![]() Carrie Underwood’s season-four victory allowed Idol to mark some territory in Nashville, while Chris Daughtry’s fifth-season deployment of Shinedown and Live helped nudge open the door to performers bearing instruments, who were finally allowed inside the Idol sanctum in season seven. In its early years, Idol stridently looked back, with only the occasional sop to present-day music and a laser focus on vocals above all. Idol’s finalist slate, and the songs they sang to rising-then-falling ratings, doubles as a vague map of how “pop” shifted its boundaries in the early 21st century. (Thanks to the variance of talent pools and Fox’s faith in Idol’s ability to pump up its ratings, the number of finalists has varied from season to season the final run’s finalist-tally of ten matches that of its first year.) As a warm-up for this final run through the Idol choreography, we’ve decided to rank those singers who have reached the almost-winner’s circle. ![]() Only 168 people in the world can currently claim to be American Idol finalists at the end of February, that number will rise to 178. If they stick it out, and keep their energy up through some semifinal rounds, contestants can reach the finals, where they’re guaranteed airtime, glammed-up makeovers, more pointed critiques, and the promise of mugging for a major sponsor or two. The departing reality competition kicked off its final Hollywood Week, the post-audition boot camp where contestants are deprived of sleep and forced to work with each other and generally subjected to other horrible conditions. This week, American Idol began the actual business of finding its 15th winner. Photo-Illustration: Maya Robinson and Photos by FOX/Getty Images
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