How do the American idols get paid for their time on American idol?

Answer 1

Big bucks await 'Idol' contestants

Winners have made at least $1 million in the first year after being on the top-rated show; finalists also have fared well.

By EDWARD WYATT, New York Times

It's doubtful that any of the remaining contestants on "American Idol" hope to be playing the Teen Angel in a touring production of "Grease" in Pittsburgh three years from now.

But that's what Taylor Hicks, the 2006 "American Idol" winner, is doing. And it shows that winning the nation's most popular talent competition is no guarantee of superstardom.

Easing that potential pain are the substantial financial rewards promised to winners of "American Idol," regardless of how many records they sell once the show ends. In the year since he stood under a confetti shower in the Nokia Theatre in Los Angeles, Kris Allen, last year's winner, has earned at least $650,000 from "American Idol," according to contracts that last season's contestants signed with the show's producers during the competition.

That amount reflects the minimum a winner would earn. Including performance fees and merchandising royalties from the "American Idol" tour, as well as other opportunities, winners have never failed to earn less than $1 million in the year or so after the contest, people close to the show say.

It is not just the winner who cashes in; finalists who reach the Top 5 this season are likely to earn close to $100,000 from the show -- and three to four times that if the "Idol" producers sign them to a record deal. The Top 12 contestants are guaranteed several thousand dollars for their efforts. That is before accounting for the Top 10 finalists' earnings for appearing in the summer's "Idol" tour.

These details emerged from copies of last year's contracts filed in state court in Los Angeles under laws requiring court approval of entertainment industry deals with minors.

Answer 2

come back a year ago and maybe someone will hav an answer!

Answer 3

no