The sixth season of American Idol premiered on the Fox Broadcasting
Company as a two-night, four-hour premiere special on January 16 and
January 17, and ran until May 23, 2007. Simon Cowell, Paula Abdul, and
Randy Jackson returned to judge once again, and Ryan Seacrest returned
as host. A new record of 74 million votes were cast in the finale
round, and a new record of 609 million votes were cast in the entire
season (the seasonal total record was surpassed by the tenth season
and the finale vote record was broken by the eleventh season). Jordin
Sparks won the competition with Blake Lewis as the first runner-up and
Melinda Doolittle finishing third. Jordin Sparks is also the youngest
winner of the competition, winning at age 17, as well as the first
winner from outside the Southern United States. Sparks remained the
last female winner until the twelfth season.The Auditions were held in
the following cities:Auditioning contestants were required to be
between the ages 16 and 28 on August 6, 2006 (born between August 7,
1977 and August 6, 1990). Guest judges were used for audition this
season.Guest judges â€" Jewel â€" Minneapolis audition Carole Bayer
Sager â€" New York audition Olivia Newton-John â€" Los Angeles
audition American Idol (season 6) Biography, NetWorth, Height, Age, Weight, Family, Married, Son, Daughter