'American Idol' finalists share what it's really like to audition for the show

• "American Idol" finalists shared their audition experiences and how extensive the process can be.

• Some singers wait weeks or months in between audition rounds before they meet celebrity judges.

• One singer auditioned to be on three different seasons before he went on to win the competition.

A lot more goes on behind the scenes of "American Idol" auditions than the average viewer may think.

Speaking to Insider for the Fox-ABC show's 20th anniversary, past contestants opened up about their journey to getting on the show.

Several singers worshipped 'Idol' growing up and couldn't wait to compete

Season-16 winner Maddie Poppe said she remembered watching the show "every week" in elementary school and voting for her favorites, like season-seven finalist Brooke White and season-five winner Taylor Hicks.

"That was definitely a tradition in our house," Poppe said.

Season-three runner-up Diana DeGarmo recalled feeling strong connection to season-two winner Ruben Studdard and auditioned as soon as she was old enough.

"With Ruben Studdard being from Birmingham, that's where I was born," DeGarmo said. "So there was all of this kind of kinetic energy of, 'Oh, wow.' Like, all right, an Alabama guy, he can make a big, I can make it big so I just felt, again, more confirmation."

Season-six finalist Sanjaya Malakar believes the show's "approachability of stardom" is what's kept "American Idol" going for 20 years.

"I think when people are able to see other people follow their dreams and really pursue them, that gives them hope," Malakar told Insider.

Others said they auditioned without ever having watched the show

Season-six runner-up Blake Lewis said he spontaneously auditioned when a friend asked him to join him in line at 5 a.m.

"I had never seen 'American Idol' before," Lewis said. "Nor did I have any dreams of doing anything like it."

Hicks, who said he had "never really watched the show," had a dramatic entry into the "Idol" world.

"I was the last taxi-cab ride out of Hurricane Katrina," Hicks said. "And when I went to West Monroe, Louisiana, to flee the storm I took a Southwest flight that they gave me to anywhere in the country."

Hicks told Insider he ended up going to Las Vegas "on a whim." He said when he arrived at 2 a.m., his brother called him and asked if he was going to try out for "American Idol"  — Hicks was in line to audition by 3 a.m.

Some 'Idol' prospects traveled for hours to make it to an audition

Season-nine runner-up Crystal Bowersox said she drove five hours from her home in Ohio to Chicago with her infant son to audition.

Bowersox said "one of her oddest memories" involved going to the bathroom in the building where auditions were being held and hearing auditionees do vocal warm-ups while she expressed breast milk to relieve discomfort.

Season-15 runner-up A.S.E., formerly known as La'Porsha Renae, said she was also raising a newborn when she traveled 29 hours from Mississippi to Rhode Island.

Once she made it, she said, the judges asked why she traveled so far for her audition.

"I was prepared to follow you," A.S.E. recalled telling the judges. "If I got a 'no' this time, I was going to get a 'yes' in one of your cities." She said the judges told her there was "no need" because she got the first "yes" of the season.

Contestants have to audition multiple times before they even get in front of the judges

On television, it seems like prospective singers have a short wait before they perform for the judges, but some finalists told Insider this process can take longer.

Poppe said she auditioned in several cities over the course of three months. Season-16 runner-up Caleb Lee Hutchinson said producers called him months after his first "cattle call" audition in Atlanta. For the next round of auditions in New Orleans, Hutchinson said he drove through the night right after performing in a show.

"People always seemed a little shocked when I tell them that my audition in front of Simon and Paula and Randy was my fifth audition," said season-seven winner David Cook.

Season-13 runner-up Jena Irene Asciutto said she went through at least "two other stages" before she met the celebrity judges.

"I think it was just nerve-wracking, getting to that point," Asciutto told Insider. "Because from watching the show, as a kid, I thought you just went right on to see the 'Idol' judges."

One singer recalled producers asking her to come back in the same clothes for continuity

DeGarmo said when she flew to Hawaii, the last stop of the national city tour, she was instructed to come back in the same outfit to make it look like her audition took place over a single day.

"They said, 'OK, come back to this location tomorrow, be in this exact same outfit, have your sticker, everything, and you're going to audition for the producers,'" she recalled.

After several rounds of auditions, DeGarmo said, she tried steaming her clothes in the shower of the hotel because they "reeked" from the heat.

"By this point, you've been sitting in that costume for days," she said.

Contestants said leading questions were asked during auditions and the footage was sometimes heavily edited

When Malakar auditioned for the show alongside his sister Shyamali, he said conversations with producers felt "so contrived and so calculated" as they tried to mold their relationship into a "sibling rivalry."

"I found myself in a lot of situations where they'd ask me a question and I'd answer and they'd be like, 'OK, but … ' Malakar said. "And then ask me the question in a different way and I'd answer the same way."

Lewis also said that the show is more produced and edited than viewers may expect."It never goes down the way they show it," Lewis said.

Lewis told Insider he planned to just sing for the judges in his audition, but producers wanted him to show off his beatboxing skills. He said he "said 'no' three times" before he folded.

"Honestly, even in that final audition to get into Hollywood week, I didn't beatbox at all for that audition," Lewis told Insider. "And then they forced me to, and then the way they cut it, they made it seem like I was cocky."

One singer said those who make it to Hollywood aren't allowed to perform outside of the show

Bowersox told Insider she had to wait about six months after her summer 2009 audition until the show officially kicked off in Hollywood.

After she made it past the judges to Hollywood Week, Bowersox said she had to sign a thick contract filled with non-disclosure agreements for her and her family, which barred her from talking about the show.

On top of that, she said, the contract included a clause where she was "not supposed to perform" until filming started.

"That was my sole source of income," Bowersox said. "So definitely, I still had to perform and went into hiding under another name."

Bowersox thinks news that she was performing under a fake name "ended up getting around anyway," but she wasn't disqualified from the competition.

One 'Idol' star auditioned for the show 3 times before winning the competition

Some singers went on to win "Idol" on their first attempt, but for Johnson, it took three tries before he made it to the live shows and won the competition.

Johnson said he auditioned for "Idol" three different times within four years. Each time he was cut from the competition, he said it only gave him the confidence to go back and try again.

"You get a taste of it and you're like, 'Oh man, this is great,'" he told Insider. "And then it makes you want to come back and it's like a shoulda, coulda, woulda kind of scenario."

Johnson said he took a year off to focus on his music, play gigs, and make a record before making it on season 13 of "Idol."

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