Allison Iraheta

Allison Iraheta

Allison Iraheta is one of the youngest American Idol bets. This 16-year old girl has been singing since the age of 5, and now, her years of training are finally paying off. Allison auditioned for American Idol in San Francisco. She sang a popular choice for Idol aspirants – “Natural Woman” by Aretha Franklin. She impressed the judges, leaving San Francisco with a big smile and a golden ticket to Hollywood.

This high school student is no newbie to reality shows. In 2006 she joined an idol-like telemundo reality show called Quinaceañera. She has also been in a few commercials, and has been singing for many years. She has been awarded the “Celebrate Life with Hope” award from Children’s Hospital in Los Angeles. Allison also sang at the benefit with pop icon, Babyface. Her background gives her a definite edge in this competition.

Truly, Allison is on the road to fame. The Los Angeles native even has got her own fan site even before she joined American Idol! Allison claims that she has always been an American Idol fan, and has been watching since the beginning of the show. Now it is her time to be in it.

As idol progresses, she continues to gather fans who root for her idol success. Her rendition of the popular song, “Total Eclipse of the Heart” was impressive. She sang the song her own style and moved the audience in awe. Allison Iraheta earned a spot in the top 36. She was in the second group that vied to get into the Top 12 finalists of American Idol Season 8.

The Los Angeles Times chatted with Allison Iraheta. The interview showcased her teen spirit and eagerness to be on American Idol. She shares her passion for singing outside the Idol arena saying that she used to sing in church and also at school. That there were little get-togethers in school where she would jam with her classmates who played instruments.

Allison has a wide variety of musical influences. Her favorite singer is Pink, Jack White and Franz Ferdinand. Truly, she boasts an array of different types of music. When asked what made her join Idol, she gave an honest yet sincere response: “You hear this from all the minors, of course, because we’ve been waiting. I was 9 when I started watching the show, when it came out. I was like, ‘When I’m 16 I’m going to audition.’ So I did and it was just a process of preparation and being patient.”

Allison hopes that people would see her for who she is as an artist. She claims to be the same person onstage or offstage. She mentions that more important than anything, she just wants America to see what she’s willing to put up for the competition.

“Just see how much I’m willing to put into being onstage and how much I really love doing this, I guess, and how much I want this.” Newsday.com calls Allison as one of the “ones to watch” in this season. Judge Kara also mentioned that Allison has “raw natural talent” and cited her as the “dark horse” in the competition. Idol has never had a champ of Hispanic descent. She could just be the first one. Could American Idol be Allison Iraheta’s big break?