American Idol

American Idol 8 is over six months away, but today is an important one for any young singer who fancies themselves the next big thing.  This morning, FOX released the dates and cities for the American Idol 8 auditions.  FOX and American Idol are always looking out for new, fertile markets for quality singing talent.  Last season, it appeared that FOX was of the belief that much of the talent had run dry and Idol ended up bringing a number of “ringers” in to audition, singers who had music industry experience that hadn't yet broken through into the mainstream.  The auditions kick off July 17 in San Francisco, and finish August 19 in New Jersey.  We have the full list of cities, dates and venues below. 

July 17: Cow Palace in San Francisco, California

July 21: Freedom Hall in Louisville, Kentucky

July 25: Jobing.com Arena in Phoenix, Arizona

July 29: EnergySolutions Arena in Salt Lake City, Utah

August 2: Coliseo de Puerto Rico in San Juan, Puerto Rico

August 8: Sprint Center in Kansas City, Missouri

August 13: Veterans Memorial Arena in Jacksonville, Florida

August 19: IZOD Center at the Meadowlands Sports Complex in East Rutherford, New Jersey


Obviously, there's a few notable inclusions in the above list.  Going to Puerto Rico is an interesting decision.  It may contain a well of talented singers who have previously been unable to audition.  Also, American Idol is going to try and cash in on David Archuleta and Brooke White's success by heading to Mormon country in Utah.  Interestingly, this is the first year I can remember that Idol isn't taking a trip to Southern California.  San Francisco is a good five hour drive from Los Angeles, and Phoenix is about an eight hour drive, so if any SoCal singers really want to audition, it's not impossible. 


-Oscar Dahl, BuddyTV Senior Writer
Source and Image Courtesy of FOX