Author: Shirley Halperin

Michael Becker / Fox

It looks as if the American Idol summer tour, much like judges Mariah Carey and Nicki Minaj, is also a casualty of a ho-hum season 12.

Late on Friday, 19 Entertainment, the company that produces Idol in partnership with Fox and FremantleMedia, announced that nine dates of the North American trek have been canceled and one has been rescheduled. They include stops in St. Louis, Kansas City, Detroit, Tulsa, Las Vegas and Oakland, among other secondary markets.

PHOTOS: ‘American Idol’ Season 12 Finale in Pictures

Said a spokesperson for the tour: “Due to production scheduling changes, the American Idol 2013 Tour will now begin on July 19th and go through the summer until August 31st. The Idols look forward to performing in 30 venues across the country.”

The canceled dates make up a fourth of the tour’s initial 40-show run.

PHOTOS: Mike Darnell’s Greatest Hits: ‘American Idol,’ ‘Kitchen Nightmares’ and ‘The Swan’

The Hollywood Reporter first brought up the possibility of tour cancelations in a May 8 piece. Quoting Jared Paul, who spearheaded tours for Glee and Big Time Rush, the live-industry veteran explained to THR, “You have to match the public’s interest. Whether somebody will part with their hard-earned money is all talent-dependent.” 

The American Idol Live! 2013 tour, featuring season 12 winner Candice Glover along with Amber Holcomb, Angie Miller, Burnell Taylor, Curtis Finch Jr., Devin Velez, Janelle Arthur, Kree Harrison, Lazaro Arbos, Paul Jolley and Aubrey Cleland, is promoted by AEG Live and sponsored by specialty retailer Claire’s.

The affected dates are listed below:

June 29 St. Louis, MO Chaifetz Arena
June 30 Kansas City, MO Sprint Center
July 2 Minneapolis, MN Target Center
July 5 Detroit, Michigan Joe Louis Arena
July 6 Rosemont, IL Allstate Arena (rescheduled for August 12 in Trenton, NJ)
July 8 Tulsa, OK BOK Center
July 10 Broomfield, CO 1STBANK Center
July 12 Las Vegas, NV Mandalay Bay Events Center
July 13 Ontario, CA Citizens Business Bank Arena
July 14 Oakland, CA The Oracle Arena

Twitter: @Idol_Worship

Michael Becker / Fox

It looks as if the American Idol summer tour, much like judges Mariah Carey and Nicki Minaj, is also a casualty of a ho-hum season 12.

Late on Friday, 19 Entertainment, the company that produces Idol in partnership with Fox and FremantleMedia, announced that nine dates of the North American trek have been canceled and one has been rescheduled. They include stops in St. Louis, Kansas City, Detroit, Tulsa, Las Vegas and Oakland, among other secondary markets.

PHOTOS: ‘American Idol’ Season 12 Finale in Pictures

Said a spokesperson for the tour: “Due to production scheduling changes, the American Idol 2013 Tour will now begin on July 19th and go through the summer until August 31st. The Idols look forward to performing in 30 venues across the country.”

The canceled dates make up a fourth of the tour’s initial 40-show run.

PHOTOS: Mike Darnell’s Greatest Hits: ‘American Idol,’ ‘Kitchen Nightmares’ and ‘The Swan’

The Hollywood Reporter first brought up the possibility of tour cancelations in a May 8 piece. Quoting Jared Paul, who spearheaded tours for Glee and Big Time Rush, the live-industry veteran explained to THR, “You have to match the public’s interest. Whether somebody will part with their hard-earned money is all talent-dependent.” 

The American Idol Live! 2013 tour, featuring season 12 winner Candice Glover along with Amber Holcomb, Angie Miller, Burnell Taylor, Curtis Finch Jr., Devin Velez, Janelle Arthur, Kree Harrison, Lazaro Arbos, Paul Jolley and Aubrey Cleland, is promoted by AEG Live and sponsored by specialty retailer Claire’s.

The affected dates are listed below:

June 29 St. Louis, MO Chaifetz Arena
June 30 Kansas City, MO Sprint Center
July 2 Minneapolis, MN Target Center
July 5 Detroit, Michigan Joe Louis Arena
July 6 Rosemont, IL Allstate Arena (rescheduled for August 12 in Trenton, NJ)
July 8 Tulsa, OK BOK Center
July 10 Broomfield, CO 1STBANK Center
July 12 Las Vegas, NV Mandalay Bay Events Center
July 13 Ontario, CA Citizens Business Bank Arena
July 14 Oakland, CA The Oracle Arena

Twitter: @Idol_Worship

Rapper Nicki Minaj followed Mariah Carey‘s lead on Thursday afternoon, announcing via Twitter, “Thank you American Idol for a life changing experience! Wouldn’t trade it for the world! Time to focus on the Music!!! Mmmuuuaahhh!!!”

Randy Jackson had previously announced his exit from the show, leaving only Keith Urban who has yet to confirm whether he’ll be participating in season 13 of the Fox show.

PHOTOS: ‘American Idol’ Season 12 Finale in Pictures

The series just wrapped its 12th year on May 16, but by season’s end, there didn’t seem to be much left to celebrate. The season closer, during which Candice Glover and Kree Harrison faced off for the crown (Glover won), was down more than 40 percent in viewers from the previous year and was the show’s lowest rated finale ever.

Speaking on the night of the finale, a high-ranking Idol source told The Hollywood Reporter that Minaj was viewed as “bad for the brand,” explaining that, while the controversial star was meant to lure in younger viewers, she ended up turning off many of Idol’s core fans, now average an age of 51.2.

Q&A: Mike Darnell on Fox Exit: ‘It Wasn’t About ‘Idol’ ‘

A little over a week later, Fox president of alternative programming Mike Darnell announced that he was leaving the company.

In confirming Minaj’s exit, production partners Fox, FremantleMedia and 19 Entertainment stated: “Nicki Minaj is a superstar who brought a level of honesty and passion to American Idol and who had a tremendous positive impact on so many contestants this season.  Given her extremely busy career, we understand and respect her decision and wish her the best.”

Minaj recently told New York radio station Hot 97 that she plans on returning to her rap and hip-hop roots for her next album.

Twitter: @Idol_Worship