10 Of The Best ‘American Idol’ Auditions

To honor the final season of American Idol, which premieres tonight at 8pm ET/7pm CT on FOX, we've compiled our favorite auditions.

Written by Erin Duvall
10 Of The Best ‘American Idol’ Auditions

Over the past 12 years, American Idol has changed the music industry. It has given birth to some of the biggest stars in the world and, specifically, country music. We rallied for the winners because we had voice. We had heroes to whom we related, who came from the same cities or vocations as we did, and we got to decide who would go and who would stay.

We had some help, though, of course. The first round of auditions was decided on by that season’s judges. In the beginning it was Simon Cowell, Paula Abdul and Randy Jackson who told would-be Idols if they were going on to Hollywood or going home. The faces behind the judges table may have changed, as Mariah Carey, Jennifer Lopez and Keith Urban all had their turns, but that initial “You’re going to Hollywood” always remained the best thing any of the hopefuls heard.

To honor the final season of American Idol, which premieres tonight at 8pm ET/7pm CT on FOX, we’ve compiled our favorite auditions.

Carrie Underwood

It’s shocking to watch Carrie Underwood’s initial audition. She was timid and scared of Simon Cowell, but had no problem admitting her secret to him when he asked. She had a third nipple that she had removed. While her rendition of Bonnie Raitt’s “I Can’t Make You Love Me” earned her a “Great voice, man,” from Randy Jackson, she really impressed him and Cowell with her “cluck.” Yes, when you watch the clip, she’s saying “cluck,” get your mind out of the gutter.

Kelly Clarkson

The winner of the first season of American Idol made an impression from the jump. Not only does she effectively date the clip to 2002 with the use of “cool beans,” the Texas native took the judges seat herself. After Kelly Clarkson performed “Express Yourself” by Madonna, Randy Jackson noted that he had worked on the song. So, the songstress suggested he perform and she traded him spots. Randy earned the trip to Hollywood and so did Kelly.

Kellie Pickler

Country fans know that Kellie Pickler is honest. In her intro to her audition, she opened up about her home life: explaining that her mother had left when she was young and that her father was in and out of prison. “I don’t have anything to go back home for,” she told the camera. So she went into her audition and sang “Since You’ve Been Gone” by the show’s first winner, Kelly Clarkson. They asked to sing another on the fly, and she tore up Martina McBride’s “A Broken Wing.” While all three had some honest feedback for her performance they all voted her through, with Simon Cowell even saying, “I really do like you.”

Danny Gokey

Danny Gokey was also brought to tears before his audition, as his wife had died just weeks before. He admitted that he had considered passing up the opportunity but then thought better of it. When he sang Marvin Gaye’s “Heard it Through the Grapevine,” Randy Jackson told him that his performance was “One of the best we’ve seen.”

Scotty McCreery

“God, I hope you can sing,” Jennifer Lopez said to Scotty McCreery before his audition. The Season 10 winner sang Josh Turner’s “Your Man” before an impromptu addition at the judges’ request, Travis Tritt’s “Put Some Drive in Your Country.”

Lauren Alaina

15-year-old Lauren Alaina audition for American Idol in the Mother Church of Country Music, Nashville’s Ryman Auditorium. She sang Faith Hill and Tim McGraw’s “Like We Never Loved at All” until Randy Jackson cut her off to say, “Best we’ve seen today in Nashville … You’ve got real, natural, god-given talent.” Then she brought her parents in and had judge Steven Tyler sing “their song” — “I Don’t Want to Miss a Thing” — with her.

Kristy Lee Cook

While Kristy Lee Cook’s audition may have been slightly distracted by Simon Cowell’s wild fantasies of her cage fighting training, the songstress was able to bring the focus back to where it belongs. Cook sang “Amazing Grace” which wowed the judges enough for Cowell to call her “sincere.”

Janelle Arthur

Janelle Arthur has some guts. She walked into her audition and sang “Where the Blacktop Ends” in front of Keith Urban himself. “I loved it,” he responded afterward. “Beautiful voice, great control.” She got four yeses and Urban telling her, “You’re going to Hollywood, baby!”

Chris Daughtry

Though he’d go on to take fourth place on Season 5, Chris Daughtry had mixed reviews during his audition. “I liked how you infused your own style,” Randy Jackson told him after his performance of Joe Cocker’s “The Letter,” but Simon Cowell didn’t agree. With yes votes from Paula Abdul and Jackson, Daughtry moved on.

Phillip Phillips

“I’ve got a funny feeling about this,” judge Steven Tyler leaned over to Jennifer Lopez and said as Phillip Phillips walked in for his audition. He sang Stevie Wonder’s “Superstition” and followed it up with an acoustic version of Michael Jackson’s “Thriller” and next thing you know, he was the Season 11 winner.