The third season of American Idol kicked off this week on FOX with the final auditions show airing Wednesday (January 21) at 8 p.m. ET. The three opening shows take a behind-the-scenes look at the good, the bad, and the really, really bad from auditions in New York, Atlanta and Houston. The season premiere ofAmerican Idol on Monday (January 19) attracted an estimated 28 million viewers.
According to information from the hit show, several singers and songs were banned from being performed at this year’s auditions, including Sarah McLachlan’s “Angel,” Etta James’ “At Last,” Elton John’s “Candle In The Wind,” and the ever-popular “Fallin'” by Alicia Keys. You also won’t hear anything by Bruce Springsteen, James Taylor, Mariah Carey, No Doubt, R. Kelly, Tom Petty, Korn, Linkin Park, Carly Simon, or John Mellencamp during the audition process.
The American Idol memo also discourages “most alternative rock bands” to perform during the audition.