American Idol Season 7, According to Cowell

According to Simon Cowell, the upcoming season 7 of American Idol is going to have significant changes. For those of us diehard American Idol fans, it’s enough to thrill the socks off us. reality TV fans are a dedicated bunch to begin with, but there’s something about American Idol that has us drooling from June to January, waiting for its return, begging for any nugget we can get. Five days away from the official start, here’s what we can expect.

In a conference call with Simon that I had the opportunity to listen in on yesterday, he did address the concerns brought up at the end of last season by producers Nigel Lythgoe and Ken Warwick concerning the mentoring. Stars such as Jennifer Lopez and Diana Ross were a great addition to the show as far as bringing star power, yet it didn’t allow us to get to know the contestants very well. All we got to see was the interaction with the stars and the judges, and we didn’t get to find out anything about them, making it all a little lackluster. Imagine if this had been done in Kelly Pickerel’s season. We would have never learned she didn’t know what calamari was. This season they are vowing to spend more time getting to know the contestants.

Other changes mentioned are a new set, but it seems to me they make adjustments to that every year, so it leaves me asking, “So what?” In addition, in the Hollywood round this year, the contestants were allowed to play instruments if they wanted. Simon’s thought on this was that it didn’t do much to change the outcome. He felt the ones that did well with the instruments would have done well anyway, and those that didn’t, wouldn’t have anyway. I would almost rather see that in the performance rounds, as that’s when it can make the most difference, such as Blake being allowed to use the drums last year. There have been so many contestants the last few years that have come directly from bands, that it seems logical to allow it.

Simon couldn’t remember any of the talent from specific cities, saying he knew we’d hate him for this, but he gets done with the auditions and can’t remember who came from where. He did remember, though, that he really enjoyed his time in Omaha (Seriously!), and said he felt he was in the heart of America. The only thing he remembers of Philadelphia is that it was kind of crazy. It was their first city, so he felt they were probably overly kind, as no one was tired of it yet. Although it seems like they say that every single year, Simon feels that they really have some good talent this year, as he didn’t feel they did last year. This year, he sees six to eight contestants that could easily make it to the finals, although he doesn’t want to get himself in trouble by naming names just yet.

One person that didn’t make it to Hollywood was Fantasia’s brother. They were all excited when he walked into the auditions, but after, they were beginning to dispute if he was really her brother, as he didn’t have near the talent that she has. Meaning she has some job security as far as the singing Barrinos go, but why wouldn’t she tell him beforehand that he sucked? Wouldn’t that be the kind thing to do for her own flesh and blood? I suppose we’ll get to decide for ourselves how bad he really is when we see the auditions.

American Idol kicks off officially next week, Tuesday and Wednesday, January 15th and 16th, on Fox. I’ll be front and center in front of my TV with my TiVo remote in my hand, but I won’t be the only one. Not only is it bound to be on the majority of TVs out there, but Simon will be watching it too. He admitted he won’t remember who came from which city until he sees it back on TV, the same time we do. Simon, if you’re looking for company, you can always come sit on the sofa here next to me.

For more information on American Idol, see SirLinksalot: American Idol.

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