'American Idol' Summer Tour: Quarter of Scheduled Dates Canceled

It looks as if the American Idol summer tour, much like judges Mariah Carey and Nicki Minaj, is also a casualty of a ho-hum season 12.

Late on Friday, 19 Entertainment, the company that produces Idol in partnership with Fox and FremantleMedia, announced that nine dates of the North American trek have been canceled and one has been rescheduled. They include stops in St. Louis, Kansas City, Detroit, Tulsa, Las Vegas and Oakland, among other secondary markets.

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Said a spokesperson for the tour: "Due to production scheduling changes, the American Idol 2013 Tour will now begin on July 19th and go through the summer until August 31st. The Idols look forward to performing in 30 venues across the country."

The canceled dates make up a fourth of the tour's initial 40-show run.

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The Hollywood Reporter first brought up the possibility of tour cancelations in a May 8 piece. Quoting Jared Paul, who spearheaded tours for Glee and Big Time Rush, the live-industry veteran explained to THR, "You have to match the public's interest. Whether somebody will part with their hard-earned money is all talent-dependent." 

The American Idol Live! 2013 tour, featuring season 12 winner Candice Glover along with Amber Holcomb, Angie Miller, Burnell Taylor, Curtis Finch Jr., Devin Velez, Janelle Arthur, Kree Harrison, Lazaro Arbos, Paul Jolley and Aubrey Cleland, is promoted by AEG Live and sponsored by specialty retailer Claire's.

The affected dates are listed below:

June 29 St. Louis, MO Chaifetz Arena
June 30 Kansas City, MO Sprint Center
July 2 Minneapolis, MN Target Center
July 5 Detroit, Michigan Joe Louis Arena
July 6 Rosemont, IL Allstate Arena (rescheduled for August 12 in Trenton, NJ)
July 8 Tulsa, OK BOK Center
July 10 Broomfield, CO 1STBANK Center
July 12 Las Vegas, NV Mandalay Bay Events Center
July 13 Ontario, CA Citizens Business Bank Arena
July 14 Oakland, CA The Oracle Arena

Twitter: @Idol_Worship

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Nicki Minaj Officially Leaves American Idol

by Jenna Mullins Thu., May. 30, 2013 5:52 PM PDT

Frazer Harrison/Getty Images

Count on Mariah Carey to beat Nicki Minaj to the punch...or on Minaj to steal Carey's thunder.

Either way you look at it, the divas' time butting heads on American Idol is over. Fox announced today that Minaj will not be returning to American Idol next season less than two hours after Carey's exit was announced.

"Nicki Minaj is a superstar who brought a level of honesty and passion to American Idol and who had a tremendous positive impact on so many contestants this season," Fox said in a statement. "Given her extremely busy career, we understand and respect her decision and wish her the best."

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Minaj tweeted after the announcement: "Thank you American Idol for a life changing experience! Wouldn't trade it for the world! Time to focus on the Music!!! Mmmuuuaahhh!"

Producers counted on Minaj and Carey to stir up ratings for the long-running singing competition, but their so-called feud fizzled by the end of auditions.

Jennifer Hudson has signed on to be a judge in season 13, and producers are also reportedly chasing alums like Adam Lambert and Clay Aiken to join as well. Kelly Clarkson, we're told, had been approached but will not be taking part in the new season.

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