Local singer wows 'American Idol' judges

Ethan Thompson’s path to appearing on the popular TV show “American Idol” was paved by coffee.

The Whitefish musician got a break when he won a Folgers Coffee jingle contest in 2010. The prize money from the contest gave him the cash to move to Boston. A few years later, while still living in Beantown, Thompson found himself auditioning for the reality singing talent show.

“That money allowed me to move to Boston and eventually led me to ‘Idol,’” Thompson said Friday in a phone interview with the Pilot.

As “Idol” began its 13th season last week, Thompson appeared on the show Jan. 15 along with two other contestants as they each sang for judges Jennifer Lopez, Harry Connick Jr. and Keith Urban. Thompson earned his “golden ticket” signaling his pass to the next round.

“My mind kind of went blank,” Thompson said. “It was hard to understand. I was kind of thinking ‘I got my golden ticket, now where do I go?’”

He said he started out by performing a cover song, but when that didn’t feel right he asked to perform his own song, “Stand My Ground.”

“I want to play as many originals as I can,” he said. “I feel more connected to them on a deeper level.”

The choice worked for the judges who voted to let him move on to the next level in Hollywood. Thompson heads out to California this week.

“American Idol” is a singing competition with the focus of finding the next music superstar. A panel of judges critique the contestants’ performances with TV viewers voting to select the contestants moving to the final rounds of the competition. The winner receives a major recording contract. The show appears on Fox on Wednesdays and Thursdays at 7 p.m.

“Following the episode I’ve been given a big boost of love,” he said. “I’ve gotten a bigger response than I expected and I’m loving all the new fans.”

Thompson hadn’t really thought much about auditioning for “Idol” until recently when some fans came to one of his shows and told him the TV show was planning a stop in Boston. He had just graduated from Berklee College of Music and had the time.

“I never really thought about it before,” he said. “It’s not like ‘Idol’ usually comes near Montana.”

Thompson started his music career early by taking piano lessons at age 5 and guitar lessons as a teenager. He acted in plays at the O’Shaughnessy Center and was in “Oliver!” in 2001. He sang in the choir at Flathead High School.

Eventually he attended the University of Montana. Thompson, Jenny Snipstead, Landon Lee and Dan Coburn collaborated to create a jingle for Folgers Coffee that included the familiar line, “The best part of wakin’ up is Folgers in your cup.” The group performed their jingle for a panel of judges and won the nationwide competition and $25,000.

Thompson also won the Perez Hilton Can You Sing contest and was a finalist in the John Lennon Songwriting Contest.

Thompson enjoys writing his own songs and says as long as he can find a way to write and perform while making money, he’ll be happy.

“A song is about capturing a feeling — triggering that emotion,” he said. “I’ll hear something that will trigger an idea or I’ll think about a melody. The best songs come from life experience.”

To follow Thompson on “ Idol” like his Facebook page www.facebook.com/ethanthompsonmusic.

“I want to say thank you to Whitefish for the support,” he said. “I’ll represent Montana well.”