AceShowbiz -

About 7,000 people turned up at Boston's Gillette Stadium to get a chance to be the next "American Idol". The audition for season 9 was kicked off on Sunday, June 14 but hopefuls had turned up as early as 3 A.M. to get in line which stretched out to as far as the parking lot of the stadium.

The people were coming from all over the U.S. region, ranging from the East Coast area such as New York, up to North Carolina. In order to wait for their turn, they have to endure the not-so-friendly weather. The rain caused some to hide under umbrellas so that their costumes, and any other kind of preparations made for the judges, will not spoil.

However, host Ryan Seacrest who was on duty again, took note on the positive side of having such weather. "If you're auditioning, you want pouring rain, you want freezing weather. It makes the weak stay home," he said.

According to Boston Herald, contestants this year are no less compelling in their motivations to enter the competition. One girl named Gina Naomi Baez said, "I had Hodgkin's lymphoma when I was 13 to 15. Simon (Cowell)'s not as scary as cancer." Another 21-year-old named Sarah Gay said she was there for her friend Dave Wilkinson who got shipped out to Iraq.

The auditions will also be held in six other cities across America, the next one being in Atlanta, G.A. Participants are required to have a U.S. working permit and are within the age of 16 to 28 as of June 12, 2009.