Washington ? It’s not clear if President Bush has ever actually watched “American Idol,” but the TV show’s finalists got to hang out with him Friday at the White House.

They received a group photo and a tour from the president. He received a harmonica engraved with “American Idol 2006.”

The 10 finalists visited the Oval Office to see Bush between his meeting with British Prime Minister Tony Blair and another photo session with top high school students in the nation.

The president gave the performers a quick tour of the Oval Office and talked about his job. Bush posed for a group photo in front of his desk and then individual photos with each finalist. He urged them to stick to their beliefs, even if their celebrity status grows.

It’s the first time “American Idol” stars – or those from any reality TV show – have earned a White House meeting.

Taylor Hicks, of Birmingham, Ala., the most recent winner on the show, also gave Bush a black T-shirt emblazoned with “Soul Patrol” – the name of Hicks’ fan club. Hicks has a personal connection inside the White House: Susan Whitson, Laura Bush’s press secretary, taught him ninth-grade English at Hoover High School in Birmingham. Whitson suggested the meeting around the time of the “American Idol” season finale. The group performed Friday night in Washington.

President Bush, center, poses with nine of the top 10 American Idol finalists Friday in the Oval Office at the White House in Washington. Back row from left: Ace Young, Taylor Hicks, Katharine McPhee and Bucky Covington. Front row from left: Kellie Pickler, Paris Bennett, Lisa Tucker, Mandisa Hundley and Chris Daughtry.

Besides Hicks, the finalists from last season who met with Bush were Katharine McPhee, of Los Angeles; Chris Daughtry, of McLeansville, N.C.; Paris Bennett, of Fayetteville, Ga.; Kellie Pickler, of Albemarle, N.C.; Ace Young, of Denver; Bucky Covington, of Rockingham, N.C.; Mandisa Hundley, of Antioch, Tenn.; Lisa Tucker, of Anaheim, Calif.; and Elliott Yamin, of Richmond, Va., who arrived a bit late for the meeting.

Their tour and photo opportunity with Bush – with still cameras only, no reporters allowed – came during their one-day visit to Washington for their “American Idols Live” tour.

It’s unclear how familiar Bush is with their talents. When asked whether he had ever seen the show, the White House responded that he was “aware” of it.

Last fall, the conservative Parents Television Council rated “American Idol” as one of the three most family friendly shows on TV. The group’s top-rated program was “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition,” the reality show on which Laura Bush appeared last year from Biloxi, Miss., to highlight the plight of Hurricane Katrina victims.

“It’s pretty safe cultural territory for the president,” Robert Thompson, a professor of TV and popular culture at Syracuse University in New York, said of “American Idol.” “There are times I feel like I’m watching an old ‘Andy Hardy’ show when I watch (it).”