Kurt said Idols is an amazing platform for young artists, one he wishes was available when he was up-and-coming. “But I’m not sure how honest I’m going to get to be,” he smiled before the start of auditions.

This year, though, Durban auditions started off slowly and Kurt had to be brutally honest. 23-year-old rugby player Bevan Jordan chose a classic Frank Sinatra song, New York, New York, because he thought he had the same 'deep voice' as the legendary superstar. Unfortunately, though, Bevan could not even make it in Durban, let alone New York, New York.

But Durban also produced two Idols veterans, Philip du Plessis (22) and Prime Zulu (23), who made it through to Sun City last year but then, as Philip admitted, “choked on stage”. Theatre Week isn’t for sissies and Prime said he had learned his lesson and that this year he would "focus”. And it worked – both he and Philip walked out with coveted Golden Tickets and a second chance at Idols stardom.

20-year-old Josslyn Hlenti is another kind of veteran. The Newlands native was a finalist in M-Net’s High School Musical competition in 2007, but this time the stakes were even higher – “I’m doing this for my family, to improve our financial situation,” she explained, after having to drop out of university because of lack of funds.

But not everyone understood the competition as well as Josslyn. A contestant named Paige Garbutt shocked Kurt speechless when she suddenly started taking her clothes off in her audition, and Unathi guffawed when she explained that her friends advised her she would do better if she displayed “a range”. “A vocal range!” Unathi sputtered...

And the drama didn’t stop there… Gareth literally had to risk his life when he lost a bet with Randall. Gareth confidently predicted that he could foretell exactly how the judges would rate 21-year-old contestant Melissa Allison. If he was wrong, he said, he would “jump off the roof”. So next thing, there was Gareth at the top of the world’s only stadium bungee swing – the largest swing of any kind, anywhere. “Randall is a horrible person,” Gareth grumbled before plunging out into a blood-curdling 220-metre arc under the Moses Mabhida Stadium’s iconic arch.

There was even more drama when 27-year-old Zandrie van Onselen walked into the audition room and told Kurt Darren straight-up that she doesn’t appreciate his music. “I’m very honest – it just doesn’t have the punch that English songs have,” she lectured.

“Is there any advice you could give me?” the best-selling artist in South Africa asked humbly.

But then she sang…

“I was a little worried for my career there for a second,” an amused Kurt admitted later, but Unathi’s silent tears of mirth over Zandrie’s rendition of The Power Of Love reassured him that he was probably still on the right path!

In the end Durban dominated the Season 7 auditions so far with an impressive 30 Golden Tickets handed out in just one day! But there is still Gauteng to come, and next week sees another historic Idols moment with the first-ever contestants from Soweto auditioning for the notorious panel.

As with previous seasons, fans will be able to catch 24-hour Idols action this season on the Idols Extra Channel 199 on DStv, with full coverage of every audition from across the country, as well as exclusive contestant interviews. 24/7 Idols coverage from Durban starts on channel 199 starts at 19:00 this Sunday, 19 June, immediately after the broadcast of episode three on M-Net and Mzanzi Magic at 17:30.

Get all the lowdown on Idols Season 7 on the official Idols Facebook page at Idols South Africa, on Twitter @IdolsSA and on the official Idols Season 7 website at www.mnet.co.za/idols