American Idols Live! Tour 2008 was a summer
concert tour in the United States and Canada that featured the top 10 contestants of the
seventh season of American Idol, which aired in 2008. This tour followed in the tradition of other American Idol summer tours following the completion of the season in May. The 53-date tour started in Glendale and ended in Tulsa.[1]
In a departure from previous tours, where the shows consisted of many duets and/or group performances, shows from this tour were crafted as a series of mini-concerts for each contestant because of the diverse talent working in different genres.[4]
The participants of the tour themselves had planned on an ensemble performance as revealed by David Cook on
EW.com's Idolatry, where the possibility of a live collaboration of "
Barracuda" featuring himself on guitar, Jason Castro on drums and Carly Smithson on vocals was mooted.[5] The suggestion was however rejected by Idol tour producers.[6]
During the intermission, a video of the Top 10 performing "We're An American Idol Band" in 70s outfit was shown as part of Guitar Hero World Tour rockumentary, and a Guitar Hero contest for the some members of audience was held.[7]
The 2008 tour was far more successful than
2007's. Sales were up 38% in revenue per date and average attendance number up 35% compared to 2007. The average percentage of seats filled was 85.1% compared to season six's 68.4%; and 9 out of 53 shows were sold out.[8]
It is ranked as the 24th biggest grossing tour of 2008 on Billboard's Year-End Music Charts, earning $29,906,507 from a total of 493,296 tickets sold.[9]