Season 7 top 24 and the ultimate PRIZE!

Here we are! We have finally made it through weeks of the dramatic auditions. We had to suffer through a lot bad talent, but I am pleased that we saw more good stuff than in previous seasons.

The Top 24 Finalists have been named and we will start seeing the real competition and performances this coming Monday night. Make sure to check back here for a thorough review of every finalist's good and bad choices.

Why are the finalists putting themselves through all of this? They will have every single note they sing scrutinized by millions of viewers. On top of that, everything they wear, every word they say and like we learned last season, they way they style their hair each week is fair game to get dissected by the media. So why are they doing this? What is the ultimate prize?

We got an example of what each of these finalists wishes will be happening to them someday:

With just one day of airplay, Mariah Carey's "Touch My Body" (Island) earned enough airplay to jump onto the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart at No. 78. "Body" is Carey's 41st song to appear on this survey. Her run began almost 18 years ago with "Vision of Love", which became the first of her 10 R&B No. 1 hits to date.

Mariah Carey's new single, "Touch My Body," debuts at No. 78, despite only garnering a few hours with of airplay in the chart tracking period. Her next album, "E=MC ²," arrives April 15.

With only 6 hours (approximately) of airplay on Tuesday, February 12, "Touch My Body" recorded an incredible total of 498 spins (Pop - 218, Rhythmic - 180, Urban - 89, Urban A/C - 9, Hot A/C - 2) that account for a total of 7.009 million audience impressions.

This is just the beginning for these Season Seven Miss American Idol Finalists. It is unlikely that any of them will achieve the standard of career longevity and excellence that Mariah Carey exemplifies. But if they have the genuine passion for entertaining and a sincere love of music like she does, it is so exciting to see them strive for the ultimate prize.

Here's to the kick-off of a great season!