After the celebrations comes the drama. This is the journey known as Hollywood week and every day, the remaining contestants talent will be put to the test. The judges will be ruthless. The competition will be fierce. And the emotions will be raw. And when everyone is pushed to the break, everything will fall apart. But the goal is clear. At the end of the week, only twelve guys and twelve girls will remain. These twenty four will face the vote of a nation who will eventually decide on who will be the next American Idol.

One hundred and seventy five contestants have been flown from around the country to Hollywood for the first day of Hollywood auditions. Only half of them will get to audition today though. The other half are off on a sightseeing tour.

For this first round, the contestants will perform a song that they've selected from a list of twelve:
Hopelessly Devoted To You
If
My Cinderella
Can't Fight the Moonlight
Un-Break My Heart
The First Cut Is the Deepest
I Believe in You and Me
I'll Never Love This Way Again
If I Ever Fall In Love
Bless the Broken Road
Dim All the Lights

This morning they get to rehearse with the vocal coaches Michael Orland and Debra Byrd. They also get to select the key they will be singing in. When they perform on stage, they will have accompanyment and background singers bringing a whole new level to the competition.

The one thing that must be on everybody's mind is that they've spent all day travelling from around the country yesterday and today they get to sing one song in front of the judges only to be told that they may be about to head straight back home. So they've chosen their song. They've chosen their key. Now they just have to hope that the judges choose them.

Kellie Pickler is up first and tells us that she will be the next American Idol because she deserves it. We get to see a bit of her Greensboro audition and then what she has been doing since she arrived in Los Angeles. Her audition song is Hopelessly Devoted To You . Simon tells her it was a bit all over the place but they put it down to nerves. Simon then adds that it is how they deal with the nerves that they are interested in.

Over the next two days, everyone will perform then put them in lines of groups of eight and until then, Kellie wont know if she has done enough to go on. Fingers crossed. After the first group of eight have performed, they bring them out. Five go through including Kellie and #61881 and #63218. Going home - #61491 and #63053.

One of the first guys to take the stage is Patrick Hall from Arkansas. He sings If and it is one of the nicest voices I've heard on the show this season. Not exactly pop, but very nice. Randy says that he needs to work on his look. Paula says he's very gifted. Simon says he has Clay Aiken but is likeable. They quickly show his line and he is through to the next round.

It's 10:00am and the tour group is enjoying their sightseeing trip around Hollywood and one of the first stops on the tour is the world famous Hollywood Bowl.

Taking the stage next are Ronnie Norman and Steven David. Two guys who have two things in common. A love for themselves and a love for the ladies. They've both bought their modesty to Hollywood. First up is Ronnie. Strangely enough, they're both singing My Cinderella . These two are going to bore me real quick. Simon says it was no where near the best amongst all of the other contestants. Both of them and one other are in the back row. Simon starts of saying congratulations which has the other contestant all excited, but Simon quickly dispells his excitement by saying on making it this far but you're going home. How upsetting. Not. They're all sore losers and for the first time, Ronnie is camera shy.

Lisa Tucker was all smiles when she walked out. She too sings Hopelessly Devoted To You and once again impresses. She too is on to the next round.

Also singing Hopelessly Devoted To You were #63569 Laura Wright, 16 from Marietta, GA, #37117 Shelby Johnson, 29 from Louisville, CO and Eden Kentner, 26 from Safety Harbor, FL. Ryan tells us that there were a few who were a bit more devoted than others. #38401 Matthew Buckstein, 24 from Burbank, CA has the judges giggling but he's not so hopeless. He's on to the next round.

It's now 2:00pm on day one and the tour group has hit Hollywood Boulevard and the walk of stars. Many of them will be dreaming that their names could one day be set in stone. One of those dreaming about having his name next to Paula Abdul's star is the Funeral Director Jason Horn.

#34309 Ashley Guadamuz, 16 from Martinez, CA is not having the best vocal day when she sings Can't Fight the Moonlight . Randy says she looked defeated when she walked out. #64132 Kymyata Kelty, 27 from Charlotte, NC sings I Believe in You and Me and Simon tells him that it was a battle between the in-tune and the out of tune and the out of tune won. #39701 Linelle Kagawa, 27 from Fort Lauderdale, FL sings Un-Break My Heart and gets told by Simon that ironically she made the song sound scary.

After a string of bad auditions, the judges are wondering how half of them actually got there. Randy decides that it is time to have a word. "We are looking for stars and winners. All you guys got voted through from your cities so you gotta bring it now. It's like now you're going home. Everybody is walking in like yeah, ha ha ha ha. This is serious. This is really serious."

Paris Bennett is next singing Can't Fight the Moonlight . No surprises. She is through to the next round.

Taylor Hicks is up next singing The First Cut Is the Deepest and has the judges enjoying the song. Paula loves him but Simon says that if he was watching the show back he would be certain that it was somebodies father up on the stage. Once again no surpirse that Taylor has made it through to the next round.

Garet Johnson is enjoying his time in the big smoke and is moved to tears with the whole experience and is kinda mesmerized by seeing the Ocean for the first time. He knows that the experience will end but he just hopes that it lasts longer than shorter.

At the end of day one, 41 have made it through for another round. Day two will see the two groups trading places with those on the tour heading to the theatre and those from the theatre going on a tour. I know if it was me, I would want to be on the tour on the first day. I doubt it would be much fun know that the tour was your last American Idol experience since you'd already been eliminated from the competition.

First up from the girls is #32149 Melissa Lucas, 17 from Bakersfield, CA who auditions with Can't Fight the Moonlight . Taking the stage after having some difficulties with her voice is #17498 Megan Zieger, 25 from Rochester, NY who struggles her way through I Believe in You and Me . Paula asks what the problem was as some of her notes were bad. She explains that she woke up with some laringitis. Simon remarks that it was more than a little. She fights to keep her place and is obviously determined and sings the song in a lower key unaccompanied. She does have a nice voice. Randy tells her that they aren't judging her on today's performance alone so we shall see. When it comes time to make the cull, she makes it through.

With that, everyone starts to pull out the excuses for not being up to scratch. You name it, the excuse was there.

Out on Hollywood Boulevard, the contestants on the tour are asking why Ryan Seacrest has a star on the walk of fame and why Simon Cowell doesn't.

Next up we have the Brittenum Twins who, despite having already been eliminated from the show due to criminal charges, are here auditioning. First up is Derrell who sings I'll Never Love This Way Again . Simon says that he can sing but that he doesn't think, for one minute, that he's looking at the winner of the show. Terrell comes out and defends his brother before singing The First Cut Is the Deepest . He's good but a little animated. Paula enjoyed his audition over his brother because of the animation. Afterwards they are offloading about the judges comments. Ra ra ra... who cares.

A variety of singers chose to sing If I Ever Fall In Love including Gina Glocksen, David Radford, Brett "Ace" Young and Kevin Covais who all made it through.

Hoping to continue wish the luck are the Simmons twins Joshua and Jarrett. The Brittenum twins threaten to 'Kill em'. Joshua is up first with Bless the Broken Road and Paula is impressed. Simon says he wont remember it in 30 minutes time. Jarrett doesn't fare much better with I Believe in You and Me when Simon tells him that the song was too big for him. When the line is called up, they're the ones going home. Outside they put on a brave face and the Brittenum Twins give them some advice.

Garet Johnson finally gets his chance to make his impression. His first words once he makes it out onto the big stage are "holy crap" before he sings Can't Fight the Moonlight . Once he finished he throws his hat out into the audience and then asks the judges to butcher him now. No need to though cause he is through to the next round. Off stage he is buzzing.

The Brittenum Twins are still ranting outside about how there are people who made it through today who shouldn't have. It's gonna hurt when they go isn't it.

Chris Daughtry rocks the house with The First Cut Is the Deepest as does Mandisa Hundley with Dim All the Lights . They both go through. Katharine McPhee is another who has impressed so far and does so straight away again with I'll Never Love This Way Again and is straight through to the next day.

Charging out onto the stage, Dave Hoover screams out "People of the universe. Honorable overlords. You are now in the presence of... blah blah blah" before singing Bat Out of Hell in the crazy style that we saw at the audition. Simon sarcastically says that "that was wonderful, thank you". At judging time there were no surprises. Dave Hoover is going home. After the last two days the judges have culled 66 and now there are 99. So that means that 10 must have quit or been kicked out.

Next week the drama continues with the groups and it looks to be hotting up. Don't miss it!