June 11 marks the 19th anniversary of the premiere of American Idol on U.S. TV. To celebrate, the show — which ran on Fox for 15 seasons before moving to ABC in 2018 — is announcing the return of its virtual “Idol Across America” auditions.
The series kicked off on June 11, 2002, and has launched the superstar careers of everyone from season one champ Kelly Clarkson to Fantasia, Carrie Underwood, Ruben Studdard, Jordin Sparks, Kris Allen, Phillip Phillips, Maddie Poppe and many more is starting the process of looking for its next champ with this year’s live virtual nationwide search, which kicks off on Aug. 6.
The auditions will take place in all 50 states and Washington, D.C., and for the second year in a row, singers from all over the country can sign up to take their shot during virtual auditions that could determine the winner of the upcoming 20th season, which kicks off in spring 2022 on ABC. It’s worth noting that season 19 champ Chayce Beckham and top 10 finisher Casey Bishop both auditioned during last year’s “Idol Across America” virtual auditions.
The virtual auditions will allow potential Idol contestants to showcase their vocals from anywhere in the U.S. on any of the official audition dates and face-to-face with an Idol producer, who will give real-time feedback, according to a statement from the show. You can sign up for “Idol Across America” auditions here, or submit a video online; check out the dates for the “Idol Across America” auditions below.
“Idol Across America” auditions dates (subject to change):
- Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina (Aug. 6)
- Connecticut, New Jersey, New York (Aug. 8)
- Kansas, Nebraska, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Texas (Aug. 11)
- Florida, Michigan, Virginia, West Virginia (Aug. 13)
- Alabama, Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi (Aug. 16)
- Indiana, Kentucky, Tennessee (Aug. 18)
- Alaska, California, Hawaii, Nevada (Aug. 21)
- Idaho, Montana, Oregon, Washington, Wyoming (Aug. 23)
- Illinois, Iowa, Minnesota, Missouri, Wisconsin (Aug. 25)
- Open Call: Nationwide (Aug. 27)
- Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico, Utah (Aug. 31)
- Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, Vermont (Sept. 2)
- Delaware, Maryland, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Washington D.C. (Sept. 8)
