There’s no question that Spring Grove’s Brooke and Leah Barrettsmith had the adventure of a lifetime competing on Fox’s blockbuster television show American Idol. Before exploring their experiences, here is a brief overview of how the show works in case you’ve never seen it before.
Before landing a plane ticket to Hollywood, a contestant must first spend three days of grueling auditions in a major US city chosen to host the preliminary auditions. The producers of American Idol are well aware that the show’s success rests on both the untalented and the talented. Many people tune in only to see the judges ridicule a contestant to the point of tears or to see the contestant’s angry reaction when they send him packing. For example, on this year’s show, two male twins are featured because they talk very openly about the judges and verbally protect each other. Another contestant named “Cowboy” jumped on the judges’ desk to sing part of his song.
The camera focuses as much on the expressions of the American Idol judges, Simon Cowell, Paula Abdul and Randy Jackson as it does on the contestants. Cowell’s scathing comments are now ritual and crowd-pleasing. Abdul and Jackson regularly criticize Cowell. Sometimes the talent of the contestants is so obvious that the three judges can barely contain their laughter.
Contestants must be US citizens and between the ages of 16 and 28. This year, 16-year-old contestant Kevin Covais revealed that talent transcends age. At the opposite pole is Kevin Hicks, 28, prematurely gray, whose unique voice could lead him to the final.
The top 24 semi-finalists are removed from public contact as an isolated jury. He must take drug tests. Some contestants have been disqualified during the show for failing these tests. All contestants must sign a contract that prevents them from using cell phones, except for family and emergency calls and the Internet, where they can discuss the show in a chat room. They may not watch TV news programs, listen to radio programs, or read newspapers. TV fans take over the voting by phone right now. The judges are consulted and comment on the proceedings but no longer vote at this level.
The “finalists” are the last 12 contestants. The drama builds after weeks of more eliminations until only one contestant is chosen as the winner.
Brooke and Leah Barrettsmith’s adventure began on a crisp September day in 2005. They arrived at Soldier Field in downtown Chicago at 5:00 am escorted by their father, the Rev. Scott Barrettsmith. “We needed to be there early enough to get a good spot in line,” said Brooke. Nearly 20,000 contestants auditioned in Chicago that day. Some of them were from New Orleans because that city was chosen as a hearing center, but Hurricane Katrina swept it away.
The contestants were herded to Soldier Field in groups of 300. Brooke and Leah wanted to audition together, so they held hands. “Don’t separate us!” they told American Idol employees.
Only 300 applicants survived the first day. Brooke and Leah were relieved to be one of them. “There were thousands of totally depressed people there,” Scott said. The Barrettsmiths spent their nights at a nearby hotel. “We literally got the last available room,” Scott said.
Days two and three were as eventful as the first. The executive producers of American Idol told the Barrettsmiths the “necessary personality” to keep going. “I had no trouble showing personality,” said Brooke. Brooke became friends with Mandisa, a semi-finalist from Tennessee. “I can say that you are a Christian,” Mandisa said. “Girl, let’s pray!” When told that Leah planned to sing a Christian song called “Blessed,” the producers said they preferred secular songs. “They didn’t want to show favoritism,” Leah said. However, during the audition, Leah sang “Blessed” anyway. “I was having trouble with my first pick and I stopped and switched,” Leah said.
“We asked to go to the audition together,” said Brooke. In an unusual move, the producers allowed that. In a televised interview, Leah said, “I believe in my sister and she believes in me too, so I love her and we will do this together as much as we can.”
For the first time, Brooke and Leah faced off against the now famous American Idol judges, Simon Cowell, Paula Abdul and Randy Jackson.
Brooke opened and sang a small section of her song Shoop Shoop. Then Leah’s blood. Randy said to Leah: “I like your voice, I think you are good. I would say yes to Leah.” Paula Abdul said: “I think they are both talented and different in their own way, so I am going to say ‘yes’ to both or’ no ‘. Simon said:’ Well, I would say ‘no’ to” There was a short silence. Then Randy said, “We have a dilemma, judges.” Simon said, “I’m going to apply Randy’s ‘yes’ to both of you, so now it’s Paula’s turn. Paula said, ‘I love my sister.’ I love the fact that they’re here together supporting each other. I think they both need to work, but they can do it and go back to Hollywood. ” Brooke and Leah reacted with exclamations of happiness and a big hug. Meanwhile, Randy said, “Welcome to Hollywood, sisters, sisters!”
Brooke and Leah told the growers about Richardson’s corn maze. Sensing a good story, the producers sent a camera crew to Spring Grove to film the sisters playing in and around the corn maze. “The filming lasted about 10 hours, including dinner with the crew,” said Brooke. “All that for a two minute segment.”
in Hollywood
The next stage of auditions began on December 4 in Hollywood. “About 200 people out of tens of thousands came to Hollywood,” said Brooke. Brooke and Leah made the trip without parents or relatives. They spent the first day touring Hollywood with half of the contestants, while the other half went through auditions. They wore distinctive American Idol labels to promote the show in Los Angeles. They stayed in a hotel, two per room. “The show didn’t skimp on the accommodations,” Leah said.
They both succeeded in their first audition. At the second audition, Randy told Leah, “You didn’t bring it today. It’s the end of the road.”
Leah was surprised by the action. “What you see on television is not always the way it really happened,” Leah said. “They make a lot of changes to make the show more dramatic. When I was singing, for example, it seemed like the audience was bored and quiet on TV. Actually, the audience cheered and clapped as I sang. Her through! ‘ “At another point, you see Leah shocked on TV like she’s reacting to the negative decision. “That shot was totally taken at another time and edited in space,” Leah said.
The show puts contestants in small groups for a segment. “I don’t know why they make us sing with a group,” Leah said. “It really has nothing to do with why we are there. I think they are trying to put a lot of stress on the contestants for the television cameras. They are very strict. You better not be a minute late for a meeting. They try you like dogs. “
Brooke backed up Leah’s concerns. “They love crying and drama. They love scaring you,” Brooke said. “Sometimes the judges act totally. They seemed to be pretending.”
“I think they are pushing for a guy to win this year,” said Brooke. “They are focused on male talent.”
American Idol rules say that a contestant cannot be professionally signed. The show obliges contestants to sign a contract that restricts their professional activity for a full year. “We are locked up until August,” Brooke said.
Leah will soon be moving to Nashville to continue her singing career. “I’ll do more mainstream music,” Leah said.
Brooke is committed to staying in the Christian music scene. “Christian music is much more relevant now,” said Brooke. “My career has improved. God used American Idol to change me. Now I am even more in the ministry of music.”