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in: Seasons, Season 12, Episodes

Season 12

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Season 12 of American Idol premiered on January 16, 2013, as part of the mid-season of the 2012–13 network television season, and ended on May 16, 2013.

This season was won by 23-year-old R&B singer Candice Glover.

Three new judges, Mariah Carey, Nicki Minaj, and Keith Urban, signed on to replace Steven Tyler and Jennifer Lopez who left after two seasons of judging on the show. On May 9, 2013, Randy Jackson announced that this will be his final season as judge due to him wanting to focus on other business ventures. This season is the third to have four judges, after Season 8 and Season 9. It is also the first season in the show's history where all of one gender's finalists (males) were eliminated before any of the opposite gender's finalists, therefore making it the first to have an all-female Top 5.

This was the first season since season 6 to produce a female winner and the first since season 3 to have a finale consisting of two females. Season 12 is also the first season where the judges did not use the "Judges' Save" since its introduction in season eight. This is the third season where both finalists were in the bottom three or two at some point in the competition, following seasons 3 and 8.

This season was the lowest-rated in the show's 12-year history.

So far, only two finalists, Candice Glover and Angie Miller, have been signed to record deals.

Audition cities[]

The following cities were used for Season 12 auditions. The date of the auditions are also shown.

  • Los Angeles, Calfornia - June 7, 2012
  • San Antonio, Texas - June 14, 2012
  • Newark, New Jersey - June 23, 2012
  • Charlotte, North Carolina - June 19, 2012
  • Chicago, Illinois - July 12, 2012
  • Baton Rouge, Louisiana - July 17, 2012
  • Oklahoma City, Oklahoma - July 20, 2012

Other auditions[]

Besides the main auditions, the show decided to give other possible contestants who couldn't make it to the main audition city a chance to try out for the show in different ways such as the "American Idol Small Town Bus Tour", which made stops in towns such as Billings, Montana and Idaho Falls, Idaho among others. Online auditions began, starting on August 1 through August 12, 2012 and continuing from October 12 to November 4, 2012. The show also started a program called "Nominate an Idol", which allowed friends and families of individuals they think should be on the show to nominate said person by filling out an online form and submitting a video of said person singing(solo and acapella are required). The nominated person would then be surprised by a camera crew from the show and be given a chance to advance to the next round.

Hollywood week[]

For the first time, this part of the competition was held at the Valley Performing Arts Center in Northridge, California. The 286 contestants who made it to this point were separated by gender with the guys performing the first week and the girls in the second week. The group round was also different due to the producers putting groups together rather then letting the contestants make the choice of which people they wanted to perform with.

At the end of Hollywood week, 40 contestants were chosen for the Las Vegas round.

Males:

Lazaro Arbos Charlie Askew Nick Boddington Curtis Finch, Jr. Kevin Harris Josh Holiday Joshua "JDA" Davila Paul Jolley
Johnny Keyser Elijah Liu Vincent Powell Gupreet Singh Sarin Cortez Shaw Jimmy Smith Bryant Tadeo Burnell Taylor
Mathenee Treco Devin Velez Chris Watson David Willis

Females:

Melinda Ademi Janelle Arthur Juliana Chahayed Cristabel Clack Aubrey Cleland Candice Glover Rachel Hale Kree Harrison
Bridgett Jett Hermano Amber Holcomb Brandy Hotard Isabelle Zoanette Johnson Adriana Latonio Angie Miller Kamaria Ousley
Breanna Steer Tenna Torres Shubha Vedula Jenny Beth Willis

Las Vegas[]

Sudden Death Round[]

Unlike season 10 and season 11, the beginning of the Las Vegas rounds were different. Instead of the "Green Mile", the top 40 performed in a "Sudden Death Round" in front of a live audience. After the performances, the judges decided which 10 people to move forward in the semifinals. In the end only 20 moved on, out of the 40 contestants.

Top 20[]

The following contestants were American Idol Season 12's Top 20.

Males

Females

Las Vegas Rounds 1 and 2[]

During these rounds, the top 10 guys and top 10 girls performed. The girls group performing the first day, and the group of guys performing the following day. This time, instead of the judges deciding who moved forward, it was the first time in season 12 where America got to decide who moved forward. In the end, the top 10 contestants were revealed.

Top 10[]

The following contestants were Season 12's Top 10.

Females

Zap-american-idol-season-12-top-10-finalists-2-010

The Finalists; Standing: Lazaro Arbos, Amber Holcomb, Paul Jolley, Curtis Finch, Jr. & Janelle Arthur; Seated: Candice Glover, Angie Miller, Burnell Taylor, Devin Velez & Kree Harrison

Males

Finals[]

Top 10 perform[]

During the first round of the Finals, the Top 10 contestants performed a song from past American Idol winners for a spot in the Top 9. During the results, the semifinalists from each respective gender group will perform their song in the Sing-Off for the spot on the Idol Tour 2013.

Eliminated Contestant[]

Curtis Finch, Jr.

Curtis Finch, Jr. was the eliminated contestant, bringing the total down to 9 remaining contestants. He was eliminated on March 14, 2013.

Top 9[]

The following contestants were safe from that round and advanced on to the Top 9.

Performances[]

These contestants performed in the following order:

Group Performance:

  • "Shine Your Way" by Owl City and Yuna

Top 9 perform[]

During this round of the Finals, the Top 9 contestants performed a song from the Lennon-McCartney Songbook for a spot in the Top 8. Before the start of the performances, Seacrest announces the winner of the Sing-Off for the tour.

Eliminated Contestant[]

Paul Jolley

Paul Jolley was the eliminated contestant bringing the total down to 8 remaining contestants. He was eliminated on March 21, 2013.

Top 8[]

The following contestants were safe from that round and advanced on to the Top 8.

Performances[]

Every song sang by the contestants in this round were from the Lennon-McCartney Songbook which was produced by The Beatles. These contestants performed in the following order:

Group Performances:

  • Males - "Got to Get You Into My Life" by The Beatles
  • Females - "Here, There and Everywhere" by The Beatles

Top 8 perform[]

During this round of the Finals, the Top 8 contestants performed a song from Motown for a spot in the Top 7.

Eliminated Contestant[]

Devin Velez

Devin Velez was the eliminated contestant bringing the total down to 7 remaining contestants. He was eliminated on March 28, 2013.

Top 7[]

The following contestants were safe from that round and advanced on to the Top 7.

Performances[]

The contestants performed in the following order:

Extra Performances:

Group Performance:

  • "Old Time Rock and Roll" by Bob Seger

Top 7 perform[]

During this round of the Finals, the Top 7 contestants performed a Rock genre song for a spot in the Top 6.

Eliminated Contestant[]

Burnell Taylor

Burnell Taylor was the eliminated contestant bringing the total down to 6 remaining contestants. He was eliminated on April 4, 2013.

Top 6[]

The following contestants were safe from that round and advanced on to the Top 6.

Performances[]

The contestants performed in the following order:

Extra Performances:

Group Performance:

  • "Somebody to Love" by Queen

Top 6 perform[]

During this round of the Finals, the Top 6 contestants performed a Burt Bacharach & Hal David song and a song they wish they'd written for a spot in the Top 5.

Eliminated Contestant[]

Lazaro Arbos

Lazaro Arbos was the eliminated contestant bringing the total down to 5 remaining contestants. He was eliminated on April 11, 2013.

Top 5[]

The following contestants were safe from that round and advanced on to the Top 5.

Performances[]

(All of the first performances by the contestants were all written by Burt Bacharach & Hal David, but some were released and sung by a different artist). The performances were in the following order:

Group Performance:

  • “You’ll Never Get to Heaven,” “I Just Don't Know What to Do with Myself,” “Always Something There to Remind Me,” and “That’s What Friends Are For”

Top 5 perform[]

During this round of the Finals, the Top 5 contestants performed a song from the year they were born in and a song from Divas for a spot in the Top 4.

Eliminated Contestant[]

Janelle Arthur

Janelle Arthur was the eliminated contestant bringing the total down to 4 remaining contestants. She was eliminated on April 18, 2013.

Top 4[]

The following contestants were safe from that round and advanced on to the Top 4.

Performances[]

The contestants performed in the following order:

Group Performance:

  • "Last Dance" / "Dim All the Lights" / "Heaven Knows" / "She Works Hard for the Money" by Donna Summer

Top 4 perform (first week)[]

During this round of the Finals, the Top 4 contestants performed a song of the contestant's choice and a One-hit wonder song for a spot in the Top 3.

Eliminated Contestant[]

On the results night, Ryan Seacrest revealed that Amber and Candice were in the bottom 2. However, both were declared safe together with Angie and Kree and no one was eliminated. Seacrest stated that due to the save not being used, it was a surprise non-elimination round and votes for that week would be carried over to the following week.

Top 4[]

The following contestants were safe from that round and remained in the Top 4.

Performances[]

The contestants performed in the following order:

Group Performances on performance night:

Group Performance on results night:

  • "Girl on Fire" by Alicia Keys

Top 4 perform (second week)[]

During this round of the Finals, the Top 4 contestants performed a hit song of 2013 and a song from the Great American Songbook standards for a spot in the Top 3.

Eliminated Contestant[]

Amber Holcomb

Amber Holcomb was the eliminated contestant bringing the total down to 3 remaining contestants. She was eliminated on May 2, 2013.

Top 3[]

The following contestants were safe from that round and advanced on to the Top 3.

Performances[]

(The first performances were hit songs of 2013, the second performances were songs from the Great American Songbook). The contestants performed in the following order:

Performances on performance night:

  • "Wings" by Little Mix

Performances on results night:

  • "Crazy in Love" by Beyonce feat. Jay-Z

Top 3 perform[]

During this round of the Finals, the Top 3 contestants performed a song of Jimmy Iovine's choice, a song of the Judge's choice, and a song of the Producers' choice for a spot in the Top 2.

Eliminated Contestant[]

Angela Miller

Angie Miller was the eliminated contestant bringing the total down to 2 remaining contestants. She was eliminated on May 9, 2013.

Top 2[]

The following contestants were safe from that round and advanced on to the Top 2.

Performances[]

(The first round of performances were chosen by Jimmy Iovine, the second round of performances were chosen by the Judges, and the final round of performances were chosen by the Producers of American Idol). The contestants performed in the following order:

Group Performance:

  • "Who Says" by Selena Gomez

Top 2 perform[]

During the final round of the Finals, the Top 2 contestants performed a song of Simon Fuller's choice, their winner single, and a song from their favorite performance for a spot as Season 12's American Idol.

Runner-up[]

Kree Harrison

Kree Harrison was announced the Runner-up of American Idol Season 12 on May 16, 2013.

Performances[]

(The first performances were songs of Simon Fuller's choice, the second performance was their winner single, and their final performance was a song from their favorite performance). The contestants performed in the following order:

Winner[]

Candice Glover

Candice Glover was announced the Winner of American Idol Season 12 on May 16, 2013.

Elimination Song[]

The elimination song for this season was "Gone Gone Gone" by season 11 winner Phillip Phillips. The song is the current single off of his debut album The World from the Side of the Moon. Phillips performed the song on the March 14, 2013 results show.

Results Show Performances[]

Final Spot in Summer Tour Sing-Off[]

Courtesy of AT&T, two previously eliminated contestants that didn't make it to the Top 10 performed for a final spot in the American Idol Summer Tour. Charlie Askew and Aubrey Cleland were the two contestants that performed. Charlie sang an original song that he wrote called "Sky Blue Diamond", and Aubrey sang "Out Here On My Own" by Irene Cara. On March 20, Aubrey Cleland was announced the winner of the final spot on the summer tour.

Tour[]

The American Idols Live tour, which was supposed to begin on June 29, 2013 in St. Louis, Missouri, kicked off on July 19, 2013 in Kent, Washington and ended on August 31, 2013 in Nashville. The first 10 concert dates were cancelled due to low ticket sales.

Notable past Idol contestants[]

  • Alex Kinsey, who was cut in Hollywood week, later auditioned for and won season 3 of The X-Factor as part of the duo Alex & Sierra with his then girlfriend, Sierra Deaton. Their mentor was former Idol judge Simon Cowell.

Controversy[]

Mariah Carey-Nicki Minaj feud[]

Before the show started airing, rumors began flying over a supposed feud between judges Mariah Carey and Nicki Minaj. Those rumors seemed to be true when the gossip website TMZ posted a video of the two women arguing during an audition in Charlotte, North Carolina. There were even claims that Minaj had said that if she had a gun, she would shoot Carey. According to Carey in an interview with Barbara Walters, the fighting got so bad that she ended up hiring extra security. Minaj denied ever mentioning a gun.

In the January 23, 2013 episode showing the Charlotte auditions, Minaj was shown to be mad at Carey and fellow judges Randy Jackson and Keith Urban over what she perceived to be insensitive comments towards contestant Summer Cunningham over what style of music her voice is better suited for, resulting in Minaj walking out of the audition room in anger.

Over the course of the show after the argument between them was leaked, Carey and Minaj claimed that they had put their differences aside, but critics noticed that the two seemed to be either ignoring each other or giving each other dirty looks as the show went on. Carey and Minaj would even get snippy at each other if one disagreed with the other on a contestant. After Carey made a remark concerning Minaj having never had a number 1 hit, Minaj took to Twitter to rant about her fellow judge, calling her "bitter" and "insecure". Minaj was accused of coming across as immature and a bully.

Angie Miller Elimination[]

The elimination of Angie Miller drew considerable criticism. Miller was considered a fan-favorite, often placing in the voting's top ranks and becoming the season's sole contestant to not land in the bottom 2 or 3 until her elimination in the Top 3. The elimination was described by journalists as "shocking" and "surprising", to which they attributed competitor Kree Harrison's victory to support from Vote for the Worst, voting from Middle America, and pity votes prompted by her homecoming video.

Matt Farmer disqualification[]

Matt Farmer, who had auditioned in Long Beach and made it to Hollywood, was disqualified after it was revealed that he had lied about his military service. He claimed that he had been injuried while in combat, but when it was revealed that he had never been injuried nor had been in combat, he was disqualified before the next round.

Need for a female winner[]

While it was common knowledge that the show hadn't had a female winner since Jordin Sparks had won in 2007 and with 5 guys having won since that time, many fans and critics felt that with the way the top 10 had been set up that the producers were trying to manipulate the results in order for a woman to win the show. When the first five contestants, who happened to all be men, were eliminated, many expressed anger over what the show was trying to do. Even though Candice Glover won, many feel that the manipulation by the producers to have a female winner may have led to the changes that ended up happening for season 13.

Season 12
Finalists
 ·Candice Glover ·Kree Harrison ·Angie Miller ·Amber Holcomb ·Janelle Arthur ·Lazaro Arbos ·Burnell Taylor ·Devin Velez ·Paul Jolley ·Curtis Finch, Jr.
Semifinalists
 ·Aubrey Cleland ·Charlie Askew — ·Nick Boddington ·Zoanette Johnson ·Adriana Latonio ·Elijah Liu ·Vincent Powell ·Cortez Shaw ·Breanna Steer ·Tenna Torres
Quarterfinalists
 ·Melinda Ademi ·Juliana Chahayed ·Cristabel Clack ·Rachel Hale ·Kevin Harris ·Jett Hermano ·Josh Holiday ·Brandy Hotard ·Isabelle ·JDA ·Johnny Keyser ·Kamaria Ousley ·Gurpreet Singh Sarin ·Jimmy Smith ·Bryant Tadeo ·Mathenee Treco ·Shubha Vedula ·Chris Watson ·David Oliver Willis ·Jenny Beth Willis
American Idol
Seasons
(FOX) ·1 ·2 ·3 ·4 ·5 ·6 ·7 ·8 ·9 ·10 ·11 ·12 ·13 ·14 ·15 — (ABC) ·16 ·17 ·18 ·19 ·20 ·21 ·22
Judges
 ·Simon Cowell (Seasons 1-9) ·Paula Abdul (Seasons 1-8) ·Randy Jackson (Seasons 1-12)
 ·Kara DioGuardi (Seasons 8-9) ·Ellen DeGeneres (Season 9) ·Jennifer Lopez (Seasons 10-11|13-15)
 ·Steven Tyler (Seasons 10-11) ·Nicki Minaj (Season 12) ·Mariah Carey (Season 12) ·Keith Urban (Seasons 12-15)
 ·Harry Connick, Jr. (Seasons 13-15) ·Katy Perry (Seasons 16-22) ·Lionel Richie (Seasons 16+) ·Luke Bryan (Seasons 16+)
Personnel
 ·Ryan Seacrest (Seasons 1+) ·Brian Dunkleman (Season 1) ·Simon Fuller (Seasons 1-15) ·Nigel Lythgoe (Seasons 1-7/10-12) ·Megan Wolflick (Seasons 14+) ·Jimmy Iovine (Seasons 10-12) ·Scott Borchetta (Seasons 14-15) ·Bobby Bones (Seasons 16-19) ·Rickey Minor (Seasons 4-9/13-15) ·Ray Chew (Seasons 10-12) ·Kristopher Pooley (Seasons 16+) ·Michael Orland (Seasons 1-17) ·Debra Byrd (Seasons 1-10|†) ·Peggi Blu (Seasons 10-11) ·Peisha McPhee (Seasons 10-13) ·Adriana McPhee (Seasons 17+) ·Devin Velez (S12; Seasons 22+) ·Allison Iraheta (S8; Seasons 13-15) ·Felicia Barton (S8; Seasons 16+)
Winners
 ·Kelly Clarkson ·Ruben Studdard ·Fantasia Barrino ·Carrie Underwood ·Taylor Hicks ·Jordin Sparks ·David Cook
 ·Kris Allen ·Lee DeWyze ·Scotty McCreery ·Phillip Phillips ·Candice Glover ·Caleb Johnson ·Nick Fradiani
 ·Trent Harmon ·Maddie Poppe ·Laine Hardy ·Just Sam ·Chayce Beckham ·Noah Thompson ·Iam Tongi ·Abi Carter
Runners-Up
 ·Justin Guarini ·Clay Aiken ·Diana DeGarmo ·Bo Bice ·Katharine McPhee ·Blake Lewis ·David Archuleta ·Adam Lambert ·Crystal Bowersox ·Lauren Alaina ·Jessica Sanchez ·Kree Harrison ·Jena Irene ·Clark Beckham ·La'Porsha Renae ·Caleb Lee Hutchinson ·Alejandro Aranda ·Arthur Gunn ·Willie Spence (†) ·HunterGirl ·Megan Danielle ·Will Moseley
Notable Alumni
 ·Alex Lambert ·Alex Preston ·Allegra Miles ·Angie Miller ·Anilee List ·Anoop Desai ·Beane ·Benson Boone ·Briston Maroney
 ·Brooke White ·Carly Smithson ·Casey Abrams ·Casey Bishop ·Cassandra Coleman ·Chris Daughtry ·Colton Dixon ·Danny Gokey ·David Brown ·DeAndre Brackensick ·Elise Testone ·Elliott Yamin ·Francisco Martin ·Fritz Hager ·Gabby Barrett
 ·Grace Kinstler ·Graham DeFranco ·Haley Reinhart ·Hollie Cavanagh ·Hunter Metts ·Jack Blocker ·Jacob Lusk
 ·James Durbin ·JAX ·Jen Hirsh ·Jennifer Hudson ·Jeremiah Lloyd Harmon ·Jessica Meuse ·Jimmie Allen ·Joey Cook
 ·Josh Gracin ·Joshua Ledet ·Jurnee ·Kaibrienne ·Katie Stevens ·Kayla Mickelsen ·Kellie Pickler ·Laci Kaye Booth ·LaToya London ·Lauren Daigle ·Lauren Spencer-Smith ·Leah Marlene ·Margie Mays ·Mario Vázquez ·Mary Jo Young ·Matt Giraud
 ·Megan Joy ·Melinda Doolittle ·Michael J. Woodard ·Nadia Turner ·Naima Adedapo ·Nikko Smith ·Paris Bennett
 ·Paul McDonald ·Phil Stacey ·Quentin Alexander ·Rayvon Owen ·Ricky Braddy ·Sanjaya Malakar ·Shubha Vedula ·Skylar Laine ·Sophia Wackerman ·Tamyra Gray ·Tim Halperin ·Todrick Hall ·Tori Kelly ·Vonzell Solomon ·Wé Ani ·Zachariah Smith
Coronation Songs
 ·"A Moment Like This" ·"Flying Without Wings" ·"I Believe" ·"Inside Your Heaven" ·"Do I Make You Proud?"
 ·"This Is My Now" ·"The Time of My Life" ·"No Boundaries" ·"Beautiful Day" ·"I Love You This Big" ·"Home"
 ·"I Am Beautiful" ·"As Long as You Love Me" ·"Beautiful Life" ·"Falling" ·"Going, Going, Gone"
 ·"Flame" ·"Rise Up" ·"23" ·"One Day Tonight" ·"I'll Be Seeing You" ·"This Isn't Over"
R.†.P.
 ·Nikki McKibbin ·Rickey Smith ·Leah LaBelle ·Marque Lynche ·Mandisa ·Michael Johns ·Joanne Borgella ·C.J. Harris
— ·Alexis Cohen ·Austin Sisneros ·Jairon Jackson ·Mary Iaconelli ·Paula Goodspeed
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