We love American Idol, but not because we like hearing offbeat covers of Top 40 classics. If nothing else, when the audition episodes start airing in mid-January, we suddenly see the light at the end of the winter tunnel, knowing that by the time the confetti is falling around the next media-generated pop star, it will be summer!

Chicago has a local, and more fabulous, version of our road-to-summer soundtrack. The Windy City Gay Idol competition is in full swing, searching for the best amateur singer in the LGBT community for the 6th year in a row. Every Wednesday a different bar plays host, and the audience chooses their top two favorite performers of the night to move on and possibly compete in the finals in June.

Prizes for the winner are pretty extensive, including cash, airline tickets and hotel stays, among other things. There’s incentive to become an avid fan too, considering following the competition would lead you on a tour of gay and lesbian bars all over the city. This week’s stop is Club Krave in Blue Island, but if that’s too far for city dwellers, the show will be back in Boystown next week at Scarlet on Halsted.

Here's your source for more information on how to enter and where it's going down.