How will suburban 'Idol' contestants fare in Hollywood?
Last year at this time, Lee DeWyze was just another contestant, trying to stand out from the hundreds of singers sent through to Hollywood by “American Idol.”
After the initial “Idol” audition rounds, several local faces had their golden ticket stamped to Hollywood.
As “Idol's” Hollywood Round begins at 7 tonight on Fox, will any of these contestants fare as well as DeWyze, or will they crumble under the glaring spotlight?
• Haley Reinhart
The judges, especially Steven Tyler, seemed to love Reinhart from the minute she walked into the audition room. The 19-year-old from Wheeling brimmed with confidence even as Tyler cautioned her to watch the runs on her rendition of the Beatles “Oh! Darling.” Based on the way she's been featured in promos, we think it's safe to say you'll be seeing Reinhart fare well in Hollywood.
• Ashika Sachdev
The Barrington High School sophomore was one of many contestants to take advantage of “Idol” lowering the minimum age from 16 to 15. Although her audition wasn't aired, Sachdev brings plenty of showbiz experience, having shot a pilot for Nickelodeon. She's also a model.
• Ty-Tanisa Wilson
Another contestant whose Milwaukee audition wasn't aired, the Aurora native is a performance major at Columbia College. This is the fifth time the 20-year-old Waubonsee Valley High grad tried out for “Idol” and this is the first time she's made it this far, according to her audition tape.
Aly Jados, Chris Medina and Tiwan Strong are three Chicago natives who were also featured during the Milwaukee auditions.
Of the three, Medina, an Oak Forest native, has the most buzz. It wasn't that his version of The Script's “Breakeven” was so captivating, but it was hard not to be moved by the fact that his fiancee, Juilana Ramos, sustained a traumatic brain injury in a car crash in 2009, forcing Medina to become her caretaker. The judges spent far more time interacting with Medina and Ramos than they did listening to Medina sing, but if there's one thing Danny Gokey taught us, it's that “Idol” embraces a tragic back story.
Rocker-girl Jados got through mostly on interaction with her idol, Tyler. Both of Jados' renditions of the Beatles “Come Together” and Aerosmith's “Dream On” were all over the place and even Tyler admitted the Chicago native scared him.
Strong's tryout may have been overshadowed by the fact that host Ryan Seacrest had to comfort Strong's relative when she was overcome with a charley horse upon learning that Strong had stamped his ticket to Hollywood. But make no mistake, Strong has plenty of sparkle and a beautiful baritone, which he displayed on Sam Cooke's “Twistin' the Night Away.”