The seventh season of American Idol began on January 15, 2008 and concluded on May 21, 2008. Ryan Seacrest continued to host the show, while Simon Cowell, Paula Abdul, and Randy Jackson returned as judges. David Cook was announced as the winner on May 21, 2008, defeating runner-up David Archuleta by a margin of roughly 12 million votes out of over 97 million, which was at that time the highest recorded vote total in the show's history.
Changes from previous seasons Prior to the start of the seventh season, executive producer Nigel Lythgoe admitted that the sixth season had placed more focus on the guest mentors than the contestants. Changes were planned for the seventh season designed to return attention to the contestants by providing more information on their backgrounds and families.
In a major change for the seventh season, contestants were allowed to play musical instruments, an element which originated on Australian Idol. A brand new set was built, and a new introduction credit sequence was created. The season finale also moved from the Kodak Theatre to the larger Nokia Theatre in Los Angeles, which became the venue for the live series finale for the next six years.
Regional auditions For the seventh season, auditions began in San Diego, California, on July 30, 2007, and continued in these cities:
+American Idol (season 7) – regional auditions City Preliminary date Preliminary venue Filming date(s) Filming venue Golden tickets San Diego, California July 30, 2007 Qualcomm Stadium September 12–13, 2007 Rancho Bernardo Inn 31 Dallas, Texas August 6, 2007 Texas Stadium September 20–23, 2007 W Hotel Dallas Victory 24 Omaha, Nebraska August 10, 2007 Qwest Center Omaha October 5–6, 2007 Qwest Convention Center 19 Atlanta, Georgia August 14, 2007 Georgia Dome October 8–10, 2007 Georgia International Convention Center 21 Charleston, South Carolina August 18, 2007 North Charleston Coliseum September 6–7, 2007 Charleston Area Convention Center 23 Miami, Florida August 22, 2007 American Airlines Arena September 29–30, 2007 JW Marriott Hotel 17 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania August 27, 2007 Wachovia Center September 1–2, 2007 Hyatt Regency 29 Total number of tickets to Hollywood 164
Contestants were required to be between the ages of 16 and 28 on July 28, 2007, and eligible to work in the United States. Those ineligible included former contestants who had previously reached the semifinals of the first through third seasons, or the last phase of the Hollywood round of the fourth through sixth seasons, those holding recording or management contracts, or those who were not U.S. citizens or permanent residents.
Hollywood week The Hollywood week took place at the Pasadena Civic Center in Pasadena, California, over a period of five days. A total of 164 contestants were invited from the seven audition cities. This year, the process was altered slightly to ensure that no talent would be prematurely dismissed, and there are no group performances. The contestants performed at least two songs during this round.
The first round of individual performances lasted two days. For the first time ever, contestants had the option of either being accompanied by the band or playing an instrument themselves, such as a keyboard, guitar, or drums. If the judges approved of the contestants' performances, they received a "free pass," exempting them from having to perform in the second round. Unlike previous seasons, contestants whose performances were not considered good enough were afforded a second chance rather than immediate elimination. They lined up on stage in groups of ten and each sang a short segment of a song a cappella. After each group had performed, the judges eliminated about 100 contestants.
In the final round, the remaining contestants individually performed a song chosen from a provided list of songs, accompanied by the band and three backup singers. After each performance, the judges decided the contestant's fate; 50 contestants emerged after this round ended. The judges then deliberated further on who should be in the top 24, and their decision was revealed the next day.
One of the more prominent contestants during the Hollywood week was Josiah Leming, whose unhappiness with the backing band resulted in him dismissing the band. He was eventually eliminated. Another piece of drama involved contestant Kyle Ensley, when Simon Cowell voiced strong objection over him not being selected for the semifinals. His non-selection was later revealed to have resulted in serious rift between Cowell and the show producer Nigel Lythgoe.
Semifinals The live show portion of the semifinals began on February 19, 2008. Similar to the previous three seasons, the women and men performed on separate shows, and then on the result shows, the bottom two contestants from each group were eliminated from the competition. The semifinals took place over three weeks, resulting in six males and six females being eliminated, leaving the other six to form the top 12. The men performed on the first night, and the ladies the next night.
Color key:
Top 24 – Music from the 1960s Contestants are listed in the order they performed. +Top 24 - male contestants (February 19) Contestant Song Result David Hernandez "In the Midnight Hour" Safe Chikezie "More Today Than Yesterday" Safe David Cook "Happy Together" Safe Jason Yeager "Moon River" Safe Robbie Carrico "One" Safe David Archuleta "Shop Around" Safe Dani Noriega (AKA Adore Delano) "Jailhouse Rock" Safe Luke Menard "Everybody's Talkin'" Safe Colton Berry "Suspicious Minds" Eliminated Garrett Haley "Breaking Up Is Hard to Do" Eliminated Jason Castro "Daydream" Safe Michael Johns "Light My Fire" Safe+Top 24 - female contestants (February 20) Contestant Song Result Kristy Lee Cook "Rescue Me" Safe Joanne Borgella "I Say a Little Prayer" Eliminated Alaina Whitaker "More Today Than Yesterday" Safe Amanda Overmyer "Baby, Please Don't Go" Safe Amy Davis "Where the Boys Are" Eliminated Brooke White "Happy Together" Safe Alexandréa Lushington "Spinning Wheel" Safe Kady Malloy "A Groovy Kind of Love" Safe Asia'h Epperson "Piece of My Heart" Safe Ramiele Malubay "You Don't Have to Say You Love Me" Safe Syesha Mercado "Tobacco Road" Safe Carly Smithson "The Shadow of Your Smile" Safe +Non-competition performancePerformersSongTop 24 1960s medley:"Needles and Pins""When You Walk in the Room""Spanish Harlem""Bend Me, Shape Me" Paula Abdul andRandy Jackson "Dance Like There's No Tomorrow"
Top 20 – Music from the 1970s Contestants are listed in the order they performed. +Top 20 - male contestants (February 26) Contestant Song Result Michael Johns "Go Your Own Way" Safe Jason Castro "I Just Want to Be Your Everything" Safe Luke Menard "Killer Queen" Safe Robbie Carrico "Hot Blooded" Eliminated Danny Noriega "Superstar" Safe David Hernandez "Papa Was a Rollin' Stone" Safe Jason Yeager "Long Train Runnin'" Eliminated Chikezie "I Believe to My Soul" Safe David Cook "All Right Now" Safe David Archuleta "Imagine" Safe+Top 20 - female contestants (February 27) Contestant Song Result Carly Smithson "Crazy on You" Safe Syesha Mercado "Me and Mrs. Jones" Safe Brooke White "You're So Vain" Safe Ramiele Malubay "Don't Leave Me This Way" Safe Kristy Lee Cook "You're No Good" Safe Amanda Overmyer "Carry On Wayward Son" Safe Alaina Whitaker "Hopelessly Devoted to You" Eliminated Alexandréa Lushington "If You Leave Me Now" Eliminated Kady Malloy "Magic Man" Safe Asia'h Epperson "All by Myself" Safe +Non-competition performancePerformersSong Top 20 1970s medley:"I Saw the Light""It's a Heartache""The Things We Do for Love""I Feel the Earth Move"
Top 16 – Music from the 1980s Contestants are listed in the order they performed. +Top 16 - male contestants (March 4) Contestant Song Result Luke Menard "Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go" Eliminated David Archuleta "Another Day in Paradise" Safe Danny Noriega "Tainted Love" Eliminated David Hernandez "It's All Coming Back to Me Now" Safe Michael Johns "Don't You (Forget About Me)" Safe David Cook "Hello" Safe Jason Castro "Hallelujah" Safe Chikezie "All the Man That I Need" Safe+Top 16 - female contestants (March 5) Contestant Song Result Asia'h Epperson "I Wanna Dance with Somebody (Who Loves Me)" Eliminated Kady Malloy "Who Wants to Live Forever" Eliminated Amanda Overmyer "I Hate Myself for Loving You" Safe Carly Smithson "I Drove All Night" Safe Kristy Lee Cook "Faithfully" Safe Ramiele Malubay "Against All Odds (Take a Look at Me Now)" Safe Brooke White "Love Is a Battlefield" Safe Syesha Mercado "Saving All My Love for You" Safe +Non-competition performancePerformersSong Blake Lewis "How Many Words"
Top 12 finalists
David Cook (born December 20, 1982, in Houston; 24 years old at the time of the show) was a native of Blue Springs, Missouri, who auditioned in Omaha with Bon Jovi's "Livin' on a Prayer." His Hollywood performance of Bryan Adams's "(Everything I Do) I Do It for You" did not impress Simon Cowell, but his second performance, Edwin McCain's "I'll Be," did. David Archuleta (born December 28, 1990, in Miami, Florida; 16 years old at the time of the show) was from Murray, Utah, and auditioned in San Diego with John Mayer's "Waiting on the World to Change." He impressed the judges with his performance of Gnarls Barkley's "Crazy" and Bryan Adams's "Heaven" in Hollywood. Syesha Mercado (born January 2, 1987, in Bridgeport, Connecticut; 21 years old at the time of the show) was from Sarasota, Florida, and auditioned in Miami with Aretha Franklin's "Think." In Hollywood, she became ill and almost lost her voice. In preparation for her final Hollywood performance with Aretha Franklin's "Chain of Fools," she went on voice rest and wrote down everything she had to say on a pad of paper. Jason Castro (born March 25, 1987; 20 years old at the time of the show) was from Rockwall, Texas, and auditioned in Dallas with Keith Urban's "Once in a Lifetime" and Ray LaMontagne's "Crazy." Brooke White (born June 2, 1983, in Mesa, Arizona; 24 years old at the time of the show) was from Van Nuys, California, and auditioned in Philadelphia with Corinne Bailey Rae's "Like a Star." She performed Carole King's "Beautiful" in Hollywood. Carly Smithson (born as Carly Hennessy on September 12, 1983, in Dublin, Ireland; 24 years old at the time of the show) was a professional singer from San Diego, California. She had originally auditioned in Las Vegas during the show's fifth season, but was dropped from the show due to a problem with her visa. She auditioned in San Diego with Whitney Houston's "I'm Every Woman," and performed Leo Sayer's "When I Need You" and Heart's "Alone" in Hollywood. Kristy Lee Cook (born January 18, 1984; 24 years old at the time of the show) was from Selma, Oregon, and auditioned in Philadelphia, where she sang "Amazing Grace," a song she also performed in Hollywood. Michael Johns (born as Michael Lee on October 20, 1978, in Perth, Australia; 29 years old at the time of the show) auditioned in San Diego with Otis Redding's "I've Been Loving You Too Long." In Hollywood, he performed The Doors' "Light My Fire," but it was his performance of Queen's "Bohemian Rhapsody" that was one of the highlights. Ramiele Malubay (born September 6, 1987, in Saudi Arabia; 20 years old at the time of the show) was from Miramar, Florida, and auditioned in Miami with Aretha Franklin's "Natural Woman." She performed Aretha Franklin's "Until You Come Back to Me (That's What I'm Gonna Do)" and The Kiki Dee Band's "I've Got the Music in Me" in Hollywood. Chikezie (born as Chikezie Eze on September 11, 1985, in Inglewood, California; 22 years old at the time of the show) auditioned in San Diego with Luther Vandross' "All the Woman I Need." He had previously auditioned during the show's sixth season, and made it to Hollywood, but was cut before the top 44.