Producer molds contestants into
concert-ready vocalists
Posted: 3:53 PM EDT (1953 GMT)

Carrie Underwood belts out "Inside Your Heaven" after being named the fourth-season winner.

(AP) -- When it comes to making "American Idol" click, it seems nothing can be done without the help of a British bloke named Simon.

The show was created by Simon Fuller. Contestants are reduced to tears by judge Simon Cowell. And when the "Idol" contestants go on tour this summer, they'll be guided by the hand of tour producer Simon Sidi.

It's Sidi's second year putting together the "Idol" tour extravaganza for the United States, but Sidi says anyone who caught last year's show will be in for a surprise -- he's planning to make it less of a variety show and more like a real rock concert.

The tour gets under way in July and is scheduled to feature the top 10 "Idol" contestants.

Q: What's the biggest difficulty in putting on the show, given that most of the contestants have never done a full tour?

SIMON SIDI: I don't think that that's necessarily a huge issue, actually. I think they're so keen to be out there doing it that they just love it and they're prepared to try different things and do different things, so it's actually really good fun from that point of view. It's not difficult. I mean, they're all good performers.

Q: So they don't have any diva requests?

SIDI: Not really (laughs). They don't because they don't know about that. They don't know to ask for just blue jelly babies or whatever it is. We can do everything. It's great. ...

They're going to love everything about doing these shows. They're going to love walking out there to 10,000 screaming people. They've never experienced that before. I know they've been on TV and been in front of the cameras to millions of people, but there's a big difference from that and a studio with maybe 500 people to walking into (a venue) and hearing a crowd roar. That is just a phenomenal experience and these guys are very very lucky to be getting this experience.

Q: Why did you think there was a need to change the format?

SIDI: Because the format's been around for a few years and we've got such a strong set of Idols this year that we can do this with them. We can let them get on with it basically, and perform how they want to perform. Although we have a choreographer and stylist and everything, they'll be making the leap.

Q: Last year, the "American Idol" tour audience declined, like a lot of tours. But there was criticism that there was some "Idol" fatigue. What do you think of that?

SIDI: Well, I designed the tour last year, and I know that I thought that everyone was very happy with the way the design was. I think it went very well last year. I think this year we've got a really strong set of "Idols" and utilize them and make it look and feel much better than it's ever done before one any of the Idols around the world.

Q: Do you give more time to fan favorites?

SIDI: The thing is to give everybody as much time as they need. Some may need more than others, and we'll see.

Q: What do you think about all the knocks "American Idol" has taken this year -- do you think the controversies have hurt the brand?

SIDI: That's not really for me to say. I would say that it's a strong brand and at the end of the day, it's the kids. How many viewers does it get -- 29 million? (Laughs.) I think that says it all really. The brand isn't hurt at all. It's not what the critics say, it's what the people who turn on the TVs and pick up their phones and vote -- it's what they think at the end of the day that counts.

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