American Idol- Season Five

From LoveToKnow Music

American Idol, Season 5, premiered on January 17, 2006 and will end May 26, 2006. The gang is all here again, Simon Cowell, Randy Jackson, and Paula Abdul judging the contestants, and Ryan Seacrest hosting the proceedings.

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American Idol- Season Five Auditions

In the fall of 2005, season 5 auditions were held in Chicago, Denver, Greensboro, San Francisco, Las Vegas, and Boston. Some auditions were also held in Austin, but Hurricane Rita forced the relocation of the remainder of those auditions to San Francisco.

Some Idol hopefuls made their mark during the auditions without going on to the next round. The argumentative Rhonetta Johnson, from the Greensboro audition, is remembered for having some harsh words for Paula, as well as for apparently forgetting to put her knickers on that morning.

Zachary Travis in Denver performed the song Queen of the Night while wearing women’s clothing. Cowell’s negative comments about his cross dressing lead the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defimation (GLAAD) to object to the show’s treatment of homosexual and transgender contestants.

The National Association to Advance Fat Acceptance (NAAFA) also came out in a statement against the show during the screening of the audition phase, accusing American Idol of discrimination on the basis of weight.

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Semifinals

The auditions netted 175 contestants to advance to the Hollywood elimination rounds. Through four rounds of eliminations, these 175 became 24 – two groups of 12 males and 12 females, as in season 4.

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Top 12

The 24 semifinalists then became the top 12:

Chris Daughtry
Taylor Hicks
Elliott Yamin
Kellie Pickler
Katherine McPhee
Ace Young
Bucky Covington
Mandisa
Lisa Tucker
Kevin Covais
Melissa McGhee
Paris Bennett

The contestants to be eliminated, in the order of elimination, were:

Melissa McGhee
Kevin Covais
Lisa Tucker
Mandisa
Bucky Covington
Ace Young
Kellie Pickler
Paris Bennett
Chris Daughtry
Elliott Yamin
Katherine McPhee
Taylor Hicks (winner)

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Theme Weeks

The theme week tradition continued in season 5, with the following themes being seen as of May 24, 2006:

Stevie Wonder
Songs of the 50s
Songs of the 21st Century
Country Songs
Queen Songs
Songs from the Great American Songbook (Rod Stewart Album)
Greatest Love Songs of All Time
Year of Birth/Billboard Charts Current Top 10 (any Billboard Chart of the contestant's choosing)
Elvis

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American Idol- Season Five Guest Appearances

The following music artists have made an Idol appearance:

Stevie Wonder
Barry Manilow
Shakira and Wyclef Jean
Kenny Rogers
Rod Stewart
Andrea Boccelli

The show's finale featured a number of duets featuring stars from the music world and Idol finalists:

Elliott Yamin and Mary J. Blige
Chris Daughtry and Live
Katherine McPhee and Meat Loaf
Paris Bennett and Al Jarreau
Taylor Hicks and Toni Braxton
Taylor Hicks, Katherine McPhee, and Carrie Underwood
All 12 Idol finalists and Dionne Warwick and Burt Bacharach

Former Idol runner-up, Clay Aiken, performed a duet with an Idol contestant hopeful, who didn't make it past the auditions, but was remembered for channeling Aiken during his try-out.

The surprise final guest performer was Prince, who performed without an Idol contestant.

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DialIdol

DialIdol made its public debut in season 5. It is a voting system that runs on Windows which lets the public vote through their modem. DialIdol can measure the busy signals of each contestant, predicting with 83% the accuracy the results. Because the system lets users know how the vote is shaping up, users can then vote more strategically. If they see one of their favorites is low on the polls, they can send votes their way, rather than voting for another one of their favorites who appears to be easily getting enough votes to stay in the competition.

Fox Networks sued the maker of DialIdol, claiming it spoiled the results. A court decided DialIdol was in the right, and the program has continued to gain popularity.

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