I've been writing about American Idol for the last four years now. And this season, I find myself in a different place than before. I've always begun my coverage a few weeks into the season, once it's reached the audience voting stage.

This time around, I'm starting from the get-go. Here's my plan. For the next couple of weeks, instead of giving you my blow-by-blow of each show, you'll have one article on various aspects of A.I. and one on the contestants in that week's auditions who I feel warrants a second look.

My first piece, for example, was about how the show has grown as a showcase for marketing already established artists. Now, I'll go through and talk about those that caught my eye during the Minneapolis and Seattle auditions. Granted, at this time, it's still anyone's game to win. But it should be interesting to see how some of these out-the-gate-early players fare in the long run.

Minneapolis, Minnesota

Denise Jackson, 16 years old, Wisconsin. She's got the whole package going on for her. Her background as a "crack baby" is newsworthy as is her attitude that she is both lucky and blessed. She has a panache that belies her tender age and a raw potential to go along with it.

Perla Meneses, 25, Florida. Another newsworthy story, Perla calls herself a survivor, not a victim, of a hard life in Columbia, South America. Although she almost blew it with her first song, Randy asked her to do another, one more suited to her personal style. The judges then gave her a thumbs up and so did I.

Jarrod Fowler, 27, Arizona. At first sight, I knew that Jarrod would have to have some pipes on him. He attended the audition in his U.S. Navy dress whites, signifying his current military status, stationed on the aircraft carrier USS Ronald Reagan. There is no way the higher-ups in the Navy could sanction one of its members appearing on the show if he or she didn't perform well. 

Sarah Krueger, 19, Wisconsin. Auditioning with a song that was a signature piece for one of last year's top Idol contestants ("Over The Rainbow") takes some nerve. Sarah served the song well, showing very strong vocal control.

Those are the only ones from that audition that got my stamp of approval.