Melanie Noelle Sanders (born November 22, 1980)[1] was a contestant on Season 1 of American Idol.
Audition[]
Melanie auditioned in Atlanta. She sang "I Will Always Love You" by Dolly Parton/Whitney Houston. All three judges voted "yes", sending her through to the next round.
Hollywood Round[]
Melanie's stay in Hollywood was not televised much, but she managed to make the Top 30.
Top 30[]
Melanie was in Group 3, and sang "And I Am Telling You I'm Not Going" by Jennifer Holliday. She did not receive enough votes to make the Top 10, thus eliminating her from the competition.
Trivia[]
- At the time of her audition, Melanie was Miss Congeniality as the fourth runner-up Miss Mississippi entry in the Miss Teen USA pageant;[2] having already won preliminary local stages.[3]
- Melanie sang the same song in the semifinals as Tamyra Gray, from Group 1.
- They were one of three pairs of contestants to select the same song during the semifinals; the other two were Gil Sinuet & Justin Guarini, both from Group 2; and Adriel Herrera & EJay Day, from Groups 1 + 3, respectively.
Season 1 |
Finalists |
ยทKelly Clarkson ยทJustin Guarini ยทNikki McKibbin ยทTamyra Gray ยทR.J. Helton ยทChristina Christian ยทRyan Starr ยทA.J. Gil ยทJim Verraros ยทEJay Day |
Semifinalists |
ยทChristopher Aaron ยทKelli Glover ยทAlexis Lopez ยทAngela Peel โ ยทAlexandra Bachelier ยทChris Badano ยทNatalie Burge ยทKhaleef Chiles ยทRodesia Eaves ยทBrad Estrin ยทAdriel Herrera ยทKristin Holt ยทJamar ยทJazmin Lowery ยทTanesha Ross ยทMelanie Sanders ยทMark Scott ยทGil Sinuet ยทTenia Taylor ยทJustinn Waddell โ ยทDelano Cagnolatti |