Idol Puerto Rico

Judges profiles

• Ricardo Montaner (Season 1–2): Venezuelan-Argentine singer and songwriter. Starting his career in the late 70s, he has already released more than 15 albums with numerous successful singles and has sold over 22 million record worldwide.
• Carlos "Topy" Mamery (Season 1–3): Veteran Puerto Rican producer and manager. He is the son of broadcaster Gilbert Mamery. He began his career in the media at the age of 15, as broadcaster and producer of a radio program called Metamorfosis. He has worked for 25 years as manager of local and international artists like Ricardo Montaner, Jerry Rivera, Yolandita Monge and actors like Jorge Abello. He has also produced concerts for artists like Ricardo Arjona and Mecano. For five years he was the manager of Spanish Broadcasting System of Puerto Rico (SBS).
• Yolandita Monge (Season 2): is an international Puerto Rican singer and actress. She is the first Puerto Rican female singer to be nominated to a Grammy, and is also Puerto Rico's highest selling female artist. Starting her career as a teenager, Monge has recorded over thirty albums.
• Erika Ender (Season 1): Born in Panama to a Brazilian mother and a Panamanian-American father. Erika is a singer, composer, dancer and producer.
• Jerry Rivera (Season 1): Puerto Rican salsa singer. He began his career as a teenager and became known as "El Bebé de la Salsa". Rivera has been nominated to both the Grammy and Latin Grammy Awards.

The eligible age-range for contestants is currently sixteen to twenty-eight years old. The contestants must be legal U.S. residents, and present the completed required form with a proper identification. Minors should be accompanied by their parents or legal guardians.[8][9]

Hiram Bithorn Stadium

Auditions are usually held on two locations: Hiram Bithorn Stadium in San Juan, and Auditorio Juan Pachín Vicéns in Ponce. During the auditions, contestants will perform in front of the judges and/or producers. They will then choose a total of 80 contestants to advance to the "Theater Level" auditions.

From the semifinal onwards, contestants are "saved" by public vote. During the contestant's performance as well as the recap at the end, a toll-free telephone number for each contestant is displayed on the screen. For a period of time after the episode ends, viewers may call or send a text message to their preferred contestant's telephone number, and each call or text message is registered as a vote for that contestant. The contestants with the fewest votes may be eliminated in successive weeks until a winner emerges. Voting via text messaging is also possible through AT&T, as well as online voting.[10]

The winner receives a record deal with Universal Music Group and secures a management contract for his musical career. The winner might also receive additional prizes like a new automobile, mobile phones, tablet PCs, cash, scholarships, and other endorsement deals.[11]

The first season of Idol Puerto Rico debuted on August 7, 2011 on WAPA-TV. It was hosted by Jaime Augusto Mayol. After the initial auditions, 24 contestants were selected. These were cut to 12 during the semi-finals. The final showdown was between Christian Pagán and Japhet Albert. Pagán won the first place on November 21, 2012.[12] Pagán has already released two albums, with the first one peaking at #1 on Billboard Latin Charts.[13]

The second season of Idol Puerto Rico debuted on July 29, 2012. Hosted by Mayol again, it featured singer Yolandita Monge as a new judge, replacing Erika Ender and Jerry Rivera. Like the first season, 24 contestants were selected after the initial auditions. Of these, 12 were eliminated during the semi-finals, with the remaining 12 heading for the finals. The finale aired on November 12, 2012 on WAPA-TV. The winner was Gremal Maldonado Its origin is Dominican-Puerto Rican ., who has already released her first studio album.