This question recently crossed my mind while talking to Jeff about my post regarding American Idol Icons in the Canadian Setting. He wanted me to tell him why I like the American Idol winners. I told him it’s because they are competing in a high-pressure environment to become a recording artist. Why is this so interesting to us as 
Canadians? Because our talents struggle to break out and become known, then they have to go stateside to become famous. Celine Dion broke out in Quebec and across Canada, but then she basically had to perform stateside to even be taken seriously, in order for her career to truly take hold. Today she is one of the world’s most reknowned singers and recently, a serious Las Vegas headliner. Vive! Vive!
So what happened to Canadian Idol? we wondered. Do they even still hold a Canadian Idol competition?
The basic web-site for info on Canadian Idol is http://www.ctv.ca/idol/gen/Home.html. There we see updates on Theo Tams and Carly Rae. Who are these performers? 
According to this Wikipedia entry, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canadian_Idol, CTV announced in December 2008 that Canadian Idol would be “suspended”, not airing in 2009 for “economic reasons” (….what????) but that it was expected to return in 2010. The show was hosted by Ben Mulroney and it aired 6 Seasons. Normally, auditions occur in February, March and April, but have not been announced yet, however, there is still a chance for a late year show.
Debuting in 2003, Canadian Idol ran for 6 seasons, with the following winners and runners-up:
- Ryan Malcolm; Runner Up: Gary Beals
- Kalan Porter; Runner Up: Theresa Sokyrka
- Melissa O’Neil; Runner Up: Rex Goudie
- Eva Avila; Runner Up: Craig Sharpe
- Brain Melo; Runner Up: Jaydee Bixby
- Theo Tams; Runner Up: Mitch MacDonald
The second season of Canadian Idol debuted on June 1, 2004 and became the most-watched show in Canada, drawing over 3 million viewers a week. That year’s winner, Kalan Porter, released his hit single, Awake in a Dream, which became the highest-selling single in Canadian history. The finale of Season 4 was moved so as not to compete with ABC’s Dancing With the Stars, and this marked the beginning of the show’s waning popularity.
Theo Tams
Theo Tams is known for his songs, Wait for You, but most recently, our town’s radio, CD98 has been playing Lazy Lovers, over and over and over again!!!!! His albums are Sing, 2008 and Lazy Lovers.
