|
Related topics: Best American Idol Performances
|
|
Of the Top 10 Best American Idol Contestants,
Which do you think is #1? |
|
|
|
 |
The Top 10 Best American Idol Contestants
View rankings |
|
 |
|
Blake Lewis
Blake Lewis finished in 2nd place on the sixth season of American Idol. The judges had predicted Lewis' "front runner" status early in the competition. Lewis' beatboxing and scat singing skills had been featured occasionally throughout the competition, notably in the performances such as "You Give Love a Bad Name," which was "the biggest-selling download of the season", with 192,000 copies sold on iTunes.
|
|
 |
|
Clay Aiken
Clay Aiken, who finsihed 2nd on the second season of American Idol, is the most successful second-place finisher in that show's history. Although the judges at first deemed Aiken too nerdy for the show, Aiken finished close second to Studdard, who won the contest by 130,000 votes out of more than 24,000,000 votes cast. The result was controversial, as some hypothesized that Idol's voting system was incapable of handling the number of attempted calls. On October 14, 2003, Aiken released his first solo album, Measure of a Man, which debuted at #1 on the Billboard 200 and was, with 613,000 copies sold in its first week.
|
|
 |
|
Carrie Underwood
Carrie Underwood, the winner of Season 4 of American Idol, has since become a multi-platinum selling recording artist. Her debut album, Some Hearts, was certified 6x platinum and is the fastest selling debut country album in Nielsen SoundScan history. Underwood is the first American Idol winner to sweep up honors at all three major music awards in the same awards show season (06-07), including one American Music Award, five Billboard Music Awards, and two Grammy Awards (including Best New Artist). Her critically acclaimed debut album is the best selling album of any American Idol contestant in the U.S. to date.
|
|
 |
|
Tamyra Gray
Tamyra Gray finished 4th on the first season of American Idol. Her performance of the Burt Bacharach classic "A House Is Not a Home" was described by Judge Simon Cowell as "one of the best performances on television" that he had ever seen. After American Idol, Tamyra continued to pursue a career in the entertainment industry. She landed the recurring role of Aisha Clemens on Boston Public, appearing in seven episodes in 2003. She has had guest roles on episodes of Half and Half , Las Vegas, Tru Calling, What I Like About You and All Of Us. Tamyra also showed her producing capabilities by co-writing the American Idol season three single "I Believe", which was performed by Idol finalists Fantasia Barrino and Diana DeGarmo.
|
|
 |
|
Katharine McPhee
Katharine McPhee finished 2nd in the fifth season of American Idol. She was persuaded by now fiance, Nick Cokas, and parents to try out for American Idol. She auditioned in San Francisco, and sang "God Bless the Child", originally performed by Billie Holiday. Paula Abdul said that McPhee was "absolutely beautiful", Randy Jackson hailed her audition as potentially the best so far that season, and Simon Cowell complimented her for being "current" and her audition being "absolutely fantastic".
|
|
 |
|
Melinda Doolittle
Melinda Doolittle, who finsihed 3rd of Season 6 on American Idol, was a former back-up singer for, among others, Michael McDonald, Kirk Franklin, Aaron Neville, BeBe and CeCe Winans, Alabama, Jonny Lang, Vanessa Bell Armstrong, and Anointed. During her first broadcast performance, Doolittle was highly praised for her rendition of "Sweet Sweet Baby (Since You’ve Been Gone)", by Aretha Franklin. The following week, Doolittle pulled off another winning performance with the song "My Funny Valentine". According to the judges, it was "without question the best vocal of the night."
|
|
 |
|
Taylor Hicks
Taylor Hicks, known for his soultry voice, crazy dance moves, and grey hair, was the winner of Season 5 of American Idol. Upon winning the music competition, he was signed to Arista Records, under which his self-titled major label debut was released on December 12, 2006. His energetic stage performances and influences derived from classic soul, blues, and R&B music have earned him a following of devout fans, who are dubbed as the "Soul Patrol".
|
|
 |
|
Fantasia Barrino
Fantasia Barrino was the winner of Season 3 of American Idol. Barrino made an immediate impression on American Idol with her stylized, gospel-influenced sound, and her explosive stage presence. Her audition version of Tina Turner's "Proud Mary" made her an early favorite in the competition. Her standout performance was of the Porgy and Bess standard "Summertime" that left her in tears from "feeling the song". Her first album, Free Yourself, was a commercial success, earning her four Grammy nominations and selling over 2.1 million copies. Barrino was also named the number-one artist of the Adult Urban Contemporary format for 2005 according to the December 13, 2005 Billboard Magazine.
|
|
 |
|
Kelly Clarkson
Kelly Clarkson, from Fort Worth, TX was the season 1 winner, making her debut under RCA Records. She was originally marketed as a pop musician with her debut album Thankful (2003). With the release of her multi-platinum second album Breakaway (2004), Clarkson moved to a more pop rock-oriented style of music, and won two Grammy Awards. Clarkson's third album, entitled My December, was released on June 26, 2007. To date, Clarkson has sold 16 million albums worldwide.
|
|
 |
|
Chris Daughtry
Chris Daughtry, who finsihed 4th on the 5th season of American Idol, is now the lead vocalist of Daughtry, a band he formed in 2006. After his fallout from Idol, his band's self-titled debut album sold more than 1 million copies after just 5 weeks of release, becoming the fastest selling debut rock album of all time. In its ninth week of release, the album reached number one on the Billboard charts, edging out the Dreamgirls soundtrack. Daughtry is the fourth most successful American Idol contestant in history, behind Kelly Clarkson, Carrie Underwood, and Clay Aiken, as well as the most successful non-runner-up or winner.
|
|
|
|
Get in shape now! Check out Gym Reviews in the Bay Area
 |
American Idol Message Board
Post Comment
|
|
You must login to post a comment:
Login Create account
|
| 2008-12-17 21:20:13 Posted by sillyboys | Some people are doing a lot of voting on this poll. Is the winner going to get a prize of some kind?
| | | | |
| 2008-11-09 12:23:05 Posted by julienne | Comment
Clay Aiken is #1 Best Idol ever!! | | | | |
| 2008-11-03 20:27:48 Posted by susanna | Clay may have made me blink, but there is no doubt he is the best contestant AI will ever have. That voice is unmatched!
By the way, the Claymates are not "stuffing the ballot box." Anyone may vote again, and I don't blame them. He SHOULD win. He IS bes | | | | |
| 2008-10-31 21:25:10 Posted by NonnyL | Soucy: what claymates? I thought they all deserted Clay when he "came out", or when he had a baby, or whatever other reason bloggers came up with. Hmmm, guess maybe the guy still has some fans left after all! You Rock, Clay! Tour again soon, mm-kay? | | | | |
| 2008-10-30 17:18:53 Posted by YWT2004 | Geesh! Whever anyone else is ahead it's ok , but as soon as Clay is ahead something is wrong......could it be maybe he is ahead cus he is popular and one of the best artists to be part of AI !!
| | | | | | FIRST PREV ( Page 1 of 2 ) NEXT LAST |
|
News about American Idol
View all American Idol news |
|
Interview with Tony Cohen, CEO of FremantleMedia
Tony Cohen, head of the group that brought the American Idol concept to the US, talks to Kara Swisher about the importance of audience engagement.
American Idol 50s style: Frankie Avalon makes appearance
Frankie Avalon appeared on American Idol this week and many people are asking why.
The 'Mad World' of Adam Lambert
Adam Lambert's haunting rendition of the 1982 Tears for Fears hit, "Mad World," hit a high note with the American Idol judges. Here's why...
Who Lost on American Idol Tonight?
Scott MacIntyre lost on American Idol result show.
Adam Lambert's Mad World Brings Idol Fans -- and Simon -- to
If you are fan of American Idol showstopper Adam Lambert, there's good news and bad news.
Who will be the next 'American Idol'?
Last night on 'American Idol', Scott MacIntyre said his final good byes after the panel made the difficult decision to let him go. Who do you think will be season 8's 'American Idol'? I'm looking for your feedback!
|
|
|
