It's all change on American Idol for 2010, with the ninth season of the show featuring new judges and missing some regular faces. Paula Abdul is no longer a part of the show, having signed up to head to the american version of the United Kingdom talent show X-Factor. Her place has been taken by a number of guest judges, with one in particular that will turn into a permanent fixture on the show.
Ellen DeGeneres related on her very own 'Ellen' show that she would be starring as Paula's replacement, and will definitely be joining the existing panel with Simon Cowell, Randy Jackson and Kara DioGuardi. We're also going to be seeing a number of guest judges, with the likes of Kristin Chenoweth, Shania Twain, Mary J. Blige, Joe Jonas, Victoria Beckham, Neil Patrick Harris and Katy Perry!
This year's auditions have been held all over the states as normal, in cities such as Denver, Orlando, LA, Atlanta, Chicago, Arlington and Foxsborough. A number of potential idols are already starting to stand out, with performances from Vanessa Wolfe, Mallorie Haley and Keia Johnson having hit a particular high note with the judges at the Atlanta and Boston auditions. During the Chicago auditions, one or two performers in particular stood out such as Paige DeChausse, Marcus Jones, Justin Ray, Keith Semple, John Park, Angela Martin, Charity Vance and naturally, the wonderful Katelyn Epperlys audition.
The Idol celebrity machine is already working too, with one special audition having found big audiences on the internet. The performance in question was from one General Larry Platt, a 62-year-old veteran from Georgia, singing his song'Pants on the Ground'.
unfortunately for lots of Idol fans, this will be the last season with Simon Cowell. Having come to the end of his contract, Cowell appears to have decided to move on from american idol, and speculation is abundant as to who will replace him. Names such as Elton John, Quincy Jones, Gladys Knight and George Cloony are being thrown around, but the replacement is probably going to be kept a heavily protected secret for a while yet.
once again this year, American Idol is allowing contestants to use their own instruments during performances. This has been featuring heavily on the show for the past couple of seasons, and while it is not to everyone's tastes, it does add an aspect to the North American Idol auditions that has been lacking over time.
Also this year we'll be seeing the return of 'Idol Gives Back' on american idol. It's intended to be held during the last seven result show, and will be showing videos of all the good things american idol is doing to help folks worldwide. The date for the show is presently set as Apr the 21st.
The format of the show stays the same this year – the first few weeks concentrate on the diverse city auditions, giving back-stories to the contestants and letting us all get to know them. The aim for the contestants during this stage is to receive their'Golden Ticket' and move on to the next phase, Hollywood. In the Hollywood auditions, the speed is stepped up and those who have made it are predicted to perform to their best. Twenty-four are selected, and these american idol finalists move on to the show properly. They then compete for the judges and audiences favor, facing weekly'votes' over who stays and who goes home!
eventually, we'll again be seeing everyone's favourite Ryan Seacrest, presenting American Idol with his usual aptitude and unique style. Seacrest is also rumored to be in line for Cowells role on the series ; however it has been mentioned that he favors his current presenter's position and would not like to take on the judges chair.
Tags: american idol, angela martin, chicago auditions, ellen show, guest judges, justin ray, keia, keith semple, kristin chenoweth, mallorie haley, marcus jones, mary j blige, neil patrick harris, ninth season, nited kingdom, randy jackson, ray keith, shania twain, show x, victoria beckham
Jorge Erickson