There is probably no worse time to be the one who was eliminated on American Idol 2014 than right before the cutoff for the Live Tour. Well, except maybe being the person who comes in second! We admit that’s probably a lot worse.
Even so, it has to hurt to be just one spot away from a summer full of earning a living doing what you love while playing stadiums across American in front of thousands of screaming fans. On American Idol last night, Ben Briley became the unfortunate season 13 finalist who went home in 11th place and will miss out on the tour and all the perks it has to offer.
For the American Idol 2014 Top 10 finalists who are left in the competition, it’s a major boon to win one of the coveted spots on the Live Tour. Although the tour has suffered from low ticket sales the past few seasons (and last year’s was cut short), it’s still a huge opportunity for the contestants.
Not only will they keep earning a paycheck for singing through the summer, but the Top 10 will also get a ton of publicity as part of being on the American Idol Live Tour. They will keep getting interviews and talk show bookings, have their faces plastered all over the place online and off, and they’ll keep getting their music in front of fans people in the industry for a lot longer than those who don’t make the tour.