American Idol review and rare photos
The highly anticipated American Idol Tour came rolling into Tulsa last weekend for a quick stop at the BOK Center on Friday as part of their incredibly successful 2009 summer tour.
Fans inside the standing room only show, which started promptly at 7p.m. and lasted for a good two and a half hours, filled the arena stadium with an eager excitement as they waited for a glimpse of their favorite idol performers.
The show, which featured the top 10 finalists from American Idol, included acts from: Adam Lambert, Allison Iraheta, Anoop Desai, Danny Gokey, Lil Rounds, Matt Giraud, Megan Joy, Michael Sarver, Scott McIntyre, and American Idol 2009 Season winner, Kris Allen.
Personnel working with the idol tour, BOK Center Emily Grober and American Idol Representative Michael Cilnis, were busier than ever confirming press passes and arranging for the pre-concert press hour, which took place here in Tulsa between 3-4p.m., Friday afternoon.
Although the American Idol Tour was booked the same weekend as Tulsa’s acclaimed Dfest music conference and festival, featuring more than 160 signed and unsigned bands from around the world, it didn’t really detour from the number of fans lining up to see the American Idol concert, which ran in competition to Dfest’s Friday night headliners.
It’s evident that the BOK Center was more than packed with idols fans of every age, singing along with their favorite idol songs.
The show, described as lively and engaging, started out with Sarver, who sang two songs, “In love with a girl,” and “Closer.” He was followed by American Idol finalist number nine, Megan Joy, singing, “Put your records on,” and “Tears dry on their own.”
McIntyre sang “Bend and Break,” and “A Thousand Miles,” followed by Giraud, who sang “Georgia on my Mind,” “Hard to Handle,” and “You Found Me.”
After a quick intermission, the show came back in full force featuring Allison Iraheta, singing songs such as “So What,” and “Crybaby.” Gokey did amazing renditions of “PYT,” and “What Hurts the Most,” and songs such as “My Wish.”
American Idol number two finalist, Adam Lambert did a total of five songs, which more than brought to life a stunned and adoring BOK audience.
As the highly anticipated Kris Allen took the stage, the crowd grew even more excited as he performed a total of five songs that included such hits as “Ain’t No Sunshine,” and “Hey Jude.” Allen’s performance in Tulsa followed the death of his grandmother. Yet, he remained strong, and appeared to be in great form as concert goers far and wide raved of the handsome and adorable young star, who is also working on his first album, in addition to performing on the 2009 American Idol Tour.
The Idol tour rolled out of Tulsa on Friday night and arrived in Arkansas for a sold-out show at the Verizon Alltel Arena in North Little Rock on Saturday night.
On Saturday afternoon, Allen’s grandfather attended a special ceremony in Allen's hometown of Jacksonville, Arkansas, which honored the American Idol 2009 Season Tour Winner, by updating the city’s welcome sign to read, “Welcome to Jacksonville, Boyhood Home of Kris Allen.”
Something truly appreciated were the efforts of Grober, Cilnis, and staff from the Verizon Alltel Arena who kindly made accommodations for me to attend the press hours in both Tulsa and North Little Rock and provided photo passes for our photographer at the shows in both venues.
As the American Idol 2009 Summer Tour rolls on through its 52 stop concert schedule, reviews for each venue the show has booked and played, have been overwhelming positive. Over and over, it's been printed, this is one great summer concert and it is.
The 2009 American Idol Concert Tour Schedule is listed below for those interested in catching this season’s tour or a second performance of this highly coveted show. Tulsa Today was pleased to present the pre-concert exclusive of Allen, which published earlier in July. (See our entertainment section for the article or click here.)
Special thanks to all the 2009 American Idol finalists! One thing is for certain, nearly everyone in Tulsa was rocking on Friday night.
Remaining Tour Dates on the American Idol 2009 Summer Tour
July 24
Tulsa, OK
BOK Center
July 25
N. Little Rock, AR
Alltel Arena
July 26
Memphis, TN
FedExForum
July 28
Tampa, FL
St. Pete Times Forum
July 29
Sunrise, FL
BankAtlantic Center
July 31
Duluth, GA
Arena at Gwinnett Center
August 1
Charlotte, NC
Time Warner Cable Arena
August 2
Greensboro, NC
Greensboro Coliseum
August 4
Washington, DC
Verizon Center
August 5
Baltimore, MD
1st Mariner Arena
August 7
Atlantic City, NJ
Boardwalk Hall
August 8
Newark, NJ
Prudential Center
August 9
Newark, NJ
Prudential Center
August 11
Long Island, NY
Nassau Coliseum
August 12
Long Island, NY
Nassau Coliseum
August 14
Hamilton, ON
Copps Coliseum
August 15
Rochester, NY
BlueCross Arena
August 16
Hartford, CT
XL Center
August 18
Boston, MA TD
Banknorth Garden
August 19
Albany, NY
Times Union Center
August 20
Philadelphia, PA
Wachovia Center
August 22
Pittsburgh, PA
Mellon Arena
August 23
Cleveland, OH
Wolstein Center
August 25
Columbus, OH
Schottenstein Center
August 26
Auburn Hills, MI
Palace at Auburn Hills
August 28
Milwaukee, WI
Bradley Center
August 29
St. Louis, MO
Scottrade Center
August 30
Kansas City, MO
Sprint Center
September 1
Minneapolis, MN
Target Center
September 2
Rosemont, IL
Allstate Arena
September 4
Madison, WI
Alliant Energy Center
September 5
Indianapolis, IN
Conseco Fieldhouse
September 6
Grand Rapids, MI
Van Andel Arena
September 8
Reading, PA
Sovereign Center
September 9
Wilkes Barre, PA
Wachovia Arena
September 10
Bridgeport, CT
Arena at Harbor Yard
September 12
Portland, ME
Cumberland County Civic Center
September 13
Providence, RI
Dunkin' Donuts Center
September 14
Syracuse, NY
War Memorial at OnCenter
September 15
Manchester, NH
Verizon Wireless Arena
Photo Credits: Kevin Pyle, Tulsa Today News. All Rights Reserved.