Elliott Yamin

Template:Infobox musical artist 2Elliott Yamin (born Efraym Elliott Yamin on July 20, 1978) is an American singer who is best known for being the third place finalist on the fifth season of American Idol.

Biography

Elliott Yamin (pronounced yah-meen) was born in Los Angeles, California to an Israeli Jewish father, Shaul Yamin (of Iraqi heritage), a part-time house painter and part-time layabout, and a Jewish American mother, Claudette Yamin, née Goldberg , who herself was a former professional singer. He began singing at the age of five and had no formal training. Yamin is 90% deaf in his right ear, which he mentioned in the third round of the semi-finals. When he was eleven years old, he moved to Richmond, Virginia and attended Tuckahoe Middle School. His parents got divorced when he was fourteen years old. At the age of sixteen, Yamin was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes and has to wear an insulin pump, like another American Idol performer, Kevin Covais. He attended Douglas S. Freeman High School in the West End Richmond neighborhood until he left in his sophomore year. He went to work at Foot Locker and with the help of his employer, he eventually received his GED. He later worked with a jazz band, DJed for a radio station from 2am till 6am under the name "E-Dub", and worked as a counter clerk at Westbury Pharmacy, a job he left to audition for American Idol.

Prior to American Idol, Yamin was featured on three tracks (Sound Doctrine, Song of Hope, Whatchacomeherefoe?) of gospel artist [1] Big Planz's 2005 album Sound Doctrine. His rendition of Moody's Mood For Love, by James Moody, is featured on the CD American Idols Season 5. Elliott Yamin is in process of getting a recording deal.

American Idol

Yamin auditioned for American Idol in Boston as an alternative to Memphis, Tennessee where auditions got cancelled due to Hurricane Katrina. Yamin performed A Song For You and made it to the Hollywood round.

Yamin's primary genre is soul; he was described as a blue-eyed soul singer by Rod Stewart while on the show. His favorite artists are Alicia Keys, Donny Hathaway, Stevie Wonder, and Usher.

Yamin's fans call themselves Yamin Machine, the Yaminions (both mentioned by Ryan Seacrest during the show), the E-Train, FOE (Friends of Elliott), and the Yamin Fiends.

Yamin had little airtime in the early rounds of the show, and was generally unknown to viewers before the semifinals began. He was initially considered a longshot to even make the finals; but his personality, consistency, and praised vocals carried him far into the season. Of the American Idol contestants whose auditions were not shown on television, only Bo Bice and Kelly Clarkson advanced further in the competition than Yamin.

The Richmond Times Dispatch provided information on Virginia-related Yamin and Chris Daughtry nearly daily on either the Metro & Virginia section or the front page. The RTD articles repeatedly speculated that Yamin's relatively low placement among the contestants in later rounds of American Idol was due to the inability of Richmond-area phone lines to handle call volume.

On the May 10 results show, Yamin and Taylor Hicks were announced as the top two vote recipients, and they made it into the Top Three along with Katharine McPhee.

On May 12, Yamin returned to Richmond and in a gathering attended by over 4,000 people, he received a key to the city from Mayor Douglas Wilder. Later that day, he threw the opening pitch for a Richmond Braves game, and met with Governor Tim Kaine, who gave him a Virginia is for Elliott Lovers t-shirt. Yamin said this was the "happiest day of [his] life". That day was declared "Elliott Yamin Day" in Richmond.

On May 17, Yamin was voted off the show with 33.06% of the votes. Katharine McPhee and Taylor Hicks received 33.26% and 33.68% of the votes, although it is unknown who got which amount.

On May 18, Eric Cantor (R-VA) praised Yamin in remarks on the floor of the United States House of Representatives.

Yamin told press he became close friends with Taylor Hicks, Bucky Covington and Paris Bennett. When Bucky Covington was eliminated, Covington told press, [attributed] "He was my best buddy through this whole thing. Actually, I was leaving last night and he was like, 'Man, I'm gonna miss you.' And I said, 'Don't worry, I'll see you next week.' I was just kidding with him."

Yamin was a well-liked contender among Idol producers due to his humble and sensitive attitude; judges (especially Paula Abdul, who called him "one funky white boy" and her "favorite"), the Idol staff and band, and the other Idol contestants. Simon Cowell said that after five seasons, Elliott is "potentially the best male vocalist" on American Idol. Cowell later told Jay Leno that Yamin was one of the nicest contestants - ever - on American Idol.

American Idol Performances

Semifinals

• Week 1: "If You Really Love Me" (Stevie Wonder)
  • After this performance, Cowell said that Yamin was potentially the best male vocalist in the history of American Idol.

• Week 2: "Moody's Mood For Love" (James Moody)
  • The judges loved Elliott's performance. Jackson gave Elliott a standing ovation, Abdul said she couldn't wait for his next performance and Cowell said that it was a great performance and that Elliott is starting to believe in himself.

• Week 3: "Heaven" (Bryan Adams)
  • He received mixed reviews for this performance. Jackson thought it was "hot" and Abdul loved it, but Cowell called it a "copout."

Finals

• Week 1: Stevie Wonder
  • "Knocks Me Off My Feet" (Stevie Wonder)
    • During the rehearsal, Stevie Wonder had strong praise for Elliott Yamin and told him he should definitely pursue a career in the music industry. After the performance, Jackson thought Yamin did a very good job, while Cowell thought Yamin's performance was good but was not blown away by it. Abdul thought it was great and believes that Yamin will go far in the competition.

• Week 2: Songs of the '50s
  • "Teach Me Tonight" (Al Jarreau)
    • All three judges praised the performance, with Jackson pointing out the difficulty of the song and Cowell saying Yamin's singing was "fantastic".

• Week 3: Songs of the 21st Century
  • "I Don't Want To Be" (Gavin DeGraw)
    • Jackson did not know what to say about the arrangement but said that he was the third "hot one" on the show. Abdul loved the arrangement and told him that he is one "funky white boy". Cowell said in quote "Good song, terrible arrangement, good vocal and the dancing was hideous." Seacrest mentioned that Cowell gave a good equation. All in all, the three judges praised his vocal style but had their own thoughts about the arrangement.

• Week 4: Country Songs
  • "If Tomorrow Never Comes" (Garth Brooks)
    • Jackson said that the competition has finally started. He also said that Yamin brought it down and that it was hot. Abdul said that he was humble, fantastic, and that he stayed true to who he was. Cowell said that it was a great song choice, but it was not great vocal. He also said that Yamin would have to do better than that in the future and that he was not as confident as usual.
  • Bottom 2

• Week 5: Queen
  • "Somebody to Love" (Queen)
    • Jackson said that Yamin chose a hard song to sing and that he had some pitchy problems. Overall, Jackson loved him and thought it was really good. Abdul said that it was the best vocal that night. She also said he took the best parts of that song and put it into 1 minute and 20 seconds, and he gave the best Elliott Yamin performance. Cowell said that Yamin chose a tough one. He agreed with Jackson that it was an in and out performance, but he thought Yamin pulled it off.
  • Bottom 3

• Week 6: Songs from The Great American Songbook
  • "It Had to Be You" (Frank Sinatra)
    • Jackson and Abdul enjoyed the performance, but Cowell said that it lacked a "certain personality." Seacrest implied that Cowell was watching another performance, and Seacrest and Jackson proceeded to make fun of Cowell.

• Week 7: Love Songs
  • "A Song for You" (Leon Russell as performed by Donny Hathaway)
    • Jackson hated the arrangement, but loved Elliott; referred to him as "the bomb," and told him that he "could sing it like the record anytime." Abdul was in tears and said Elliott moved her from the beginning. She told him he celebrated what the competition was about, and commented on how he evolved as a performer. She said he *was* an American Idol, and that he had a beautiful [future]. Cowell said that in parts Elliott's performance was like a "vocal masterclass," and it was superb. Yamin's performance helped to re-expose the long-forgotten talent of Donny Hathaway. In the hours following the American Idol broadcast, "A Donny Hathaway Collection" made a huge jump and reached number twenty-three on the Amazon.com bestseller list, a bellwether for music sales. Yamin had commented that he had wanted to return the "spotlight" to Hathaway, and it appears he did just that. His performance of "A Song for You" also began to receive enough airplay to warrant low-level inclusion on some radio media charts.

• Week 8: Songs from the contestant's birth year (1978), Songs from the Top 10 of any Billboard Chart
  • "On Broadway" (George Benson)
    • Jackson thought it started out rough, but then said it worked for him in the middle and in the end. Abdul agreed. Cowell said it was not Yamin's best, and that it was very disjointed.
  • "Home" (Michael Bublé)
    • Jackson and Abdul loved the performance. Cowell was concerned about the song choice which has lyrics about wanting to go home as well as lacking the "wow" factor.
  • Bottom 2

• Week 9: Elvis Presley
  • "If I Can Dream" (Elvis Presley)
    • Jackson loved it, Abdul appeared teary-eyed and said it was his "best performance vocally in this competition", Cowell believed that "he was coming in as the underdog tonight" and was "the best performance of the night so far".
  • "Trouble" (Elvis Presley)
    • Jackson said it was his "best performance ever". Abdul declared that, "Now, this was your best performance ever in this competition". Cowell said he was showing personality and "deserve[s] to go onto the next round".
  • Top 2

• Week 10: Clive Davis' pick, Judge's pick, Contestant's pick
  • "Open Arms" (Journey)
    • Jackson and Abdul praised the performance, but Cowell felt he was stiff.
  • "What You Won't Do For Love" (Bobby Caldwell)
    • Jackson felt he was not in tune, but Abdul and Cowell liked his performance.
  • "I Believe to My Soul" (Ray Charles as performed by Donny Hathaway)
    • Jackson and Abdul felt the song was too unknown for American Idol viewers. Cowell said that Yamin's song choice meant he would be eliminated, but admitted Yamin is a great guy, a great singer and he has made his mum very proud.
  • Eliminated

• Finale
  • "One" (U2 as performed by Mary J. Blige & U2) with Mary J. Blige
  • "A House Is Not a Home (song),A House is Not a Home" (Burt Bacharach)
    • Although Yamin was no longer in the competition, he returned for the finale to sing "One" (in a duet with Blige) and "A House is Not a Home" (during a medley of Burt Bacharach songs). Both performances were well-loved by critics, who agreed they were the best of the night (His performance with Blige was the only one of all of the duets to receive a standing ovation by all the judges). On television, Randy Jackson was noted as saying that Elliott's version of "A House Is Not A Home" blew away the judges at the finale.

After Idol

Yamin appeared on the Tonight Show on May 18, 2006. Other post-finale appearances included Live with Regis and Kelly and the Fox News Channel program, Dayside.

On June 11, 2006, Yamin performed the National Anthem a cappella at game 2 of the NBA finals in a Dallas Mavericks Dirk Nowitzki jersey. It received warm reviews from cable news network MSNBC, calling it the "highlight moment of the game."

Elliott Yamin is loved world-wide. The International Fan Site was officially launched by family members and supporters on May 23, 2006 and currently has over 1,000 registered members from over 36 countries.

On May 15, 2006 the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation and Yamin Machine! announced the official Yamin Machine! for JDRF fundraiser to help find a cure for diabetes. The goal for the fundraiser is half-a-million dollars.

On July 05, 2006, AI5 Summer Tour offered its first concert in Manchester. Yamin appeared in seven acts. The first one was Nickelback's "Savin' Me" (duet with Chris Daughtry). He continued with three solos: "Moody's Mood For Love" (James Moody), "Never Too Much" (Luther Vandross), and "Trouble" (Elvis Presley). After that he was joined by Daughtry, Ace Young and Bucky Covington to perform "Patience" by Guns N' Roses; in that occasion the song was dedicated to Katharine McPhee, who was absent due to illness. Then the idols (except for Taylor Hicks) performed Queen's "We Are The Champions", and finally Hicks joined them to sing "Living in America".

On July 28, 2006, Yamin had the chance, along with the other Top 10 contestants, to meet U.S. President George W. Bush at the White House. Yamin was 45 minutes late to the meeting, however.

Elliott and collaborator Big Planz will release "The Storm", a charity single benefiting Hurricane Katrina relief efforts, in late August 2006.

Trivia

• Yamin loves basketball, and is a fan of the Charlotte Bobcats.
• Yamin is 5'6" (168 cm).
• He started singing at the age of 5.
• He can do funny voices and impressions.
• He wants to educate young people about music and diabetes.
• He says his hero in life is his mom.
• His favorite American Idol judge is Paula.
• He wears an insulin pump.
• Some of his favorite artists are Gwen Stefani, Alicia Keys, and Usher.
• After he did Donny Hathaway's "A Song for You" on the show, Hathaway's CDs made a great jump in sales on Amazon.com.
• If he were a superhero, he would like to have the ability to fly.
• Elliott's favorite snacks are Little Debbie Strawberry Shortcake rolls.
• The first CD he bought was Whitney Houston's self-titled album.
• Elliott appeared the cover of the July 2006 issue of his hometown Richmond Magazine, selling out 144,000 copies in 4 days. The magazine normally circulates only 31,000 copies in a thirty-day period.

Chart History

Year	Song	Album	U.S. Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles	US Pop	US Digital	iTunes top 100 songs	RIAA Certification
2006	Moody's Mood For Love	American Idol Season 5: Encores	1	73	76	38	-

• Notes:

1. Moody's Mood For Love was not released as a standard single in the United States; no songs from the American Idols Encore CD were made available as singles for radio airplay. The chart position was attained strictly from sales of the individual track from various Internet music download sites. Its Billboard position is a rarity for a release based solely on sales only.
2. Moody's Mood For Love did not chart on the US Hot 100, but it reached #1 on the Bubbling Under chart, thus earning a position of #101.
3. The iTunes rank for Moody's Mood For Love is the top position earned for the track on their Hot 100 listing.

References

External links

• Template:AI contestant
• Elliott Yamin at IMDb
• Template:Myspace - promo site courtesy of Fox's americanidol.com with News Corporation
• Two on 'Idol' have ties to Virginia, Richmond Times-Dispatch, February 17, 2006, accessed June 12, 2006
• Mason Employee Mentors American Idol Top 24 Finalist, Broadside (George Mason University student newspaper) interview, February 20, 2006
• Template:Dmoz
• Elliott Yamin Fan Sites on Yahoo!