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Idol hopefuls take a chance
By Brian McCauley, bmccauley@miconews.com
More than 15,000 aspiring singers from across the country, including a handful from Paola, converged on Kemper Arena in Kansas City, Mo., on Friday looking for their chance to be the next American Idol.
The tryouts were the sixth in a series of auditions spanning eight cities that began in San Francisco on July 17 and will end in East Rutherford, N.J., on Aug. 19. Earlier this year, Blue Springs, Mo., native David Cook was crowned the newest American Idol.
Although none of the local participants moved on to the next round on Friday, each one said they’ll not soon forget the experience, which included several hours of waiting for just a few seconds in the spotlight to impress Idol judges.
Four of the participants from Paola talked to the Republic about their attempts at stardom and whether they would do it again.
MARGO RODEWALD
The spotlight is no stranger for Margo, who wowed judges at the Rock ‘n’ Roll Idol contest at the 2007 Paola Heartland Car Show with her version of “Unchained Melody.” She belted out the song again at the Paola High School talent show in April, and so it was no surprise that Margo chose the popular love melody for her shot at American Idol fame on Friday.
But before she even got a chance to sing, Margo said she and her mother waited outside of Kemper in the wee hours of the morning Friday along with the other hopefuls who were herded together.
“They had us packed in like sardines,” Margo said.
When it was finally her turn to sing, Margo stood alongside three other participants and sang for about 30 seconds in front of a couple Idol producers — a far cry from the audience at the Paola American Legion, where she performs on bingo nights.
The judges had nice words to say about Margo’s singing, but she could tell they weren’t going to select her.
“I would rather they just got to the point,” she said.
Margo said she wasn’t upset afterwards, and she doesn’t entirely regret the experience.
“It was cool that Ryan Seacrest came,” she said with a smile.
JANAE LENTZ
After waiting at Kemper since 4:30 a.m., Janae only had a few seconds to belt out her rendition of Martina McBride’s “Independence Day.”
“I was really nervous, but they just told me to relax and sing and that it was not that big of deal,” she said.
Janae was not selected to move on to the next round, but that was OK with her.
“I wasn’t disappointed,” she said. “I’m excited to get back to school.”
While waiting to sing, Janae noticed that much of the attention of the cameras were on the more flamboyantly dressed contestants.
“Some guy had a jacket and a hat all made of money,” she said.
There was another contestant who she could only describe as “extremely weird.”
“He was screaming into the camera about how awesome he was, and he definitely was not,” she said with a laugh.
If the Idol tryouts ever pass near Kansas City again Janae said she may try again, but for now, she’s going to focus on her favorite type of music.
“I’m hard core country all the way,” she said. “Maybe I’ll try out for Nashville Star.”
LINDSEY JOHNSTON
Lindsey said there was already a massive line outside Kemper on Friday when she arrived at 3:30 a.m.
“It was like a mob,” she said. “People were sleeping on the parking lot floor.”
Once Lindsey got inside in the auditorium, the waiting continued, as she discovered that her section would be one of the last to be selected to sing in front of the producers.
It was past 7 p.m. when she finally got a chance to perform her version of “Dream” by Ashley Tisdale.
“They said they liked my voice, but they thought I was too young,” Lindsey said.
At age 17, Lindsey was on the young side of the show’s 16 to 28 age range requirement.
Still, like Margo, meeting Ryan Seacrest made sure the trip wasn’t a total loss.
“I said ‘hi’ to him, but I didn’t hug him,” Lindsey said with a hint of disappointment.
HANNAH RHODES
Hannah wanted to try out last year, but she couldn’t make it to any of the locations. She was happy to see the auditions come through Kansas City this year.
While waiting in line on Friday, Hannah said she witnessed some very interesting people.
“There was one guy with a fake Puerto Rican accent, and another person was in a bunny suit,” she said with a laugh.
Hoping to stand out, Hannah chose a unique song to sing: “A Blossom Fell” by Nat King Cole.
Although the judges praised her singing talent, Hannah said she was not chosen to move on to the next round.
“They said we were nervous and needed to be more aggressive,” she said.
The news didn’t discourage Hannah, though, who said she still loves singing and enjoyed the Idol opportunity.
“I would do it again,” she said. “If it was tomorrow, I would go.”
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The tryouts were the sixth in a series of auditions spanning eight cities that began in San Francisco on July 17 and will end in East Rutherford, N.J., on Aug. 19. Earlier this year, Blue Springs, Mo., native David Cook was crowned the newest American Idol.
Although none of the local participants moved on to the next round on Friday, each one said they’ll not soon forget the experience, which included several hours of waiting for just a few seconds in the spotlight to impress Idol judges.
Four of the participants from Paola talked to the Republic about their attempts at stardom and whether they would do it again.
MARGO RODEWALD
The spotlight is no stranger for Margo, who wowed judges at the Rock ‘n’ Roll Idol contest at the 2007 Paola Heartland Car Show with her version of “Unchained Melody.” She belted out the song again at the Paola High School talent show in April, and so it was no surprise that Margo chose the popular love melody for her shot at American Idol fame on Friday.
But before she even got a chance to sing, Margo said she and her mother waited outside of Kemper in the wee hours of the morning Friday along with the other hopefuls who were herded together.
“They had us packed in like sardines,” Margo said.
When it was finally her turn to sing, Margo stood alongside three other participants and sang for about 30 seconds in front of a couple Idol producers — a far cry from the audience at the Paola American Legion, where she performs on bingo nights.
The judges had nice words to say about Margo’s singing, but she could tell they weren’t going to select her.
“I would rather they just got to the point,” she said.
Margo said she wasn’t upset afterwards, and she doesn’t entirely regret the experience.
“It was cool that Ryan Seacrest came,” she said with a smile.
JANAE LENTZ
After waiting at Kemper since 4:30 a.m., Janae only had a few seconds to belt out her rendition of Martina McBride’s “Independence Day.”
“I was really nervous, but they just told me to relax and sing and that it was not that big of deal,” she said.
Janae was not selected to move on to the next round, but that was OK with her.
“I wasn’t disappointed,” she said. “I’m excited to get back to school.”
While waiting to sing, Janae noticed that much of the attention of the cameras were on the more flamboyantly dressed contestants.
“Some guy had a jacket and a hat all made of money,” she said.
There was another contestant who she could only describe as “extremely weird.”
“He was screaming into the camera about how awesome he was, and he definitely was not,” she said with a laugh.
If the Idol tryouts ever pass near Kansas City again Janae said she may try again, but for now, she’s going to focus on her favorite type of music.
“I’m hard core country all the way,” she said. “Maybe I’ll try out for Nashville Star.”
LINDSEY JOHNSTON
Lindsey said there was already a massive line outside Kemper on Friday when she arrived at 3:30 a.m.
“It was like a mob,” she said. “People were sleeping on the parking lot floor.”
Once Lindsey got inside in the auditorium, the waiting continued, as she discovered that her section would be one of the last to be selected to sing in front of the producers.
It was past 7 p.m. when she finally got a chance to perform her version of “Dream” by Ashley Tisdale.
“They said they liked my voice, but they thought I was too young,” Lindsey said.
At age 17, Lindsey was on the young side of the show’s 16 to 28 age range requirement.
Still, like Margo, meeting Ryan Seacrest made sure the trip wasn’t a total loss.
“I said ‘hi’ to him, but I didn’t hug him,” Lindsey said with a hint of disappointment.
HANNAH RHODES
Hannah wanted to try out last year, but she couldn’t make it to any of the locations. She was happy to see the auditions come through Kansas City this year.
While waiting in line on Friday, Hannah said she witnessed some very interesting people.
“There was one guy with a fake Puerto Rican accent, and another person was in a bunny suit,” she said with a laugh.
Hoping to stand out, Hannah chose a unique song to sing: “A Blossom Fell” by Nat King Cole.
Although the judges praised her singing talent, Hannah said she was not chosen to move on to the next round.
“They said we were nervous and needed to be more aggressive,” she said.
The news didn’t discourage Hannah, though, who said she still loves singing and enjoyed the Idol opportunity.
“I would do it again,” she said. “If it was tomorrow, I would go.”