It could just be hype or it could be the truth, but at least two Idol judges say that season 9 auditions blew them away. Kara DioGuardi tells Billboard magazine that there will be some “Boyle moments” during auditions referring to the middle-aged overnight sensation Susan Boyle who sung her way to commercial success after appearing on Britain’s Got Talent. Randy Jackson agreed, explaining that he expected a lot of Adam Lambert copycats, but instead he saw great talent and originality calling this seasons’ hopefuls “a whole different bunch.”

Just what Randy and Kara are talking about we will all have to wait and see. The audition shows begin Tuesday, January 12 and 13^th and continue on for another three weeks on both nights. The changes this time around are the star-studded lineup of guest judges (shown below), the absence of a wildcard pick for the judges, and a return the old format of seasons 4-7 in which 24 semi-finalists divided by gender sing each week in elimination rounds. The full schedule and list of the guest judges is below.

 Idol Season 9 Schedule Guide 

Season Premiere Night I Boston Auditions	Victoria Beckham (Guest Judge)	Jan. 12
Season Premiere Night II Atlanta Auditions	Mary J. Blige (Guest Judge)	Jan. 13
Chicago Auditions	Shania Twain (Guest Judge)	Jan. 19
Orlando Auditions	Kristin Chenoweth (Guest Judge)	Jan. 20
Dallas Auditions	Neil Patrick Harris & Joe Jonas (Guest Judges)	Jan. 26
Los Angeles Auditions	Katy Perry & Avril Lavigne (Guest Judges)	Jan. 27
Denver Auditions	Victoria Beckham (Guest Judge)	Feb. 2
Road to Hollywood Auditions	Ellen Degeneres  Debut	Feb. 3
Hollywood Round I		Feb. 9
Hollywood Round II		Feb. 10
Hollywood Round III		Feb. 16
Top 24 Announced		Feb. 17
Viewer	Voting	Begins
Top 12 Females Perform		Feb. 23
Top 12 Males Perform		Feb. 24
First Results Show	2 Girls and 2 Guys Eliminated	Feb. 25
Top 10 Females Perform		Mar. 2
Top 10 Males Perform		Mar. 3
Second Results Show	2 Girls and 2 Guys Eliminated	Mar. 4
Top 8 Females Perform		Mar. 9
Top 8 Males Perform		Mar. 10
Top 12 Revealed	2 Girls and 2 Guys Eliminated	Mar. 19