Regional Auditions
For Season 7, auditions began in San Diego, California on July 30, 2007, and continued in the following cities:
| Episode Air Date | Audition City | Date | First Audition Venue | Callback Date | Callback Venue | Golden Tickets |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January 15, 2008 | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania | August 27, 2007 | Wachovia Center | September 1–2, 2007 | Hyatt Regency | 29 |
| January 16, 2008 | Dallas, Texas | August 6, 2007 | Texas Stadium | September 20–23, 2007 | W Hotel Dallas Victory | 24 |
| January 22, 2008 | San Diego, California | July 30, 2007 | Qualcomm Stadium | September 12–13, 2007 | Rancho Bernardo Inn | 31 |
| January 23, 2008 | Charleston, South Carolina | August 18, 2007 | North Charleston Coliseum | September 6–7, 2007 | Charleston Area Convention Center | 23 |
| January 29, 2008 | Omaha, Nebraska | August 10, 2007 | Qwest Center Omaha | October 5–6, 2007 | Qwest Convention Center | 19 |
| January 30, 2008 | Miami, Florida | August 22, 2007 | American Airlines Arena | September 29–30, 2007 | JW Marriott Hotel | 17 |
| February 5, 2008 | Atlanta, Georgia | August 14, 2007 | Georgia Dome | October 8–10, 2007 | Georgia International Convention Center | 21 |
| Total 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 include former contestants who had previously reached the semifinal of Season 1 - 3 or the last phase of Hollywood round of Season 4 -6 (top 44 of Season 4 and 5, top 40 of Season 6), those holding recording or management contracts, or those who were not US citizens or landed immigrants (i.e. permanent residents).
One auditioner this year Alexis Cohen gained media attention due to her outraged reaction and profuse profanities after the judges rejected her in the Philadelphia audition. She also returned in Season 8 to audition in New York and her audition was featured. She was later found dead in a hit-and-run accident.
Another auditioner who gained some public attention was Renaldo Lapuz who sang his own composition "We're Brothers Forever" which he wrote for Simon Cowell. He was later asked to return to perform in the finale.
Read more about this topic: American Idol (season 7)
Famous quotes containing the word auditions:
“Addison DeWitt: Your next move, it seems to me, should be toward television.
Miss Caswell: Tell me this. Do they have auditions for television?
Addison DeWitt: That’s all television is, my dear. Nothing but auditions.”
—Joseph L. Mankiewicz (1909–1993)