"American Idol"

7 tonight, 7 p.m. tomorrow

Fox

On the Web: Read blogs and a quick-turnaround interview with each eliminated person on former Gannett News Service television writer Mike Hughes' Web site, www.mikehughes.tv.

THE CONTENDERS

The early, noisy rounds are gone now and "American Idol" is into its real competition.

Every singer remaining will be on the tour; many have a decent shot at winning the championship.

Here's an alphabetical glimpse of the remaining contenders. The quotes are from phone interviews; other details are from the interviews, from Fox and from Web sites:

Kris Allen:

— The basics: He's 23 and married. He grew up in Little Rock and has spent the past six years in Conway, Ark., where he went to the University of Central Arkansas.

— More: "Idol" didn't seem to notice Allen during the early rounds. "I love being the guy that's kind of in the background," he said. "(I wasn't) trying to put my face in there,"

Eventually, people noticed that it's a pleasant face. Simon Cowell predicted that the girls would to love him.

Allen says he hasn't tested that theory. "I've actually been with the same woman for the past seven years."

During that time,he's been busy with a campus ministry, going to missions — Mozambique, Morocco and more — and being a worship leader. "It definitely helps you get a lot of practice singing."

Anoop Desai:

— The basics: He's 21 and lives in Chapel Hill, N.C., where he has a University of North Carolina degree (political science and American studies) and is in grad school (folklore).

— More: Chapel Hill has dominated Desai's life and given his parents their careers. It has "a lot of high-tech and bio-tech job," he said. "My mom is a biochemist and my dad does software work."

His dad is from India and his mom is from South Africa. Desai has immersed himself in Americana, from campus music groups to barbecues (he wrote a 60-page thesis on them) and basketball.

While he was trying to focus on "Idol," he was worried about the North Carolina-Duke game. Shortly before tip-off, he said, the ESPN in his hotel went out. "I was pacing back and forth in my room for two hours." North Carolina won, 101-87.

Matt Giraud:

— The basics: He's 23 and grew up in Ypsilanti, Mich. Now he lives in Kalamazoo, where he graduated from the Western Michigan Univerity, plays at clubs and has a girlfriend.

— More: Choral music has been big for Giraud in school and beyond. "I was one of the only lighter kids in the gospel choir in Detroit and they used to call me White Chocolate," he said. "I love that type of music ... that soul (or) church music."

He drummed and sang at an outreach church in Redford, Mich., then practiced on a piano at the Marriott hotel in Ypsilanti. He also developed an easy personality.

"He cracks me up," said Alexis Grace, who finished 11th. "He's like hilarious. He's always making jokes and doing riffs."

Danny Gokey:

— The basics: He's 28 and from Milwaukee, where he's a worship leader.

— More: Gokey's wife, Sophia, died at 27, from complications in her third surgery for a congenital heart defect. That was a month before his "Idol" auditions.

The show has mentioned that often — maybe too often. "I apologize to everybody if they feel like it's shoved down their face," he said, "but it's so fresh in my mind."

Still, it's just one part of his personality. "I didn't want to live any more after she passed ... but there's a fun side to me that's going to come out," he said.

Gokey considers it a reflection of his childhood. "We would all sing together as kids and we started going to this one church and we'd go up, all eight of us, as a family and sing."

Allison Iraheta:

— The basics: She's 16 and from Los Angeles.

— More: Iraheta has been watch "Idol" since its first year. "I've wanted to actually audition since I was 9," she said.

While waiting, she entered a contest on the Telemundo network and won at 14. "It helped me out with being on the stage in front of a lot of cameras a little. But it's nothing compared to this."

Her parents are from El Salvador and music has been constant. "All my life, I've been singing both Spanish and English," she said.

Sometimes shy during interviews, Iraheta has a vibrant music style that matches her dyed-red hair. "I think I'm going to be one of those 'red these couple of months and then purple the other.'"

Megan Joy:

— The basics: She's 22, from Sandy, Utah.

— More: She was Megan Joy Corkrey when she started "Idol," but has shortened that. "Corkrey is my ex-husband's marriage," she said. "I just want to get past that."

She emerged from the marriage with a son and with her optimism intact. "I'm very blessed," she said.

That's symbolized in the colorful tattoo that has been growing on one arm for two years. "It's my fairy tale. There's a king and queen (and) a prince, my son. And there are roses growing up the castle."

Everything is self-taught, Joy said, including her music and (especially) her dancing. "When I start singing, I just blob around and it just happens. I don't know why."

Adam Lambert:

— The basics: He's 26, grew up in San Diego, but moved to Los Angeles after high school.

— Some more: Lambert's theater career started early. At 10, he was Linus in "You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown" in downtown San Diego. "It was pretty wild," he said.

He's stuck with it. With "Wicked" in Los Angeles, he understudied the romantic lead, getting on stage occasionally.

Until show time, he said, he retained his dark, Goth look.. "The other kids looked at me like I was a freak, because I was dressed like that in rehearsal. That has always been my style."

Lambert likes the big look and sound of early David Bowie. Some of that may be returning. "A lot of the big artists are going a very theatrical route," he said. "There's a lot of camp and costumes."

Scott MacIntyre:

— The basics: He's 23, from Scottsdale, Ariz. Nearly blind, he has described his vision as like seeing the world through a straw.

— Some more: No "Idol" contender could match MacIntyre's resume. He graduated from Arizona State at 19, got a Master's Degree from the Royal College of Music in London. He also studied in Boston, Toronto and Salzburg, Austria. He won competitions and has played at the Kennedy Center, the Sundome and with the Phoenix Symphony.

Most of that reflects his piano playing. MacIntyre has confessed only to having "sporadic voice training, here and there."

And he's ready to expand. He memorizes where the cameras are and is eager for choreography. "I've done some swing-dancing, some salsa dancing ... I'm really quite the dancer."

Lil Rounds:

— The basics: She's 23, from Memphis, married, with kids ages 5, 3 and 2. She was a customer service representative until recently, then decided to stay home with them.

— Some more: Rounds grew up in Memphis, but has avoided its legendary blues clubs. "I grew up in church," she said. "So the most that I've ever done, really has been ... singing at my church."

Still, the influence is there. Memphis, she said, is "the music capital. My family is really, really music-oriented. And I have a grandfather who actually played with B.B. King."

Many things were passed down, including her first name. "Lil" is not short for "little," as Simon Cowell assumed; it's her birth name, a shortened version of her grandmother's name.

Rounds' sound and her look are traditional. "I've always wanted to be the girly girl, as they say.

Michael Sarver:

— The basics: He's 27, an oil-field worker in Jasper, Texas, married with two children.

— Some more: That oil-field image has helped, Sarver granted. "Real-life people can relate to me, especially in (this) economy."

Still, music has long been important to him. "I had a little family situation in my life when I was 11 years old and I resorted to music," he said. "I found joy in music; I found the peace that I needed."

He plays piano, drums and guitar and is a worship leader, even singing in arenas and civic centers. Now he's survived any California culture shock. "When you hear of Hollywood and you see it on TV, you see flashy and fancy ... I was actually surprised to come and find ... real people with real lives all around you and it's really cool."