He said he’d just wanted Ryan Seacrest to «tear the tape off quickly» when it came to announcing the winner. After he’s shaken the confetti off his shoulders and hopped on an airplane home, Jamal is all steam ahead when it comes to music. Minutes after he was named Season 23’s winner, getting some sleep was top of mind for Jamal. Throughout the season, Lionel Richie often bestowed the same praise on Jamal about having heaven-sent talent; he particularly loved calling him «divinely guided.» When he arrived in Hollywood, he was plagued by doubts around his song choices. The big reveal came after a slate of performances that paired Top 14 singers with guests from Salt-N-Pepa to Jessica Simpson and Good Charlotte.

2016: Fox

• The pre-season buzz and the early episodes of the show were dominated by the feud between the judges Minaj and Carey after a video of their dispute was leaked to TMZ.
• Assistance has also been given by vocal coaches and song arrangers, such as Michael Orland and Debra Byrd to contestants behind the scene.
• Ryan Seacrest returned as host, and Jennifer Lopez, Keith Urban and Harry Connick, Jr. returned for their respective fourth, third and second seasons as judges.
• Each season premieres with the audition round, taking place in different cities.
• Now, folks are gearing up for another season American Idol.

Much media attention on the season had been focused on the three black singers, Fantasia Barrino, LaToya London, and Jennifer Hudson, dubbed the Three Divas. His exposure on Idol landed him a record deal and surprisingly he became the third bestselling singer from that season. One pin up casino app of the most talked-about contestants during the audition process was William Hung whose off-key rendition of Ricky Martin’s «She Bangs» received widespread attention. Ryan Seacrest returned as host, and Randy Jackson, Paula Abdul, and Simon Cowell returned as judges. Ruben Studdard emerged as the winner, beating Clay Aiken by a small margin.

Who are the judges and host on American Idol season 24?

No new song was used as coronation song this year; instead, the two finalists each released a cover song – DeWyze chose U2’s «Beautiful Day», and Bowersox chose Patty Griffin’s «Up to the Mountain». A special tribute to Simon Cowell was presented in the finale for his final season with the show. One of the most prominent auditioners this season was General Larry Platt whose performance of «Pants on the Ground» became a viral hit song. From ten of the most popular submissions, each of the final two contestants chose a song to perform, although neither of their selections was used as the «coronation song». Jason Castro’s semi-final performance of «Hallelujah» also received considerable attention, and it propelled Jeff Buckley’s version of the song to the top of the Billboard digital song chart. Both finalists found success after the show, but Aiken out-performed Studdard’s coronation song «Flying Without Wings» with his single release from the show «This Is the Night», as well as in their subsequent album releases.

Who are the American Idol Season 24 judges?

The top 10 contestants started with five males and five females, however, the males were eliminated consecutively in the first five weeks, with Lazaro Arbos the last male to be eliminated. The pre-season buzz and the early episodes of the show were dominated by the feud between the judges Minaj and Carey after a video of their dispute was leaked to TMZ. This was the first season since the ninth season to have four judges on the panel. Phillips released «Home» as his coronation song, while Sanchez released «Change Nothing».

The initial age limit was sixteen to twenty-four in the first three seasons, but the upper limit was raised to twenty-eight in the fourth season, and the lower limit was reduced to fifteen in the tenth season. In August 2025, it was announced Bryan, Richie, and Underwood would return as judges for the twenty-fourth season. On July 31, 2024, published reports announced former Idol winner Carrie Underwood as Perry’s replacement, joining Bryan and Richie for the twenty-third season. Bryan and Richie have remained on the show since, while Perry left the show in May 2024 after seven seasons.

The contestants are voted for by the viewing public, and the outcome of the public votes is then revealed during a results segment. Each season premieres with the audition round, taking place in different cities. However, starting in the eleventh season, the runner-up may only be guaranteed a single-only deal. Instead, typically the three contestants (two in later rounds) who received the lowest number of votes was called to the center of the stage. The most popular contestants are usually not revealed in the results show.

Ryan Seacrest returned as host, with Harry Connick Jr., Keith Urban, and Jennifer Lopez all returning as judges. Fradiani released «Beautiful Life» as his coronation single while Beckham released «Champion». Coca-Cola ended their longtime sponsorship of the show and Ford Motor Company maintained a reduced role. Eighth season runner-up Adam Lambert filled in for Urban during the New York City auditions. Johnson released «As Long as You Love Me» as his coronation single while Irene released «We Are One». In the Top 8, Sam Woolf received the fewest votes, but he was saved from elimination by the judges.

• In the twenty-first season, the same process was repeated, but they started with a top 26 instead of a top 24.
• Most recently, the show aired its 23rd overall season in spring 2025.
• Individual contestants have generated controversy in this competition for their past actions or for being ‘ringers’ planted by the producers.
• Moreover, from the eighth to the fourteenth seasons, and the seventeenth season onward, the judges may overturn viewers’ decision with a «Judges’ Save» if they unanimously agreed to.
• From the fourth through seventh and ninth seasons, the twenty-four semi-finalists were divided by gender in order to ensure an equal gender division in the top twelve.

Over 110 million votes were cast in the first season, and by the tenth season the seasonal total had increased to nearly 750 million. Viewers were allowed to vote as many times as they can within the two-hour voting window. During the contestant’s performance as well as the recap at the end, a toll-free telephone number for each contestant was displayed on the screen.

Is American Idol coming back for season 24 in 2026?

By 2004, it had become the most-watched show on American television, a position it then held for seven consecutive seasons until 2011. American Idol employs a select panel of judges who critique the contestants’ performances. The concept of the series involves discovering recording stars from unsigned singing talents, with the winner determined by American viewers using phones, Internet platforms, and SMS text voting.

Contestant eligibility

The growth continued into the next season, starting with a season premiere of 26.5 million. The first show drew 9.9 million viewers, giving Fox the best viewing figure for the 8.30 pm spot in over a year. Seasonal rankings (based on average total viewers per episode) of American Idol. On October 28, 2025, it was announced that the twenty-fourth season would premiere on January 26, 2026. On July 31, 2024, it was announced Seacrest would return as host, with Bryan and Richie returning as judges; Underwood was named as Perry’s successor. Hardy released a single, «Flame», immediately after the win, but Aranda did not.

American Idol surprised fans by revealing epic news ahead of the season 23 finale. In Brazil and Israel, the show airs two days after its original broadcast, and broadcast live during the season finale. Starting late in the fifth season, individual performances were released during the season as digital downloads, initially from the American Idol official website only.

Individual contestants have generated controversy in this competition for their past actions or for being ‘ringers’ planted by the producers. By performing first, a performer may benefit from the primacy effect, but any other early performance may be stifled. Others also suggest that the Southern character of these contestants appeal to the South, as well as local pride. In 2013, TV Guide ranked the series No. 48 on its list of the 60 Best Series of All Time. While the industry is divided on the show success, its impact is felt particularly strongly in the country music format. American Idol revolutionized American pop culture and the pop idol process and has provided an opportunity for many to bypass the small club scene and allow a much larger audience to participate in and select the next potential chart topping performer.

The media focused on the professional status of the seventh season contestants, the so-called ‘ringers’, many of whom, including Kristy Lee Cook, Brooke White, Michael Johns, and in particular Carly Smithson, had prior recording contracts. This season also saw the launch of the American Idol Songwriter contest which allows fans to vote for the «coronation song». His performance of Live’s version of «I Walk the Line» was well received by the judges but later criticized in some quarters for not crediting the arrangement to Live. Both Underwood and Bice released the coronation song «Inside Your Heaven», with Underwood’s version of the song making her the first country artist ever to debut at number-one on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. During the top 11 week, due to a mix-up with the contestants’ telephone number, voting was repeated on what was normally the result night, with the result reveal postponed until the following night. Fantasia and Diana DeGarmo were the last two finalists, and Fantasia was crowned as the winner.

While that declined from the eighth season onwards, it still earned significantly more than its nearest competitor, with advertising revenue topping $800 million annually the next few seasons. One estimate puts the total TV revenue for the first eight seasons of American Idol at $6.4 billion. Other alumni have gone on to work in television and films, the most notable being Jennifer Hudson who, on the recommendation of the Idol vocal coach Debra Byrd, won a role in Dreamgirls and eventually went on to win an Academy Award for her performance. The second performance spot is sometimes called the «un-pimp spot» because it is the least beneficial. Some fans call the final performance of the night the «pimp spot» because it usually receives a big boost in votes, due to the recency effect.

From there, a select few will be chosen to actually sing in front of the judges. Along with the judges reveal, ABC also announced how aspiring singers can start auditioning with the “Idol Across America” live virtual auditions. Katy Perry previously served as a judge for sven season before she exited and was replaced by Underwood for Season 23. Bryan then dubs himself the “professor of fun,” noting that he’s “serious … but FUN,” and Underwood references one of her song titles by adding, “Sign up for my class, you’ll be blown away.” “And this year,” she adds, “we’re majoring in music as we help launch your dreams.” While holding a thermos of coffee, Richie says, “Hello!