| Clue | Source | Date |
|---|---|---|
| Hopeful people | ||
| Hopefuls | Eugene Sheffer | 06 Feb 2024 |
| Poseurs | New York Times | 10 Mar 2023 |
| Poseurs | New York Times | 20 Nov 2022 |
| Hopeful bunch | Newsday | 29 Oct 2022 |
| People whose aspirations have obvious inspirations | USA Today | 06 Jan 2022 |
| Hopefuls | Eugene Sheffer | 11 Oct 2019 |
| Pretenders | New York Times | 01 Dec 2017 |
| Pretenders | ||
| Hopefuls | USA Today | 31 Mar 2016 |
| Pretenders | ||
| Emulators | ||
| Hopefuls | ||
| Hopefuls | ||
| Nearly all "American Idol" auditioners | ||
| They've got aspirations | ||
| Wish-they-were-famous types |