Every singer, songwriter, and musician who was born in America dreams to reach stardom, to interact with the masses and to use music as a resource, a tool to talk, feel, and communicate. It doesn’t matter the genre, background, religion, skin color or social status: there is a long road to cover between being a nobody and achieving nationwide fame.
Music is the universal language. People love it, and there is a type for every taste: rock, punk, country, ballads, latin, house, electronic, urban, jazz, pop; you name it. Every year, every day and every second, a young boy or girl decides that he, or she, wants to pursue a musical career.
American Idol has long been one of the most entertaining and widely acclaimed talent shows in the world, let alone the country. It provides singers from all over the United States of America with an opportunity to showcase their talents in front of a quirky, but firm panel of judges. They go through elimination rounds and several hurdles with the intention of becoming the contest winners.
If you don’t have a TV, but can find a laptop, PC, Mac, smartphone or tablet, you can also enjoy every step the contestants make from start to finish via online streaming. Fox, who served as the show’s host network for the first 15 seasons, ceded the rights to ABC, who now broadcasts all the action and stages.
If you live in the United States, or you are currently there for work or vacation, you can enjoy the 16th season of American Idol, which premiered on March 11. However, for geographical reasons, you won’t be able to access the ABC streaming signal from outside the nation without the extra help.
Don’t panic. That extra help comes in the form of a VPN, which is a very handy online service with encryption protocols that allow users to mask their IP addresses and connect with an American one, paving the way for obtaining access to ABC’s streaming page as if you were in the USA.
In this piece, we will tell you exactly how to stream the American Idol 2018, with the help of a Virtual Private Network. They are cheap, easy to install, configure, and use; and they also protect your device from hackers and prying eyes around the web.
American Idol: already a tradition
Shortly after the new millennium kicked in, an innovative talent show burst onto the scene to captivate the hearts of millions of people around the country: its name was American Idol, and interpreters of all genres competed fiercely, but loyally, for the top honors.
American Idol is an American singing competition television series that saw the daylight on June 11, 2002. The show called Fox its home from that date until April 7, 2016. However, on March 11, 2018, it was announced that ABC acquired broadcasting rights to revive it for the 16th season.
American Idol has quietly become one of the most successful shows in the history of American television, with record audiences and widespread popularity in the continent and the whole world. The concept of the space is to find the perfect blend of stage personality, voice quality and charisma to convert that package into the name of the show.
American viewers help determine the winners of each season by voting via SMS, phone or Internet. Successful musicians such as Kelly Clarkson and Carrie Underwood belong in the hall of champions.
The most entertaining part of the show, however, is the interactions between the contestants and the judges. Quirky personalities such as Simon Cowell, Paula Abdul, Randy Jackson, and Jennifer Lopez have served as those who determine who passes and who gets booted from the show. Ryan Seacrest is the long-time host, and Lionel Ritchie, Katy Perry, and Luke Bryan are the current judges.
Selection process
American Idol selects the eventual winner out of many tens of thousands of contestants. The age limit has suffered changes throughout time but is now set as fifteen to twenty-eight years old.
Participants start at the initial auditions phase, consisting of at least three sets of cuts. A total ranging from ten to 60 contestants go through the next round: the Holywood auditions. Once they are there, they perform in a series of steps. Next comes Las Vegas, and after the two stages, 24 to 36 singers advance to the semifinals. The finals were closed with the Season Finale.
The winner of the season receives a deal with a widely spread label and a series of lucrative contracts that will serve as an impulse to his, or her, blossoming singing career. The agreement can be for up to six albums.
Past winners
- Kelly Clarkson
- Ruben Studdard
- Fantasia
- Carrie Underwood
- Taylor Hicks
- Jordin Sparks
- David Cook
- Kris Allen
- Lee DeWyze
- Scotty McCreery
- Phillip Phillips
- Candice Glover
- Caleb Johnson
- Nick Fradiani
- Trent Harmon
Past judges
- Paula Abdul
- Simon Cowell
- Randy Jackson
- Kara DioGuardi
- Ellen DeGeneres
- Jennifer Lopez
- Steven Tyler
- Mariah Carey
- Nicki Minaj
- Keith Urban
- Harry Connick Jr.
- Katy Perry
- Luke Bryan
- Lionel Richie
A VPN may be your American Idol
If you live outside the US territory but are a fan of American Idol, you may suffer because of the geo-blocking restrictions that render the show unavailable in other locations. However, with a VPN, the situation can change and turn quickly in your favor.
A VPN is an online resource in the form of a service. What does it provide for users? Encryption protocols that will increase your online privacy, security, and anonymity. And what would you gain from that? If a hacker, government services or even website managers and systems can’t track your real IP address – which will remain hidden by your VPN client – they won’t harm you or stand in your way.
Additionally, and this is where you should pay the most attention if you are an American Idol lover, VPN users can trick systems and streaming services (like ABC, in this case) into thinking they are in America when they can be almost anywhere else. A VPN app will hide your IP address and give you a list of countries and servers available for connection. If you choose to connect to a US server, then you will unblock ABC and stream American Idol in 2018.
How to stream American Idol 2018 with a VPN
- Open an account on a reliable VPN client. TorGuard, IPVanish, PIA, and GhostVPN fill that requirement.
- Download and install the VPN application on your device.
- Launch the app or client.
- Log on to the VPN account you recently created, using the credentials you entered in step one.
- Connect to an American server.
- Open the ABC streaming service, and you are done! You will get a smooth signal, just as if you were in the United States.
Best VPN to stream American Idol
TorGuard
With secure encryption, all the major protocols, and the possibility of hiring services such as a privacy bundle, anonymous proxy, and anonymous email, TorGuard provides a complete security package. It has servers in 55 nations, one of them being America: you can unlock ABC and watch American Idol 2018!
IPVanish
IPVanish is a perfect option for American Idol lovers because it provides the fastest and most stable speed rates in the industry and is also based on the United States of America, so enjoying the show won’t be an issue. It has exciting features, such as a kill switch, DNS leak protection, all the most relevant protocols, no logging policy, 40,000 IP addresses, and content from 60 countries.
Private Internet Access
PIA offers a comparable service to that of TorGuard and IPVanish, at a fraction of the price: both of the previously named alternatives cost roughly $10 per month, while this value option checks in at $6.95. It has servers in 29 nations and is very straightforward to set up and use.
GhostVPN
GhostVPN has a total of 1,600 servers in 51 nations, one of them being the United States of America. Opening the ABC streaming site to watch American Idol should be a piece of cake. On top of that, this alternative has all the most widely regarded protocols, unlimited bandwidth and server switching, fast speeds, stealth VPN, and a very convenient 15-day money-back guarantee.
In conclusion, American Idol is one of the most viewed shows in the history of American television, and after a year off the screens, it has returned on ABC. US residents can enjoy it without limitations, but international viewers need the help of a VPN to bypass geoblocking restrictions and watch the new season.
