American Idol season 4
The fourth season of American Idol premiered on January 18, 2005 and continued until May 25, 2005. It was hosted by Ryan Seacrest. Randy Jackson, Paula Abdul and Simon Cowell also returned to judge. It was won by Carrie Underwood.
Auditions
Auditions were held in Washington, DC, St. Louis, Missouri, New Orleans, Louisiana, Las Vegas, Nevada, Cleveland, Ohio, Orlando, Florida and San Francisco, California. There was originally supposed to be an audition held in Anchorage, Alaska, but that was changed about a month before so they could go to Orlando, Florida. Auditions were held from August to October 2004. While in the past seasons celebrity guest judges have been invited to participate during the competition, this was the first season where guest judges were invited to participate in the auditions. The music celebrities featured were:
- January 18, Mark McGrath of Sugar Ray
- January 25, Gene Simmons of KISS
- January 26, Kenny Loggins
- February 1, LL Cool J
- February 2, Brandy
It is also the first season in which the age limit was raised to 28, in order to increase variety. Among those who benefitted from this new rule were Constantine Maroulis and Bo Bice, considered to be the eldest (and most experienced) of Idol contestants. They were also constantly mentioned by Ryan Seacrest and in the media as "the two rockers", since their long hair and choice of songs made them stand out from conventional Idol standards.
Eliminated Contestants
Early auditions
- The most notable contestant in the early episodes was Mary Roach, who auditioned in Washington D.C. Her rendition of Carole King's "I Feel The Earth Move", as well as her comments to the judges that followed her audition, brought considerable negative attention (including false rumors of mental illness) and comparisons to William Hung.
- Also noted was Leroy Wells from Grand Bay, Alabama who auditioned in New Orleans singing Ol' Dirty Bastard's "Got Your Money". He acquired mild fame by repeatedly yelling, "Can you dig it?" to the judges and for the inability of the judges (except for Jackson) to fully understand him. Wells did not seem to audition for the sake of singing, but to entertain the masses with his sense of humor and to appear on television. He does not speak proper English and instead speaks Crunk. An extended audition of Leroy Wells is also available on The Worst of American Idol DVD, in which he improvised "I Feel Good".
- Joseph Land auditioned in Las Vegas and claimed that he was 28 years old, the maximum age allowed for the competition. All the judges, however, were skeptical of Land's claim, because he appeared to be much older than 28. The Chyron graphics displaying his stats even showed his age as "28" (including the quote marks). After his audition received unanimous negative feedback from the judges, Land finally admitted to being 44 years old.
- The Maynard triplets – Mandy, Missy and Erin Maynard were also noted for their televised audition. They were 18 years old and auditioned in St. Louis. Maynard Triplets official website
Hollywood Round One
A total of 193 contestants made it to Hollywood. 96 were cut at this point, a few of which include:
- Regina Brooks was noted for selling an expensive engagement ring in order to afford the trip to the audition.
- Briana Davis performed the theme of the Phantom of the Opera in the auditions, and stuck out by her blue hair.
- Jeff Johnson
- Rich Molfetta
- Emily Neves first performed Cyndi Lauper's "Girls Just Want to Have Fun", and was commented by the judges for being highly energetic. She had to sing a second song, "Different Drum" before getting the green light to Hollywood.
- Patrick Norman
- Francisco Torres
Hollywood Round Two
97 contestants remained at this point, where the contestants were put into groups. 22 were cut, including:
- Lamar Jefferson
- Aaron Kelly was one of the boys portrayed as a rocker in his group.
- Nicholas Kolbosky
- Elizabeth Pha (nee Chandara), born in Cambodia, entered the audition wearing a fishnet and surprised the judges. She has since released an independent album. Official site
Hollywood Round Three
75 contestants remained at this point (including Marlea Stroman who left the competition, see below). 30 were cut, including:
- Larry Ellis
- Sharon Galvez was known as a cocktail waitress who had plenty of experience in the clubs in Las Vegas.
- Angel Higgs was a music teacher from Knoxville, Tennessee.
- Aa'Shia Jackson
- Rashida Johnson lost her voice early in the Hollywood round and struggled with it; but managed to perservere.
- Michael Liuzza
- Sean McNeill
- Dezmond Meeks was known for his acrobatic moves in the audition and split the judges. He sang "I Can't Help Myself (Sugar Pie, Honey Bunch)". Dezmond Meeks was much supported in the early rounds of the competition by Paula Abdul, whose support subsequently wavered.
- Kurtis Parks
- Jennifer Todd
- Shunta Warthen was shown having got on the wrong bus when the 193 Hollywood contestants split up on the first day in Hollywood; she had to find every which way back - which she did.
- Ross Williams became well known as one of several crooners in Season 4.
- Carrie Zaruba had noticeable disagreements with Elizabeth Pha when in the same group.
Resigned
- Marlea Stroman was the first contestant to ever drop out of the Hollywood round on his or her own decision; in her case it was due to the health of her young daughter, who was sick at the time of the tapings.
Final Cutdown
New for this season, the final cuts were taken several weeks after the Hollywood rounds, cutting 44 down to 24 without benefit of any new performances from the competitors. Those cut then include:
- J.R. Aquino
- Jaclyn Crum, at 16, was the youngest contestant to make it to Hollywood, and had to deal with her mother being sent to the hospital midway through the Hollywood round for a severe case of food poisoning. She was the last contestant to be eliminated in Hollywood before Sarah Mather (who got the last spot in the top 24).
- Erin Furey
- Ivan Ganchev
- Faith Gatewood
- Nathan Herron
- Kim Holloway
- Jamar Jefferson
- Matthew Kester
- Jamie Paul Koehler
- Rachel Leslie
- Gina McFadden
- Yolanda McIntosh
- Tammy Nash
- Warren Nolan
- John Zisa
Semi-finals
Because of the highly unbalanced finals in Series 3 where female contestants took a clear supermajority of the Final 12, rules were changed to prevent a similar incident from happening again.
This season also implemented new rules for the final portion of the contest. Instead of competing in semifinal heats in which the top vote-getters are promoted to the final round, 24 semifinalists were named -- 12 men and 12 women, who competed separately, with 2 of each gender being voted off each week until 12 finalists were left.
The semi-finalists who were eliminated:
Women Eliminated
Amanda Avila (69458) was 22 years old when she auditioned in Las Vegas, Nevada, which is also her hometown. Before Idol, she graduated from a performing arts high school. She was voted off on March 9, 2005.
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Janay Castine (50687) was 16 years old when she auditioned in New Orleans, Louisiana. She is from Lawrenceville, Georgia. She was voted off on March 9, 2005.
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Aloha Mischeaux (15368) was 18 years old when she auditioned in St. Louis, Missouri, which is also her hometown. She wore a flower in her hair when performing and was known for her gospel singing style. She was voted off on March 2, 2005.
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Celena Rae Batchelor (3231) was 28 years old when she auditioned in Cleveland, Ohio. She is from Fort Worth, Texas and plays piano and clarinet. She first started singing in elementary school. Her vocal coach was Linda Septien, who she has hired for one year before auditioning on the show. She was voted off on March 2, 2005.
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Melinda Lira (91018) was 18 years old when she auditioned in San Francisco, California. She is from Hanford. She started singing when she was 5. She was voted off on February 23, 2005.
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Sarah Mather (31018) was 21 years old when she auditioned in Washington, D.C. She is from Wilmington, North Carolina. She started singing when she was 5. She had a vocal coach for 5 months and was singing in bands/ensembles when she was 7. She writes in a journal. Because she seemed upset during the results show at the way she was informed, was essentially unable to perform her encore performance. She was the first to be eliminated and was voted off on February 23, 2005.
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Men Eliminated
Travis Tucker (25918) was 21 years old when he auditioned in Washington, D.C. He is from Manassas, Virginia and co-founded the a capella group at the University of Virginia. He was voted off on March 9, 2005.
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Joseph Murena (73998) was 26 years old when he auditioned in Las Vegas, Nevada. He is from Smithtown, New York. He first started singing when he was 16, to record a song for his mother's birthday. He has acted in locat theaters and studies jujitsu. He was hypnotized to overcome his stage fright. He was voted off on March 2, 2005.
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David Brown (50349) was 20 years old when he auditioned in New Orleans, Louisiana, his hometown. He started singing when he was 4 years old. He got professional training when he attended a performing arts school. He was voted off on March 2, 2005.
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Jared Yates (20068) was 18 years old when he auditioned in St. Louis, Missouri. He is from Fort Walton Beach, Florida and moved to Danville, Illinois. He started singing when he was 14 while playing with his aunt's karaoke machine. He lives on a farm. He used to work at a mortuary. His house burned down on January 2, 2005. He was voted off on February 23, 2005.
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Judd Harris (51885) was 27 years old when he auditioned in New Orleans, Louisiana. He is from New York City. He studied singing in high school and college, particularly "speech level singing" a technique created by his vocal coach Seth Riggs. He also studied acting and dance. He plays piano, guitar and kazoo. He is a graduate of New York University. He was voted off on February 23, 2005.
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Mario Vazquez (69200) was 26 years old when he auditioned in Las Vegas. He is from New York City. He was originally one of the top 12, dropped out of the competition on March 11, just days before the top 12's first performance, citing "personal issues," opening a spot in the final 12 for Nikko Smith, who had been voted off in the semi-finals the previous week.
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Top 12 Finalists
Carrie Underwood (14887) was born and raised in rural Checotah, Oklahoma, her parents own a farm ranch. She was 21 years old when she auditioned in St. Louis, Missouri. She was a senior at Northeastern University and also plays piano. Was profiled on show as never leaving Oklahoma, but records show she had several local band gigs nationwide and a studio album.[1] She won the season's title.
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Bo Bice (40513) was 28 years old when he auditioned in Orlando, Florida. He is a veteran musician from Helena, Alabama. He was voted off on May 25, 2005 and was first runner-up.
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Vonzell Solomon (37828) was 20 years old when she auditioned in Orlando, Florida and worked at a post office as a mail carrier. She is from Fort Myers. She was voted off on May 18, 2005.
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Anthony Fedorov (3674) was 19 years old when he auditioned in Cleveland, Ohio. He was a Bucks County Community College student. He is from Trevose, Pennsylvania. He was voted off one week after his 20th birthday on May 11.
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Scott Savol (502) was 28 years old when he auditioned in his hometown, Cleveland. He was a mall security guard. He was voted off on May 4, 2005.
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Constantine Maroulis (25483) was 28 years old when he auditioned in Washington, D.C. He is from New York City and attended the prestigious Boston Conservatory (as well as Berklee College of Music) in Boston, Massachusetts. He was the lead singer of the rock band Pray For The Soul Of Betty and auditioned without telling his family and bandmates. He was voted off on April 27, 2005.
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Anwar Robinson (29163) was 24 years old when he auditioned in Washington DC. He taught 8th grade music classes. He is from East Orange, New Jersey. He was voted off on April 20, 2005.
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Nadia Turner (91272) was 27 years old when she auditioned in San Francisco, California. She is from Tampa, Florida. She started singing when she was 5. She was voted off on April 13, 2005.
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Nikko Smith (13362) was 21 years old when he auditioned in St. Louis. His father is baseball legend Ozzie Smith, from which he received his birth name. Was originally eliminated in the semi-finals at the final cut on March 9, but was called back into the competition after Mario Vazquez dropped out when Smith's vote totals was the higher of the two eliminated male contestants. He was voted off the finals on April 6.
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Jessica Sierra (41368) was 18 years old when she auditioned in Orlando, Florida. She is from Tampa, Florida. She was a former Star Search contestant. She was voted off on March 30, 2005.
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Mikalah Gordon (68116) was 16 years old when she auditioned in her hometown, Las Vegas, where she worked as a waitress for an oxygen bar. She was voted off on March 24, 2005.
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Lindsey Cardinale (52808) was 19 years old when she auditioned in New Orleans. She was a radiology-major student. She was born in Hammond and raised in Ponchatoula. She was voted off on March 16, 2005.
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For the May 18 final three show, a guest judge, legendary record producer Clive Davis was added. He chose the first song each performer would sing, many of which he produced in his career. The second song the performers chose any song from any era. In an unprecedented move, Bo Bice performed his choice completely a cappella. For the third and final song of the night, one of the standard judges (Jackson, Abdul or Cowell) chose each contestant's selection. Vonzell Solomon was the 10th contestant voted off the Top 12 on Wednesday May 18th.
Theme weeks
- Final 4: Two R&B/Midwestern (Nashville/Philadelphia) songs per contestant
- Final 6: Songs of the 21st Century
- Final 7: Disco
- Final 8: Songs from the contestant's year of birth
- Final 9: Songs from Broadway musicals
- Final 10: Songs from the 1990s
- Final 12: Songs from the 1960s
Performances on results shows
- Final 2: "Up Were We Belong"
- Final 3: "United We Stand"
- Final 4: "Islands In The Stream"
- Final 5: "Bridged Over Troubled Water"
- Final 6: "Emotion" (original artist: Destiny's Child)
- Final 7: "You Can Shine"
- Final 10: "Everything Is Beautiful"
- Final 11: "He Ain't Heavy, He's My Brother"
- Final 12: "When You Tell Me That You Love Me" (original artist: Dolly Parton)
Finale
The fourth season finale featuring Bo Bice and Carrie Underwood aired May 24-May 25. It featured appearances by former auditioners, and celebrity cameos by Kenny G, Rascal Flatts, David Hasselhoff, Kenny Wayne Shepherd, George Benson, Billy Preston, Babyface and Lynyrd Skynyrd. The winner of the competition was Carrie Underwood.
Elimination History
| Date | Theme | Bottom Three | ||
| March 16 | 1960s | Lindsey Cardinale | Mikalah Gordon | Jessica Sierra |
| March 24 | Billboard #1 Hits | Mikalah Gordon (2) | Nadia Turner | Anthony Fedorov |
| March 30 | 1990s | Jessica Sierra (2) | Anwar Robinson | Nadia Turner (2) |
| April 6 | Broadway musicals | Nikko Smith | Scott Savol | Vonzell Solomon |
| April 13 | Contestants' year of birth | Nadia Turner (3) | Bo Bice | Scott Savol (2) |
| April 20 | 1970s dance | Anwar Robinson (2) | Scott Savol (3) | Anthony Fedorov (2) |
| April 27 | 2000s | Constantine Maroulis | Anthony Fedorov (3) | Vonzell Solomon (2) |
| Bottom Two | ||||
| May 4 | Leiber and Stoller/Billboard Top 40 | Scott Savol (4) | Anthony Fedorov (4) | |
| May 11 | Country/Gamble and Huff | Anthony Fedorov (5) | Vonzell Solomon (3) | |
| May 18 | Clive Davis'/Contestants'/Judges' pick | Vonzell Solomon (4) | ||
| May 25 | Finale | Bo Bice (2) | Carrie Underwood | |
Releases
Compilations
Major releases
-
Some Hearts
(Carrie Underwood)
(2005)
Arista Records -
Inside Your Heaven
(Carrie Underwood)
(2005)
RCA Records -
The Real Thing
(Bo Bice)
(2005)
RCA Records -
Inside Your Heaven
(Bo Bice)
(2005)
RCA Records
Minor or independent releases
(This list does not include pre-Idol releases)
- Boom! (Jared Yates)
- It's Christmas Time (Jamie Paul Koehler)
- Melinda (Melinda Lira)
- Shaken (Jeff Johnson)
- Something for Everyone (Kurtis Parks)
- Take Three (Erin, Mandy and Melissa Maynard)
- The Moon & The Stars (Elizabeth Pha aka Chandara)
- Anwar Robinson (Anwar Robinson)
- Nothing Like A Dream/Drive (Lindsey Cardinale) - single
Source: Idolsmusic.com
Dialidol
The computer program Dialidol was in development during season 4. It was finished by week 6 and was used to predict the voting results from the top 6 to top 2. [2]
However, it was not made available to the general public until season 5.
Controversy
- This season brought attention to the alleged Corey Clark and Paula Abdul "sex scandal". The finale show included a parody segment spoofing the alleged scandal.
- Votefortheworst.com, of Survivor Sucks, made headlines when Scott Savol received the most votes and made it into the final five.
- Simon Cowell said on the fifth season of Idol that he didn't like "last year's winner" as much as Kellie Pickler, a top12 Season 5 finalist. He has since said that it was a heat of the moment thing, as Carrie had performed on the show last week.