American Idol” does. They conduct numerous auditions across the country and select at least 200 contestants from each city. The audition is merely a selection round to test whether the contestant is good enough to deliver quality crooning. The contestants are to be strictly in the age range of 16-28 years.

Once the candidates clear the audition round, then it is the time for them to be popular among the masses. Yes, once they get through the first round they will be called to the studio to perform in front of a panel of elite judges who watch their performance very closely and give marks. These performances are aired on the television which is watched by millions across the country and the candidates become instant superstars among the people. The normal procedure in this television show is that the candidate with the lowest marks will be eliminated at the end of the show.

Since candidates are eliminated in every round, there will be a time when the total number of contestants will be left to three and it will be finale time. In order to give the eliminated candidates a last chance to enter into the final round, the show conducts a wild card round where all eliminated candidates perform and the winner will join the other three. The total of four candidates will perform in live TV show for the last time and the winner which is selected on the basis of the highest number of votes secured by public poll will be crowned as the “American Idol”.

One big advantage with American idol is that it can be watched online too. There are many internet website which helps to watch American idol online for free. This is very useful for people who have busy schedules and cannot watch it on the time when it is aired on the television.

American Idol has been the most successful television show in the entire America and is widely followed by most people in this part of the world with great enthusiasm. For those of you who do not know much about the American Idol, then I would like to condense the plot by saying that it is a live talent show where selected candidates showcase their talents in singing and the ultimate winner is crowned as the American Idol. This article will give a brief introduction on my favorite American Idol till date and my personal rankings of the winners according to their talents.

Out of the total eight winners of the entire American Idol series, none could impress me as Kelly Clarkson. This lady is my obvious favorite and her on-stage presence and performance is highly commendable. She is my darling because she cute, lovely and a perfect woman. She has all the qualities to be called a superstar and at 27 she has achieved what most others of her age dream of. The ultimate reason for Kelly being my favorite American Idol is not because she is cute or lovely; it is because of her singing talents. You can clearly distinguish her from the others in terms of performance, grace and crooning.

I am sure most of the people would agree with me regarding the fact that Kelly Clarkson is the best ever American Idol product till date. I am also sure of the fact that at this passage would end up in a heated argument or in distaste with many because I am going to give a ranking to all the winners of the American Idol. Regardless, I would also like to inform that the ranking list of these winners is entirely personal and not to offend anyone.

The first rank according to me is obviously Kelly Clarkson. She was the winner of the first edition of American Idol and let me tell you that this lady is a seasoned campaigner. She was easily the better of all the other participants in the first season and is also the better of all the other seven winners of the show. She is in a league of her own and is extremely talented. She is the undisputed American Idol according to me and I am hoping that the ninth edition will bring someone better than Kelly. The second place would go to Carrie Underwood, the season four winner. This lady too, was better than most of her competitors and deserves the number two spot. The third and fourth rank would go to David Cook and Kris Allen (season seven and eight winners) respectively. Both were equally good, but I feel that David has a slight edge over Kris.

The fifth rank would go to Mr. Ruben Studdard (season 2 winner). This guy is so cheerful and energetic that he will drive you crazy with his performances. According to me, the sixth rank would go to obviously go to Jordin Sparks. This lady needs special mention because of her charm and wits. I would place Fantasia Barrino at the number seven spot ahead of Taylor Hicks.

I’ve always wondered how the singers on the show choose their hit american idol songs for their hit American idol tryouts. I mean we do understand that the songs have to be hits and arranged well and they have to sound at least a little similar to the originals but what makes these American idol songs so popular at american idol tryouts.

The rule is that the American idol tryouts are open to all singers and they are free to choose songs that are the right one for themselves. But alternatively, on the show organizers have a ready list with them which they give the contestants to help them choose a song. The catch is that singers have to keep the song as original as possible but still add their own unique singing skills to this.

Till now I was not really aware that the show had guidelines. The public thought that each contestant had several song guides that taught the contestants how to sing their songs. But the show has specific guidelines with American idol songs that will keep the public interested at american idol tryouts while still keeping the standard of the show.

No one really has the specific guidelines with them. But previous contestants have stated that there are guidelines that the show organizers give the contestants at the start of every episode to ensure that no one is singing the same song or a different style in the same episode.

The number of songs varies from show to show with contestants having to choose from 10 to a hundred different choices to choose from. The main rule however is that no one can pick up international hits form world famous singers like Michael Jackson, Celine Dion and Mariah Carey.

The show organizers know that although these songs are internatinslly recognized they are much loved in their original version and very few contestants can compare to them. As a result unless the contestant has the vocal range to keep up with Mariah Carey’s singing; they should not pick up her songs.

Show organizers and mentors also guide and listen to the choices made by the singers to ensure that they have the perfect choice for their voices. Extra arrangements, riffs, and vocal arrangements are also added to ensure that the song is unique but is till recognizable.

Contestants are also aware of the fact that the show is ultimately ruled by the public who know simple but exciting tunes. Cross over tunes by popular artistes like males singing female songs is perfectly acceptable so long as the song is done well. But unless you can do it well, you should not do it. Take the example of Antonella Barba who sang the famous “I don’t want to miss a thing” Although she did sing it well, it was no where close to the original and neither did it impress the public.

Its not very difficult to understand; just pick a semi-popular song and stamp your character on it to make it seem your owns stysle.

If you are one of the choice few who missed the episode of tonight then you must be wondering exactly who lost on American idol tonight. The idea of the show is that every week a single contestant got kicked of the show. No one knew that such a simple show could pull on the heart strings of so many people. The show has managed to be in the top thousands with a lot of people tuning in every week to find out exactly who will get knocked out of the race.

The American idol show has shown of to the entire world that a few talented singers can really get to the top if they are talented enough. And of course the show does have a strict selection process in place that ensures that only the best get ahead. Pervious winners include great singers like Carrie Underwood and several more singers who have gone ahead to be the best in the singing profession. Its no use wondering who lost on American idol tonight or who got kicked off American idol tonight, the results are out every week.

The feud between the host and the judge Simon Cowell has hit the headlines several times with both of them sniping restlessly at each other about clothes and comments. But that should not affect the outcome of who lost on American idol tonight. Sometimes even the contestants have to wonder about who got kicked off the American idol tonight and if they are safe.

A few of the more popular choices include Alexis Grace who was voted out this time round. There was a faint hope that the judges would save her with their failsafe. But Simon announced that it was not possible and she was eliminated. A few more controversies that popped up included the accusation that Paula Abdul one of the judges was personally training the contestant to win the show in return for personal favors. But the show must go on and that accusation came to an end

Singer Sanjaya was publicly panned for his substandard singing skills but he was popular with the crowds so much that they retained him even after being disparaged at every sing-off. The singing sensation went on to make his own album and that was a huge hit. But still this is not a single occurrence. Almost every singing sensation that makes it to the semi final also becomes a popular singing star.

For people who have not managed to keep track of the show, there are several live blogs on which keep a track of the entire show and the contestant. The last contestant will be feted and yesteryear stars like Carrie Underwood will also be back for surprise performances.

There are also several performances by previous finalists who were popular but got voted out. No matter what happens you have to remember that even though several contestants are voted out almost all of them are equally good and talented and they do get ahead to promising careers in their singing life.

Let’s wait and watch for the new winner of 2009.