American Idol Odds Posted 5/5/06
Odds on American Idol Final Four From PinnacleSports.com; Chris Daughtry Remains Favorite to Be the Next American Idol
WILLEMSTAD, Curacao, May 4 /PRNewswire/ -- The original field of thousands of hopefuls has been narrowed down to just four remaining contestants, as the fifth series of American Idol hits the home stretch. The first company to open betting on American Idol, PinnacleSports.com has seen unprecedented interest in this edition of the hit reality show, with betting already being 20 times bigger than on the Oscars and expected to rival this year's NBA Finals. With the series nearing its grand finale, PinnacleSports.com today announced updated odds on which performer will win America's vote and become the next American Idol.
The largest sports betting site on the Internet, PinnacleSports.com originally opened wagering on the latest edition of American Idol in February, when 24 contestants remained. Early in the competition, bettors began backing Chris Daughtry to win the major recording deal and instant stardom, vaulting the 26-year-old rocker into the favorite position. Heading into next week's performance of the music of Elvis Presley, Daughtry continues to be the Idol favorite at 5/6 odds (i.e., win $5 for every $6 bet). Bettors are divided on Katharine McPhee and Taylor Hicks, who are both listed with the second-best odds to win the reality series at 3/1 odds. PinnacleSports.com has seen very little support for Elliott Yamin, who's a 19/1 long shot to become the fifth American Idol.
"Our bettors have proven to be extremely accurate forecasters of entertainment events, correctly predicting winners of multiple Oscar categories as well as recent reality shows, including the last American Idol," said Simon Noble of PinnacleSports.com. "Chris hit a high note with bettors early on and has garnered constant support throughout the competition with his consistent performances. Katharine and Taylor appear to have divided voters thus far in the competition, but with the music of Elvis Presley as the theme next week, it will surely benefit Taylor the most."
PinnacleSports.com will be offering betting options on American Idol throughout the remainder of the series until the series finale. For a complete list of American Idol odds, please visit http://www.pinnaclesports.com/idol .
Current Odds: *All odds subject to change*
Odds To Win American Idol
Chris Daughtry 5/6
Katharine McPhee 3/1
Taylor Hicks 3/1
Elliott Yamin 19/1
About PinnacleSports.com
PinnacleSports.com ( http://www.pinnaclesports.com ) is the Internet's largest sports betting site, serving customers in more than 80 countries worldwide. Founded in 1998, PinnacleSports.com was the first sports book to introduce reduced margin wagering, using a -105 pricing model that gives bettors up to 50% better value on wagers than traditional bookmakers. With low minimum bet requirements and the highest maximum limits on the Web, PinnacleSports.com has earned an industry leading reputation for providing consistent value to the player, professional customer service and the quickest payouts online. Fully licensed and regulated in Curacao, the company offers a secure environment for sports betting, racing and casino gaming.
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WHERE ARE THE PREVIOUS TOP 4 FINISHERS NOW ?
Whoever gets voted off this coming week is in some pretty good company! Here’s what’s been going on with the previous 4th place finishers since their American Idol experience:
By LindaK
Season 1: Tamyra Gray
People are still talking about how Tamyra was ‘robbed’ when Nikki moved on while she was eliminated. Although her first cd didn’t do that well, Tamyra has remained in the public eye, and in my mind, has not done too badly at all!
Tamyra played the character of Aisha Clemens on Boston Public. She was in 7 episodes in 2003 and got to sing on the show. She also guest starred on episodes of Half and Half, Tru Calling, What I Like About You and All Of Us. Tamyra had a duet on Kelly Clarkson's debut album Thankful, called "You Thought Wrong".
Tamyra returned to American Idol in season 3 and sang "Raindrops Will Fall" and "Star". She co-wrote these songs for her debut album. She also sang the National Anthem to open the final results show of the season. In addition, Tamyra co-wrote the American Idol season three single "I Believe", sung by Idol finalists Fantasia Barrino and Diana DeGarmo, and released by Fantasia as her American Idol single.
She was dropped by J Records in 2003. Her album was called The Dreamer and was released on May 25, 2004 by 19 Records, a division of 19 Management. Sales of only 122,000 were disappointing. Tamyra was dropped by 19.
In Nov. 2004 Tamyra took over the role of Priya for 12 weeks in Bombay Dreams on Broadway. However, the show closed early due to continued poor grosses.
In 2005 Tamyra was in the independent film The Gospel. Tamyra sang "Now Behold The Lamb", featured on the movie's soundtrack . Also in 2005, Tamyra was in a short film for H&M's new line of denim jeans, working with Mary J. Blige. Tamyra also sang 'And I'm Telling You (I'm Not Going)' in Dreamgirls.
In 2006 Tamyra was on an episode of The Tyra Banks Show with other previous American Idol finalists. She was also on the March 17th episode of Las Vegas (TV series) on NBC where she played a clutsy waitress . She ended the show singing the classic hit ‘Respect’.
Currently, Tamyra has recorded a second cd, which she says is more club friendly and hip-hop than her first one. She is shopping the cd to labels. She has also met with a publishing company and is considering writing songs for other artists, as she did for Kelly Clarkson and Fantasia.
Season 2: Josh Gracin
After Trenyce was eliminated, there was outrage that it should have been Josh instead. Josh was a Lance Corporal in the US Marine Corps during his time on Idol. He was known to excel when singing country music, but sometimes had difficulty with other genres. Josh was also known to answer Simon on occasion. He was excused from the Idol summer tour to fulfill his Marine duties.
Jay DeMarcus of Rascal Flatts became a fan after Josh performed their "I'm Movin' On" on the show. After Idol, Josh signed with Lyric Street Records. His cd Josh Gracin was released on June 15th, 2004. There have been 3 top-five country singles, including the number one hit "Nothin' to Lose" and the cd has sold over 645,000 copies. One website claims that as of 2005, Josh has had the most successful post-Idol career of anyone who did not finish in the show's top two.
Josh is known for his wild concert performances which usually include going into the stands to sing. He is also known for signing autographs for anybody who wants one.
In 2005, Josh sang "Working for the Weekend" on the Herbie: Fully Loaded soundtrack, and he also sang "When I See an Elephant Fly" on the Jim Brickman album The Disney Songbook.
Josh released a new single called "Favorite State Of Mind" in March, 2006. This is the first single off his release set for June of this year.
Josh and his wife Ann Marie live in Franklin, Tennessee, and have a daughter, Briana Brenda, born on March 30, 2002, and a son, Landon Joshua, born on August 4, 2005.
Season 3: LaToya London
LaToya was considered a favorite going into the competition, and like Tamyra, there was some outrage when she was outlasted by Jasmine.
In November, 2004, LaToya signed with an imprint of Concord Records. Her first single "Appreciate" was released in July, and she also made a video. Her first album, Love and Life, was released on Sept. 20,2005. The single reached #8 on the Billboard Singles Sales Chart and the album has sold just over 50,000 copies thus far.
LaToya had to pull out of the VH1 Soul Tour with Jaguar Wright and Kindred due to a "family emergency". While on American Idol, LaToya mentioned that she was married and had stepchildren. She later confirmed that she has since separated from her husband.
Latoya released two follow-up singles, "Every Part of You" and "State of My Heart". I couldn’t find exact sales figures, but they seem to have been moderate hits. In February 2006, LaToya landed a role in Laterras R. Whitfield’s touring dramatic comedy play, "Issues: We All Have 'Em," also starring Angie Stone, Dave Hollister, and Kim Fields. She will make her film debut in "Hollywood Chaos," an upcoming movie featuring many reality television stars.
LaToya lives in southern California and is studying music.
Season 4: Anthony Federov
I really had a hard time finding current information about Anthony. If you know of anything, please send it along!
Anthony’s back story was told over and over, and it really is amazing this boy could even talk, let alone sing. He endured comparisons to Clay Aiken for much of the season, but persevered and managed to find his own niche.
Anthony graduated college and no longer sings at Tatiana's in Brooklyn, NY on weekends. Rumors last year were that he was dating Carrie Underwood, and this year, rumors surfaced about him dating Heather Cox.
In November, 2005, Anthony sang the national anthem at a Knicks game, and on Feb. 24, 2006, was on the Tyra Banks show. He will be in the upcoming Celebrity Fear Factor this summer with Carmen Rasmussen. On one website, I found a small mention that Anthony is working on a cd, but I could not find confirmation of that anywhere else.
So there we have it. I am noticing as I write these ‘where are they now’ articles that until this week, there really hasn’t been much going on with past Idols. That is a little discouraging, but I still maintain that this year’s finalists will be different. Does anyone really think we have heard the end of Paris Bennett? Neither do I. For whoever finishes fourth this week, I feel the same way. I have a strong feeling that when I write this article next year, there will be an awful lot to say about this season’s 4th place finisher!