American Idol (season 7) American Idol (season 7) The seventh season of "American Idol", the annual reality show and singing competition, began on January 15, 2008 and concluded on May 21, 2008. Ryan Seacrest continued to host the show with Simon Cowell, Paula Abdul, and Randy Jackson returning as judges. David Cook was announced the winner of the competition on May 21, 2008, defeating runner-up David Archuleta by a margin of roughly 12 million votes out of over 97 million, which was at that time the highest recorded vote total ever recorded in the show's history. The split was 56% to 44%. The seventh
Idol: The Musical Idol: The Musical Idol: The Musical was an off-Broadway musical based on the popular TV show "American Idol". The story is about a group of "dork-like" characters who dream of winning a spot as the opening act in Clay Aiken's new tour. The music was written by Jon Balcourt, with lyrics co-written. The original story was conceived and outlined by Todd Ellis. The show began previews at the 45th Street Theatre on July 5, 2007. The show closed on its official opening night of August 12, 2007, due to poor ticket sales and bad word of mouth. The lights fade