American Idol: Your circus guide

The soulful, pepper-haired singer Taylor Hicks won the hearts of more viewers in the United States to edge out Katherine McPhee for the title of the fifth "American Idol" on Thursday morning (RP time). THE TALE OF THE TAPE Taylor: Chief of the Soul Patrol Taylor Hicks, 29, was born on October 6, 1976 in Birmingham, Alabama. As a child, Hicks played many sports. He began singing when he was five years old. He performed in a school choir from middle school until high school. At 16, Hicks purchased his first harmonica. Hicks finished high school in 1995 and attended Auburn University where he majored in business communications and marketing. He founded the Passing Through Band while he was still a student. He left school and moved to Nashville where he spent his nine months into business. Unfortunately, the business did not work out; Hicks returned to Birmingham and formed another band where he performed at area clubs and bars. Hicks was able to release at least two CDs, In Your Time in 1997, and Under the Radar in 2005. Katherine: Red hot McPhee-ver Twenty two-year-old McPhee was born on March 24, 1984 in Sherman Oaks, California. She started her singing career when she was just two years old. Her mother, Peisha Burch McPhee, also a singer, became her first coach. McPhee graduated from Notre Dame High School in 2002 and attended the Boston Conservatory to study musical theatre. She abandoned school to pursue an acting career and try out for various TV shows and movies. McPhee was seen in several musical theatre productions before her audition for American Idol. She is a niece of a renowned Hollywood casting director Ruth Burch. Burch is responsible for casting some of television's greatest shows which includes The Andy Griffith Show and The Dick Van Dyke Show. RATINGS JUGGERNAUT When American Idol went head to head this year with the Grammy Awards, which honors top professional musicians, more people tuned in to the contest. The Los Angeles Times quoting Nielsen Media Research reported that 28.3 million viewers in America watched American Idol, while only 15.1 million watched the Grammys, indicating that viewers appreciated the amateurs more than the stars. Paul McCartney, Bruce Springsteen, former American Idol Kelly Clarkson, Mariah Carey, Jay-Z and Christina Aguilera all performed during the awards show. Between 8 p.m. and 9 p.m., the awards show featured Madonna, John Legend, Coldplay and a U2 duet with Mary J. Blige. This was the time slot when the Grammys went against Idol. Largely because of the competition, the 2006 Grammy Awards was the least-watched in Nielsen records, which extend to the 1970s. However, Game 1 of the National Basketball Association (NBA) Eastern Conference Finals featuring the Detroit Pistons and the Miami Heat managed to edge out American Idol with a 33% share of the TV ratings. The show draws 25 to 33 million viewers a week. The first episode of its fifth season was watched by 35.5 million people, a 6% increase over last year’s premiere, according to Nielsen Media Research figures. "American Idol" is shown worldwide, and its format is being reproduced in 30 other countries. It is "Malaysian Idol" in Malaysia, "Hrvatski Idol" in Croatia and "Deutschland Sucht Den Superstar!" in Germany. The Philippine version, "Philippine Idol," is scheduled to premiere in July over a local television network.-GMANews.TV