Brown Book Loft Blog

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.

Once the contestants make it to the Hollywood portion of American Idol, eliminations are made daily. They must sing both solo performances and in small groups for the judges. The next step for contestants that aren’t eliminated are the televised finals. During the finals, contestants perform one song each week they select from a weekly theme. Various themes are selected from a wide variety of musical genres and feature artists such as The Beatles, Dolly Parton Mariah Carey, Elvis Presley, Michael Jackson, and more.

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 has a panel of judges that reviews and criticizes all of the performances. The original panel was made up of Randy Jackson, who is a Grammy award-winning producer and manager, Simon Cowell, a music manager and executive, and Paula Abdul, a famous pop singer and choreographer. Kara DioGuardi, a singer-songwriter, was recently added during the eighth season. Paula Abdul recently was replaced by Ellen DeGeneres during the prior season, and Simon Cowell will be leaving American Idol after the current season as well. Ryan Seacrest has been the host of American Idol since its beginning in 2002.

American Idol has been called by many critics as one of the best television shows to hit American television. It is undoubtedly one of the most popular, having spent an entire five years in the number one spot, making it one of only three shows to ever accomplish this feat. There is speculation that Idol’s popularity might be waning; the viewing audience dropped 19% in the sixth season and continue to drop during the seventh and eighth seasons.

American Idol is involved in an annual charity called “Idol Gives Back.” The annual show features celebrities, featured performers, and donations from viewers. Past performers for “Idol Gives Back” include Kiefer Sutherland, Miley Cyrus, Robin Williams, Celine Dion, Dane Cook, and more.

Go ahead and Watch American Idol free online at Watch TV Online and enjoy other newly released TV and more.