American Idol: American Idol (Season 5)

American Idol Season 5 top 10 (Get the CD here)

I'm from Ricmond, Virginia, therefore by default I'm a fan of Elliot Yamin (and fortunately Elliott happened to be really good)

Elliott Yamin

Elliott's "Moody's Mood for Love" is one of the best performances in American Idol

In addition to Elliot Yamin, I was also rooting for Taylor Hicks, Lisa Tucker, and Patrick Hall. During the first round audition, I thought that Katharine McPee would win it all, and that is until I saw Taylor Hicks. Paris Bennett is also worth mentioning as she has a very good voice (perfect for motown, oldies and jazz)

Katharine McPhee

Katerine McPhee's "Over the Rainbow" is arguably the best performance of the season 5

One of the surprises in AI5 in my opinion is Patrick hall left the competition very early. Another surprising thing is Kevin Covais and Kellie Pickler stayed so long. Well I guess all those unpredicted result and the drama helps to keep the show interesting.

Taylor Hicks (The winner of American Idol Season 5)

Another winner from AI Season 5 is Daniel Powter, the singer of "Bad Day". That song became popular when AI5 played it every week whenever a contestant left the show. It became the best-selling digital single of all time. "Bad Day" is indeed a very good song to listen to, especially when you really have a bad day.

Kellie Pickler

My top 15 favorite performances:
"Over the Rainbow" - Katharine McPhee
"Levon" - Taylor Hicks
"Moody's Mood for Love" - Elliot Yamin
"Someone to Watch Over Me" - Katharine McPhee
"I am Changing" - Lisa Tucker
"On Broadway" - Elliot Yamin
"These Foolish Things" - Paris Bennett
"Come to my Window" - Patrick Hall
"Do I make you Proud" - Taylor Hicks
"Midnight Train To Georgia" - Paris Bennett
"Who's Loving You" - Lisa Tucker
"Easy" - Taylor Hicks
"Butterflies" - Ace Young
"What a Wonderful World" - Chris Daughtry
"A Song for You" - Elliott Yamin

Ace Young

So far, the result of American Idol competition has been quite good. Most of the time, the best singer (voice/performance) wins. However, personality and star quality (Simon called it the "it" factor) surely helps. Improvement throughout the competition is also a must. And no matter how many fans the contestants have, each week, they need to perform as if it is their last performance.

Chris Daughtry

Each year, American Idol invites popular icon in music or music legend to the show (to be a guest judge or to help the contestant). In Season 5, several of my favorite singers/musicians came to show. They are Stevie Wonder, David Foster, Andrea Bocelli, Kenny Rogers, and Barry Manilow.

For more detail coverage, visit the American Idol official website
And here's the link to season 5 contestant page

Some more pictures of Season 5 contestants:

Heather Cox