Concert Preview
"American Idol" tour: No Leah, but then again, no Simon, either

By Pamela Sitt
Seattle Times staff reporter

CHUCK BURTON / AP "American Idol" winner Fantasia is the main attraction of the "American Idols Live" Tour.

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When the latest "American Idol" tour stops in Everett — why Everett, by the way? — tomorrow night, two finalists will be noticeably absent: Garfield High School's Leah LaBelle and former UW football player Matt Rogers.

Only the top 10 finalists go on tour, which will likely disappoint some local "Idol" fans.

"A lot of people don't know," said Anastasia Vladowski, LaBelle's mother. "I was at Nordstrom the other day, and someone came up to me and said 'I'm going to see Leah [at the concert].' I said, 'Well, she's not going.' "

LaBelle, 17, will instead spend the summer in Boston studying music. She'll miss the "Idol" tour in Everett this weekend, but hopes to catch up with her friends at a later show.

"I love [the other finalists] so much," said LaBelle in a phone interview from Boston this week. The incoming senior plans to finish high school before pursuing a music career.

"I wish I could be with everybody and go around the country with my friends."

Her friends: "Idol" winner Fantasia (who has officially dropped her last name, Barrino), runner-up Diana DeGarmo, Jasmine Trias, George Huff, Jon Peter Lewis, Amy Adams, Jennifer Hudson, La Toya London, John Stevens and Camile Velasco. Everett is the third stop on the 49-city tour, which will likely be a crowd-pleaser, if previous "Idol" tours are any indication.

Concert preview "American Idols Live" Tour, 7 p.m. Saturday, Everett Events Center, 2000 Hewitt Ave., Everett; $37-$47 (866-332-8499 or www.everetteventscenter.com).

Indeed, the talented Fantasia alone may be worth the $37-$47 price of admission, which is a bargain compared with most of the summer's hot tickets — a single ticket to Madonna's Reinvention Tour, for instance, can cost upward of $300.

"Idols' " 10-for-the-price-of-one bill is strengthened by fan favorites like London, Hudson and DeGarmo, who add vocal heft to what many are calling the strongest group of "Idol" finalists yet. As for the likable but eminently less talented John Stevens and Jon Peter Lewis, we have two words: Jim Verraros.

Meanwhile, Fantasia's first single, "I Believe," debuted at the top of the Billboard Hot 100 and remains in the top 10 in its second week; DeGarmo's "Dreams" this week debuted at No. 14.

"I'm so happy that [Fantasia] won. She just deserves it so much," LaBelle said. "She's the perfect entertainer. I'm so happy for her."

Pamela Sitt: 206-464-2376 or psitt@seattletimes.com

Copyright © 2004 The Seattle Times Company

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