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| Network: | Fox |
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.
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.[1] 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,[2] an element that 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 would be the venue for the live series finale for the next six years.
For the seventh season, auditions began in San Diego, California, on July 30, 2007, and continued in these cities:[3]
| Preliminary date | Preliminary venue | Filming date(s) | Filming venue | Golden tickets | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| San Diego, California[4] | July 30, 2007 | Qualcomm Stadium | September 12–13, 2007 | Rancho Bernardo Inn[5] | 31 | |
| Dallas, Texas[6] | August 6, 2007 | Texas Stadium | September 20–23, 2007 | W Hotel Dallas Victory[7] | 24 | |
| Omaha, Nebraska[8] | August 10, 2007 | Qwest Center Omaha | October 5–6, 2007 | Qwest Convention Center[9] | 19 | |
| Atlanta, Georgia[10] | August 14, 2007 | Georgia Dome | October 8–10, 2007 | Georgia International Convention Center[11] [12] | 21 | |
| Charleston, South Carolina[13] | August 18, 2007 | North Charleston Coliseum | September 6–7, 2007 | Charleston Area Convention Center[14] | 23 | |
| Miami, Florida[15] | August 22, 2007 | American Airlines Arena | September 29–30, 2007 | JW Marriott Hotel[16] | 17 | |
| Philadelphia, Pennsylvania[17] | August 27, 2007 | Wachovia Center | September 1–2, 2007 | Hyatt Regency[18] | 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.
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 ultimately 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.[19]
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:
Contestants are listed in the order they performed.
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| Song | ||
| Top 24 | 1960s medley: "Needles and Pins" "When You Walk in the Room" "Spanish Harlem" "Bend Me, Shape Me" | |
|---|---|---|
| "Dance Like There's No Tomorrow" |
Contestants are listed in the order they performed.
|
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| Song | ||
| Top 20 | 1970s medley: "I Saw the Light" "It's a Heartache" "The Things We Do for Love" "I Feel the Earth Move" |
|---|
Contestants are listed in the order they performed.
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| Song | ||
| "How Many Words" |
There were eleven weeks of finals with twelve contestants competing. One contestant was eliminated every week based on the public's votes.
Color key:
Contestants performed one song each from the Lennon–McCartney discography, and are listed in the order they performed.
| Contestant | Lennon–McCartney song | Result | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Syesha Mercado | "Got to Get You into My Life" | Bottom three | |
| Chikezie | "She's a Woman" | Safe | |
| Ramiele Malubay | "In My Life" | Safe | |
| Jason Castro | "If I Fell" | Safe | |
| Carly Smithson | "Come Together" | Safe | |
| David Cook | "Eleanor Rigby" | Safe | |
| Brooke White | "Let It Be" | Safe | |
| David Hernandez | "I Saw Her Standing There" | Eliminated | |
| Amanda Overmyer | "You Can't Do That" | Safe | |
| Michael Johns | "Across the Universe" | Safe | |
| Kristy Lee Cook | "Eight Days a Week" | Bottom two | |
| David Archuleta | "We Can Work It Out" | Safe |
| Performers | Song | |
|---|---|---|
| Top 12 | Beatles medley: "All My Loving" "I Feel Fine" "Can't Buy Me Love" "Help!" | |
| "Something" |
Contestants performed one song each from the Beatles discography, and are listed in the order they performed.
| Contestant | Beatles song | Result | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Amanda Overmyer | "Back in the U.S.S.R." | Eliminated | |
| Kristy Lee Cook | "You've Got to Hide Your Love Away" | Bottom two | |
| David Archuleta | "The Long and Winding Road" | Safe | |
| Michael Johns | "A Day in the Life" | Safe | |
| Brooke White | "Here Comes the Sun" | Safe | |
| David Cook | "Day Tripper" | Safe | |
| Carly Smithson | "Blackbird" | Bottom three | |
| Jason Castro | "Michelle" | Safe | |
| Syesha Mercado | "Yesterday" | Safe | |
| Chikezie | "I've Just Seen a Face" | Safe | |
| Ramiele Malubay | "I Should Have Known Better" | Safe |
| Performers | Song | |
|---|---|---|
| Top 11 | Beatles medley: "While My Guitar Gently Weeps" "Here, There and Everywhere" "Because" "The End" | |
| "Red High Heels" |
Contestants each performed one song from the year they were born, and are listed in the order they performed.
| Contestant | Song | Birth year | Result | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ramiele Malubay | "Alone" | 1987 | Safe | |
| Jason Castro | "Fragile" | 1987 | Bottom three | |
| Syesha Mercado | "If I Were Your Woman" | 1987 | Bottom two | |
| Chikezie | "If Only for One Night" | 1985 | Eliminated | |
| Brooke White | "Every Breath You Take" | 1983 | Safe | |
| Michael Johns | "We Will Rock You" & "We Are the Champions" | 1978 | Safe | |
| Carly Smithson | "Total Eclipse of the Heart" | 1983 | Safe | |
| David Archuleta | "You're the Voice" | 1990 | Safe | |
| Kristy Lee Cook | "God Bless the U.S.A." | 1984 | Safe | |
| David Cook | "Billie Jean" | 1982 | Safe |
| Song | ||
| Top 10 | "Right Back Where We Started From" | |
|---|---|---|
| "Fall" |
Dolly Parton served as a guest mentor this week. Contestants performed one song each from her discography, and are listed in the order they performed.
| Contestant | Dolly Parton song | Result | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Brooke White | "Jolene" | Bottom three | |
| David Cook | "Little Sparrow" | Safe | |
| Ramiele Malubay | "Do I Ever Cross Your Mind" | Eliminated | |
| Jason Castro | "Travelin' Thru" | Safe | |
| Carly Smithson | "Here You Come Again" | Safe | |
| David Archuleta | "Smoky Mountain Memories" | Safe | |
| Kristy Lee Cook | "Coat of Many Colors" | Bottom two | |
| Syesha Mercado | "I Will Always Love You" | Safe | |
| Michael Johns | "It's All Wrong, But It's All Right" | Safe |
| Song | ||
| Top 9 | "9 to 5" | |
|---|---|---|
| The Clark Brothers | "This Little Light of Mine" | |
| "Jesus and Gravity" |
Contestants are listed in the order they performed.
| Contestant | Song | Result | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Michael Johns | "Dream On" | Eliminated | |
| Syesha Mercado | "I Believe" | Bottom three | |
| Jason Castro | "Over the Rainbow" | Safe | |
| Kristy Lee Cook | "Anyway" | Safe | |
| David Cook | "Innocent" | Safe | |
| Carly Smithson | "The Show Must Go On" | Bottom three | |
| David Archuleta | "Angels" | Safe | |
| Brooke White | "You've Got a Friend" | Safe |
| Song | ||
| Top 8 | "Shout to the Lord" | |
|---|---|---|
| "No Air" |
Mariah Carey served as a guest mentor this week. Contestants performed one song each from her discography, and are listed in the order they performed.
| Contestant | Mariah Carey song | Result | |
|---|---|---|---|
| David Archuleta | "When You Believe" | Safe | |
| Carly Smithson | "Without You" | Safe | |
| Syesha Mercado | "Vanishing" | Bottom three | |
| Brooke White | "Hero" | Bottom two | |
| Kristy Lee Cook | "Forever" | Eliminated | |
| David Cook | "Always Be My Baby" | Safe | |
| Jason Castro | "I Don't Wanna Cry" | Safe |
| Song | ||
| Top 7 | "One Sweet Day" | |
|---|---|---|
| "Free" | ||
| "Bye Bye" |
Andrew Lloyd Webber served as a guest mentor this week. Contestants performed one song each from one of his musicals, and are listed in the order they performed.
| Contestant | Song | Musical | Result | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Syesha Mercado | "One Rock & Roll Too Many" | Starlight Express | Bottom two | |
| Jason Castro | "Memory" | Cats | Safe | |
| Brooke White | "You Must Love Me" | Evita | Safe | |
| David Archuleta | "Think of Me" | The Phantom of the Opera | Safe | |
| Carly Smithson | "Superstar" | Jesus Christ Superstar | Eliminated | |
| David Cook | "The Music of the Night" | The Phantom of the Opera | Safe |
| Song | ||
| Top 6 | "All I Ask of You" from The Phantom of the Opera | |
|---|---|---|
| "Bleeding Love" |
Neil Diamond served as a guest mentor this week. Contestants performed two songs each from his discography, and are listed in the order they performed.
| Contestant | Order | Neil Diamond song | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jason Castro | 1 | "Forever in Blue Jeans" | Safe |
| 6 | "September Morn" | ||
| David Cook | 2 | "I'm Alive" | Safe |
| 7 | "All I Really Need Is You" | ||
| Brooke White | 3 | "I'm a Believer" | Eliminated |
| 8 | "I Am...I Said" | ||
| David Archuleta | 4 | "Sweet Caroline" | Safe |
| 9 | "America" | ||
| Syesha Mercado | 5 | "Hello Again" | Safe |
| 10 | "Thank the Lord for the Night Time" |
| Song | ||
| Top 5 | Neil Diamond medley: "Cracklin' Rosie" "Song Sung Blue" "Brother Love's Travelling Salvation Show" | |
|---|---|---|
| "Pocketful of Sunshine" | ||
| "Pretty Amazing Grace" |
Contestants performed two songs, and are listed in the order they performed.
| Contestant | Order | Rock and roll song | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| David Cook | 1 | "Hungry Like the Wolf" | Safe |
| 5 | "Baba O'Riley" | ||
| Syesha Mercado | 2 | "Proud Mary" | Safe |
| 6 | "A Change Is Gonna Come" | ||
| Jason Castro | 3 | "I Shot the Sheriff" | Eliminated |
| 7 | "Mr. Tambourine Man" | ||
| David Archuleta | 4 | "Stand by Me" | Safe |
| 8 | "Love Me Tender" |
| Song | ||
| Top 4 | "Reelin' In the Years" | |
|---|---|---|
| "If I Never See Your Face Again" | ||
| "Witness" |
Each contestant performed three songs: one chosen by one of the judges, one chosen by the producers, and one chosen by the contestant. Contestants are listed in the order they performed.
| Contestant | Order | Song | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| David Archuleta | 1 | "And So It Goes" | Safe |
| 4 | "With You" | ||
| 7 | "Longer" | ||
| Syesha Mercado | 2 | "If I Ain't Got You" | Eliminated |
| 5 | "Fever" | ||
| 8 | "Hit Me Up | ||
| David Cook | 3 | "The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face" | Safe |
| 6 | "Dare You to Move" | ||
| 9 | "I Don't Want to Miss a Thing" |
| Song | ||
| Top 3 | "Ain't No Stoppin' Us Now" | |
|---|---|---|
| "Bore Me (Yawn)" |
Each contestant performed three songs, and are listed in the order they performed. David Archuletha won the coin toss after the results show the prior week, and chose to perform last.
| Contestant | Order | Song | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| David Cook | 1 | "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For" | Winner |
| 3 | "Dream Big" | ||
| 5 | "The World I Know" | ||
| David Archuleta | 2 | "Don't Let the Sun Go Down on Me" | Runner-up |
| 4 | "In This Moment" | ||
| 6 | "Imagine" |
| Song | ||
| "Celebrate Me Home" | ||
| Top 12 | "Get Ready" | |
| David Cook & David Archuleta | "Hero" | |
| Syesha Mercado with Seal | "Waiting for You" | |
| Jason Castro | "Hallelujah" | |
| "She Works Hard for the Money" "Hot Stuff" "Stamp Your Feet" "Last Dance" | ||
| "The Letter" | ||
| "Summer of '69" "Heaven" "I Thought I'd Seen Everything" "Somebody" | ||
| "Sharp Dressed Man" | ||
| Brooke White with Graham Nash | "Teach Your Children" | |
| "S.O.S" | ||
| "We're Brothers Forever" | ||
| David Archuleta with OneRepublic | "Apologize" | |
| "One Step at a Time" | ||
| Gladys Knight | "Midnight Train to Georgia" | |
| "Last Name" | ||
| "Faith" "Father Figure" "Freedom" "Praying for Time" | ||
| "The Time of My Life" |
Color key:
| Semifinals | Top 12 | Top 11 | Top 10 | Top 9 | Top 8 | Top 7 | Top 6 | Top 5 | Top 4 | Top 3 | Finale | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2/21 | 2/28 | 3/6 | 3/13 | 3/20 | 3/27 | 4/2 | 4/10 | 4/16 | 4/23 | 4/30 | 5/7 | 5/14 | 5/21 | ||
| David Cook | 1 | Safe | Safe | Safe | Safe | Safe | Safe | Safe | Safe | Safe | Safe | Safe | Safe | Safe | Winner |
| David Archuleta | 2 | Safe | Safe | Safe | Safe | Safe | Safe | Safe | Safe | Safe | Safe | Safe | Safe | Safe | Runner-up |
| Syesha Mercado | 3 | Safe | Safe | Safe | Bottom three | Safe | Bottom two | Safe | Bottom three | Bottom three | Bottom two | Safe | Safe | Eliminated | |
| Jason Castro | 4 | Safe | Safe | Safe | Safe | Safe | Bottom three | Safe | Safe | Safe | Safe | Safe | Eliminated | ||
| Brooke White | 5 | Safe | Safe | Safe | Safe | Safe | Safe | Bottom three | Safe | Bottom two | Safe | Eliminated | |||
| Carly Smithson | 6 | Safe | Safe | Safe | Safe | Bottom three | Safe | Safe | Bottom three | Safe | Eliminated | ||||
| Kristy Lee Cook | 7 | Safe | Safe | Safe | Bottom two | Bottom two | Safe | Bottom two | Safe | Eliminated | |||||
| Michael Johns | 8 | Safe | Safe | Safe | Safe | Safe | Safe | Safe | Eliminated | ||||||
| Ramiele Malubay | 9 | Safe | Safe | Safe | Safe | Safe | Safe | Eliminated | |||||||
| Chikezie | 10 | Safe | Safe | Safe | Safe | Safe | Eliminated | ||||||||
| Amanda Overmyer | 11 | Safe | Safe | Safe | Safe | Eliminated | |||||||||
| David Hernandez | 12 | Safe | Safe | Safe | Eliminated | ||||||||||
| Asia'h Epperson | Safe | Safe | Eliminated | ||||||||||||
| Kady Malloy | Safe | Safe | |||||||||||||
| Luke Menard | Safe | Safe | |||||||||||||
| Danny Noriega | Safe | Safe | |||||||||||||
| Robbie Carrico | Safe | Eliminated | |||||||||||||
| Alexandréa Lushington | Safe | ||||||||||||||
| Alaina Whitaker | Safe | ||||||||||||||
| Jason Yeager | Safe | ||||||||||||||
| Colton Berry | Eliminated | ||||||||||||||
| Joanne Borgella | |||||||||||||||
| Amy Davis | |||||||||||||||
| Garrett Haley |
See main article: Idol Gives Back. The Idol Gives Back initiative returned on April 9, 2008. Again, proceeds went to children's charities in Africa and the United States. Unlike Idol Gives Back 2007, where no contestant was eliminated, Michael Johns was eliminated during Idol Gives Back 2008.
Carly Smithson stirred up controversy due to a prior major label record deal she had with MCA Records. To further complicate things, Randy Jackson worked for MCA during the same period of time that Smithson was signed. The media noted that several of the other season 7 semifinalists had previously also had record deals, including Kristy Lee Cook, Brooke White, and Michael Johns. According to a poll conducted by AOL Television, 63 percent of those polled believed that contestants who already had record deals should not be contestants on American Idol,[21] however, Idol rules stated that contestants were eligible so long as they were no longer under contract when Idol began, regardless of any past contracts.
On the April 29 show, the five remaining contestants each sang two songs. Diverting from the usual format due to time constraints, the judges' critiques were to be bundled until after both songs were performed. However, after the first round had finished, host Ryan Seacrest asked for comments, and judge Paula Abdul, in discussing Jason Castro, delivered feedback on his second song before he had actually performed it. This led to speculation that the show was scripted or rigged.[22] The next day, Abdul claimed on Seacrest's radio show that she listened to the performances in rehearsal and in the rushed atmosphere of the show was confused and thought she was supposed to critique both.[23]
During season 7, American Idol partnered with iTunes to make available for sale exclusive performance videos, live performance singles of the semifinalists, and full-length studio recordings of the songs that contestants performed on the show. In order to keep the competition fair, these singles were not allowed to appear on iTunes sales charts until after the finale. The contestants' performances during the season were removed soon after the finale.
The winning song, "The Time of My Life", was recorded by David Cook and released on May 22, 2008. The song was certified platinum by the RIAA on December 12, 2008.[24] It was the first winner's song to not be performed during the competition as the top 2 each selected a different song from a list of ten entries in song-writing competition to perform instead. Cook performed "The Time of My Life" after Ryan Seacrest had announced him as the winner.
David Cook's debut album was released on November 18, 2008, on 19 Recordings / RCA Records and was certified platinum by the RIAA on January 22, 2009. Cook teamed with Grammy winning producer Rob Cavallo (Green Day, Kid Rock) on the album. A single from the album, "Light On," was released and peaked at 20 on the Billboard Hot 100.[25] His sophomore album, This Loud Morning, was released on June 28, 2011.
David Archuleta signed with Jive Records and his self-titled debut album was released on November 11, 2008, and debuted at number two. Archuleta's album certified gold. Archuleta's first single, "Crush," debuted at number two on the Billboard Hot 100 and number one on the Hot Digital Songs chart, giving it the highest single debut of 2008 and the highest single debut in 18 months. The song has sold 1.9 million copies as of January 2009.[26]
Season 7 of American Idol overall was the most watched primetime program in the United States for the fourth consecutive year, during the conclusion of the 2007–2008 television season. The Tuesday episode viewership averaged 27.665 million while the Wednesday episode averaged 26.843 million, taking the top 2 spots for the season.[27] The show helped Fox become the most watched overall television network in the U.S. for the first time in its history (as well as a record first for a non-Big Three major network in American television history), and lead the 18–49 demographic ratings with still-standing largest ever margin since the introduction of the people meter technology in the Nielsen nationwide television tallies during the 1985–1986 television season.[28]