FOR THE FIRST TIME EVER, THE JUDGES BATTLE IT OUT ON SEASON NINE OF “MASTERCHEF,” PREMIERING WEDNESDAY, MAY 30, ON FOX

FOR THE FIRST TIME EVER, THE JUDGES BATTLE IT OUT ON SEASON NINE OF “MASTERCHEF,” PREMIERING WEDNESDAY, MAY 30, ON FOX

In a MASTERCHEF First,

The Judges Choose Their Favorite Home Cooks and

Mentor Them Throughout the Season

New Batch of Home Cooks Begin Their MASTERCHEF Journey,

Including a Bus Driver, Personal Grocery Shopper, Country Singer,

Pilot, Model, Firefighter, Dishwasher and Optometrist 

In a MASTERCHEF kitchen first, the judges will do battle when Season Nine of MASTERCHEF premieres Wednesday, May 30 (8:00-10:00 PM ET/PT) on FOX. For the first time ever, the judges – host and award-winning chef Gordon Ramsay, acclaimed chef Aarón Sánchez and renowned restaurateur Joe Bastianich – will choose their favorite home cooks and mentor them throughout the competition. Another all-new two-hour episode of MASTERCHEF airs Wednesday, June 6 (8:00-10:00 PM ET/PT). Then, the series makes its time period premiere on Wednesday, June 13 (8:00-9:00 PM ET/PT), followed by the series premiere of GORDON RAMSAY’S 24 HOURS TO HELL AND BACK (9:00-10:00 PM ET/PT).

In the season premiere, the nation’s best home cooks travel to Los Angeles to compete for a spot in the Top 24. That’s when twist kicks in: the judges each will have eight aprons to hand out to the home cooks whom they deem worthy – and they will then mentor those contestants throughout the competition. However, as in all prior seasons, only one home cook will claim the MASTERCHEF title and the $250,000 grand prize.

Hopefuls auditioned at MASTERCHEF’s open casting calls in Chicago, IL; Atlanta, GA; Raleigh, NC; Phoenix, AZ; New York, NY; Miami, FL; Houston, TX; Philadelphia, PA; Las Vegas, NV; Nashville, TN; and Los Angeles, CA to prove they have the culinary skills to be the next MASTERCHEF. Only one talented home cook will join MASTERCHEF winners Dino Luciano (Season Eight), Shaun O’Neale (Season Seven), Claudia Sandoval (Season Six), Courtney Lapresi (Season Five); Luca Manfe (Season Four); Christine Ha (Season Three), the first-ever blind contestant; Jennifer Behm (Season Two); and Whitney Miller (Season One) in the elite group of MASTERCHEF titleholders.

Below are the hometowns, names and professions of the Home Cooks who will participate in the MASTERCHEF Battle for a White Apron:

State/Hometown		Name		Profession
Alabama
Slapout		Jessica Meuse		Country Singer
Arizona
Peoria		Darrick Krause		Engineer
California
	Los Angeles		S.J.		College Student
			Sal Maida		Architect
	San Francisco		Imani Browning		Server
	Sylmar		Cynthia Smith-Allen Bey		Accounting Assistant
Cayman Islands
			Nik Stewart		Model
China
	Tianjin		Bowen Li		Pilot
Florida
Miami		Shanika Patterson		Event Promoter
		Sid Hoeltzell		Food Photographer
Opa-Locka		Ashley Mincey		Professional Grocery Shopper
Georgia
Atlanta		Camerron Dangerfield		Financial Analyst
Illinois
	Chicago		Farhan Momin		Dental Student
			Julia Danno		Sales Manager
Iowa
Iowa City			Matt Houck		Optometrist
	West Des Moines		Samantha Daily		College Student
Kentucky
	Louisville		Gerron Hurt		English Teacher
Louisiana
	Shreveport		Mark Myers Jr.		Firefighter
Maine
	Rockport		Mark Ingraham		Dishwasher
Maryland
	Laurel		Tye Hall Brown		Associate Professor
Massachusetts
	Orange		Lindsay Haigh		Trial Attorney
Michigan
	Grand Rapids		Alecia Winters		Daycare Owner
Nevada
	Las Vegas		Jannie Lam		Cocktail Server
New Jersey
	Cherry Hill		Stephanie Willis		Bartender
New York
	Brooklyn		Maya Rose Lederer		Personal Assistant
	Mamaroneck		Daniela Savone		ESL Teacher
	Westchester		Frank Tufano		Bartender
North Carolina
	Clayton		Hope McFarland		Health Care Administrator
	Four Oaks		Jody Rhodes		Hunting Guide
	Raleigh		Juni Cuevas		Disability Analyst
South Carolina
	Columbia		Olusola Ogbomo		Bus Driver
South Africa
	Butterworth		Markheavens Tshuma		Retail Manager
Tennessee
	Nashville		Mark Medlin		Business Owner
Texas
	Austin		Chera Lynn Little		Realtor
	Houston		Cesar Cano		High School Teacher
			Chelsea Sargent		Sales Specialist
			Ralph Xavier Degala		Senior Accountant
			Ryan Cortez Taylor Waltmon		Drummer Sales Training Director
	San Antonio		Jason Beauchamp		Business Owner
		Orlando Velasquez		Family & Criminal Law
Virginia
	Fairfax		Eric Clingan		Criminal Defense Attorney
Wisconsin
	Neenah		Emily Hallock		Food Research Analyst

MASTERCHEF is produced by Endemol Shine North America and One Potato Two Potato, and is based on a format created by Franc Roddam and Endemol Shine. Robin Ashbrook, Elisabeth Murdoch, Georgie Hurford-Jones, Gordon Ramsay, Danny Schrader, Yasmin Shackleton, Patricia Llewellyn and Ben Adler serve as executive producers. “Like” MASTERCHEF on Facebook at facebook.com/Masterchef/. Follow the series on Twitter @MasterChefonFOX and join the discussion with #MasterChef. See photos and videos on Instagram @MasterchefonFOX. Follow the judges on Twitter: Gordon Ramsay - @gordonramsay; Aarón Sánchez - @Chef_Aaron; Joe Bastianich - @JBastianich.

ABOUT ENDEMOL SHINE NORTH AMERICA

Endemol Shine North America delivers world-class content and compelling storytelling to multiple platforms in the U.S. and across the globe. Endemol Shine North America is part of Endemol Shine Group, the global content creator, producer and distributor with a diverse portfolio of companies that are behind some of the most prominent hit television formats and series in the world.

Its Endemol Shine Latino division oversees all Spanish and Portuguese-language operations across Latin America, including newly launched studio Endemol Shine Boomdog, which produces original content for both the U.S. Hispanic and Mexican markets. Subsidiary production companies include Authentic Entertainment, Truly Original and 51 Minds Entertainment.

Endemol Shine Group’s companies in North America are behind such hit series as “Big Brother” (CBS), “Ink Master” (Spike), “Kingdom” (AT&T Audience Network), MASTERCHEF (FOX), MASTERCHEF JUNIOR (FOX), “Swamp People” (History), “The Real Housewives of Atlanta” (Bravo), “T.I. & Tiny: The Family Hustle” (VH1), “Steve Austin’s Broken Skull Challenge” (CMT), “Page Six TV” (Syndicated), “Billion Dollar Buyer” (CNBC), “Fear Factor” (MTV), “Best.Cover.Ever.” (YouTube), “I’m Dying Up Here” (Showtime), “Trading Spaces” (TLC) and upcoming “Deal or No Deal” (CNBC) and “Utopia” (Amazon).

ABOUT STUDIO RAMSAY

The next-generation multi-media production company STUDIO RAMSAY has a joint venture with All3Media to develop and produce both unscripted and scripted television shows, creating new formats and innovative programming that includes a scripted arm focused on food-related themes, and development of new talent on a global front. The catalogue of programs that Gordon Ramsay has worked on historically with All3Media via One Potato Two Potato, together with new original content he’s currently developing, make for a unique and dynamic production and distribution partnership. Studio Ramsay’s first production, THE F WORD WITH GORDON RAMSAY, premiered live this past summer in the U.S. on FOX. Its first daytime cooking series, CULINARY GENIUS, premiered in the spring on ITV in the U.K. and was syndicated on FOX stations in the U.S. this summer, while his new documentary series, “Gordon on Cocaine,” for ITV, premiered this fall. Seasons Three and Four of “Matilda And The Ramsay Bunch,” starring Tilly Ramsay, for U.K. children's channel CBBC, are also produced by STUDIO RAMSAY. 

Renowned for highly successful and award-winning original programming, Emmy-nominated, multi-Michelin star chef Gordon Ramsay produces TV shows on both sides of the Atlantic seen by audiences worldwide, including his FOX shows, THE F WORD WITH GORDON RAMSAY, GORDON RAMSAY’S 24 HOURS TO HELL AND BACK, MASTERCHEF, MASTERCHEF JUNIOR, HELL’S KITCHEN and MASTERCHEF CELEBRITY SHOWDOWN, as well as Bravo’s “Best New Restaurant” and Food Network’s competition series “Food Court Wars.” In the U.K., he’s produced “Gordon Ramsay Behind Bars” and “Gordon Ramsay’s Great Escape” for Channel 4; food biography and nostalgia series “My Kitchen” for UKTV’s Good Food Channel; two instructional cookery series, “Ultimate Home Cooking” and “Ultimate Cookery Course” for Channel 4; and “Matilda And The Ramsay Bunch,” all under his One Potato Two Potato banner.