Idol hands
Hopefuls show up to audition for the blockbuster TV singing competition
University of Nevada, Reno cheerleader Mary Ross, 19, initially showed up just to perform the opening ceremony with UNR cheer, but then she decided to audition as well.
Hannah Sloan, 17, was one of the many local high school kids who showed up to try their luck. The Damonte High School student said she wanted to audition to “prove to herself” that she could accept the challenge of competing against so many people.
24-year-old Renoite Destiny Jo Pike attempted her chance at fame for a second time. The local hairstylist braved extreme temperatures and long lines for her chance to show her skills to the judges. Unfortunately, after seven hours in line, the crooner was disappointed and rejected by the judges. Destiny will continue her pursuits, though, next traveling to San Francisco for another attempt at idolation.
First in line and also the first contestant to make it past the judges' table, 26-year-old Jordan Rasmussen drove 10 hours and arrived at the tryouts at 3:30 a.m. in order to secure her spot. She was one of many non-Nevada residents who tried out on the Reno stop.
Local street musician Wyatt Smith stayed positive after his rejection. “It was a lot of fun, and I am not upset because there are so many talented singers out here today, although it was nerve-wracking!” The 18-year-old singer-guitarist felt the main reason he did not advance was because he “sang a little flat.”
Part-time burlesque dancer and full-time Lake Tahoe resident Ashley Kepler was able to sing her way into the next round at age 26. She failed to make it through the first time she auditioned when she was 18, but got lucky in Reno eight years later.
Reduced to tears after failing to impress the judges and advance to the next round, 26-year-old Johnnice Burton refused to give up. Even though the Reno native had made it past the first round for the show X Factor, and has been attempting to impress the Idol judges since she was a student at Hug High, she has been stopped in the first round almost every year since 2006. The judges suggested vocal lessons in her quest to become America's next idol.
On a lark, UNR cheerleader Ross went from top of the cheer pyramid to one of top picks of the day. Although she says she usually only sings for fun with her mom in the car and occasionally does karaoke, something about her impressed the judges enough to advance to the next round.
One of the highest rated shows in the history of television, American Idol’s audition tour bus drew local artists to Reno’s downtown City Plaza on Saturday, July 12, alongside perpetual tryout hopefuls who rabidly pursue the mobile audition behemoth in their quest for stardom.
The RN&R found an eclectic group of competitors who ranged from serious musicians and colorful entertainers to random tourists wandering by. The show, now headed into its 14th season, set up tents with the “American Idol Audition Bus” as a colossal backdrop for the producers, who relentlessly endured eight hours of lyrical assault by participants crusading to be the next American Idol phenomenon.
A first-time audition city for the pop culture mega-machine, Reno served up blistering triple degree temperatures along with a few hopeful contenders for the iconic entertainment apparatus, which has struggled in the last few years to maintain its ratings and early prestige as a megastar-producing entity. Some contenders waited in line for up to eight hours while others arrived the night before to ensure they had a spot in line to present their skills to the judges, even though the show openly states under the audition section of their official website that, “there is no guarantee that we will have space or time to accommodate every person.”
