Elliott Yamin lives out his dream thanks to 'American Idol'

TOKYO —

Elliott Yamin remembers the first time he turned up to audition for the 5th season of popular American reality TV program “American Idol” in January 2006. “It was really crazy, wild. It was like an open cattle call,” he says, during his 2nd visit to Japan in three months. “When I went, there were 10,000 people. It was kind of shocking to see all those people there and see how they sift through them all in such a short period of time. I guess I was one of the lucky ones.”

Performing “A Song for You,” Yamin and his group progressed to the Hollywood rounds where they advanced with “It’s in Her Kiss.” By May, Yamin was one of the three finalists before being eliminated. However, that wasn’t the end of his career. He has since performed on several talk shows, gone on tours and concluded a record deal. On May 21, his debut album, “Wait for You,” was released in Japan. Yamin, 29, looks back on it all as an incredible experience. “I didn’t have any musical training when I was young. I’ve enjoyed every second of it.”