The American Dream

   Twenty three cities across the nation. Thousands of hopefuls are getting ready for the biggest auditions of their singing careers.At the same time, millions are getting their DVR’s set up for one of the biggest singing competitions ever to hit the big screen. On March 11th, American Idol returns for the premiere of its 16th season after a two year hiatus. This time, American Idol will premiere on ABC, instead of Fox, showcasing  a whole new line of judges and talent, (with the exception of Ryan Seacrest, the host of American Idol).

If the show is anything like the original, then it will follow the same pattern that the original had portrayed.Within the first few weeks, viewers will witness multiple auditions that have been considered the “best” out of the thousands of participations who have performed on the same stage. If the singer is truly exceptional , he or she will receive a golden ticket, enabling that performer to advance onwards to the next round, which is considered Hollywood week. If they get through Hollywood week they will continue to advance to the Judges Cuts and so on.

The top 12 will advance to the live shows, where the audience will vote for its all time favorite. In the end, only one lucky singer will be crowned the queen or king of American Idol. The winner will go on to get signed by a recording company and hopefully become a huge success in the industry. Success comes with guidance, and that is what the judges are for. The judges for this season are none other than music industry royalty Katy Perry, Luke Bryan, and Lionel Richie.

Katy Perry is  Pop Princess. Perry has won over 90 awards and has hit number one on the  Billboard charts numerous times. Her first hit was the song “I Kissed a Girl And I Liked It”, which jump started her career to become one of the most recognizable pop singers in the music industry. Perry  also had her song, “Rise” played at the Summer Olympics in 2016.

Luke Bryan is a country King .  He is well known for his song, “Crash my Party”. And, he has won over 40 country awards.   He is currently one of the most known faces in country. Bryan possesses 7 million albums, and 27 million singles worldwide, and is currently finishing up a mini follow up tour to his mash hit album, “What makes you Country”. 

Last but definitely not least, Lionel Richie, a Prince of soul music. Richie was a part of the band, the Commodores, before leaving the band to pursue a solo career. His hit singles include, “Endless Love”, and “Hello”. He is currently retired, but remains a world-renowned musician. . He has won four Grammy awards, making him a legend for Soul Music.

Darien High School sophomore, Angelica Yika-Nacarino, a big fan of the original American Idol series, stated,“I have been hearing about the American Idol fo a really long time now, and I have heard all good things. I think the new judges are going to be pretty good. I don’t really listen to country so I don’t really know who Luke Bryan is, but Katy Perry rocks”. Sophomore Kennison Harmon, a fellow American Idol fan, agreed with Yika, stating,“I think that Lionel Richie is a good choice, but I would have liked to see Adele be the Pop Judge, because Lionel Richie had been the original single of “Hello” so why not make the pop judge the other singer of [another mega-hit]“Hello”.

With the show being rooted, it’s important to remember only some of the American Idol winners have/will make it big in the world of music. Kelly Clarkson, Carrie Underwood, Chris Daughtry, and Jennifer Hudson all remain on the list of American Idol’s contests who achieved their dream of a singing career. Unfortunately, not all winners of American Idol are as lucky. Some win and are easily forgotten; for example, have you ever heard of  Kris Elle?. He won on season eight and has not been heard anywhere on the music charts or on the radio once. Just like the saying goes, the work never ends, no matter how much you succeed.