How Well Do You Know American Idol's White Guys With Guitars?

From David Cook to Nick Fradiani and everyone in between, test your WGWG knowledge

By Jean Bentley Mar 11, 2016 10:08 PMTags
Ranking American Idol winners, Phillip PhillipsMichael Becker/FOX

If you've been watching American Idol's farewell season, you've seen in action the phenomenon that's plagued Idol since season 7, when the contestants were first allowed to play their own instruments.

That would be the White Guy With Guitar, commonly abbreviated to "WGWG." This season has two: bespectacled Voice veteran MacKenzie Bourg, and, to a lesser degree, soul singer Trent Harmon. (Pictured above, the perfect WGWG prototype: Phillip Phillips.)

A WGWG is pretty self-explanatory: one of Idol's many white dudes, prone to playing an acoustic guitar and making teen girls swoon. The guitar can be electric too, but it's most commonly found in the acoustic form. A WGWG can come from any musical genre, but is at its peak when seen in the indie singer-songwriter form.

Now, the ultimate test: Any Idol fan could name the guitar-playing guys who have competed on the show. But can you tell them all apart? Spoiler alert: It's pretty much impossible. Seriously, we can give you all the answers and you STILL won't get it.

Here's a list of the 16 WGWGs we included: David Cook, Jason Castro, Kris Allen, Lee DeWyze, Casey James, Scotty McCreery, Paul McDonald, Phillip Phillips, Alex Preston, Sam Woolf, Dexter Roberts, Ben Briley, Nick Fradiani, Daniel Seavey, MacKenzie Bourg, Trent Harmon.

How many can you match? And sure, you could scroll down to the bottom and look, but that wouldn't be very much fun, would it?

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3. Okay, this one's kind of a freebie.

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And now, the answer key. You can see each dude in action in the photo grid below.

1. Nick Fradiani, season 14 winner (second row, far right)

2. Ben Briley, season 13 (bottom row, second from right)

3. Jason Castro, season 7 (bottom row, first one on the left)

4. MacKenzie Bourg, season 15 (top left)

5. Scotty McCreery, season 10 winner (second row, second from left)

6. Daniel Seavey, season 14 (bottom row, far right)

7. Casey James, season 9 (third row, far right)

8. Dexter Roberts, season 13 (bottom row, second from left)

9. Paul McDonald, season 10 (third row, far left)

10. Lee DeWyze, season 9 winner (second row, far left)

11. Trent Harmon, season 15 (top row, second from left)

12. Phillip Phillips, season 11 winner (second row, second from right)

13. Kris Allen, season 8 winner (top row, far right)

14. Alex Preston, season 13 (third row, second from left)

15. David Cook, season 7 winner (top row, second from right)

16. Sam Woolf, season 13 (third row, second from right)

American Idol airs Thursdays at 8 p.m. on Fox, and will conclude its 15th season on April 7.

Watch: Simon Cowell Sounds Off on End of "American Idol"