Toronto, ON (June 15, 2005) – Voters chose youth as 16-year-old Daryl Brunt and 18-year-old Ashley Leitao became the first two finalists to advance to the Canadian Idol Top 10, it was announced live on CTV this evening.
After Tuesday’s sixth episode of the series, Canadians were asked to vote for their favourite Canadian Idol competitors – and vote they did.
Almost 1.2 million votes were received from across the country, an increase of 36 per cent compared to last year. Canadian Idol’s audience
is also up from last year as 2.3 million viewers tuned in, an increase of 24 per cent.
In last night’s show, eight competitors from across the country performed one song each in front of the Canadian Idol judges and a live studio audience. The judges provided comments, but it was the votes of the Canadian public that counted. After a two-hour voting window, viewers
had made their choice.
In tonight’s live broadcast, host Ben Mulroney announced that Daryl Brunt from Sudbury, ON had received the most votes following his performance
last night of When You Believe. Joining Brunt in the Top 10 is Burnaby, British Columbia’s Ashley Leitao, who logged the second biggest vote tally
for her rendition of Colours of the Wind. Stéphane Aubin, 21, from Edmonton, AB was third and was eliminated from the competition, along
with five others.
Eight additional Top 10 competitors will be decided by the Canadian public over the next four weeks. Brunt and Leitao return to Canadian Idol with their eight co-finalists on Tuesday, July 19 in the first live, Top 10 performance show.
Aubin and the other five competitors eliminated tonight still have a shot at the Top 10. Spots in the July 12 Wild Card episode that will
determine the final two positions are still up for grabs. Canadian Idol’s second group of Top 32 competitors take to the stage next Tuesday, June 21 at 8 p.m. ET/PT on CTV.
Credit: CTV
