American Idol Creates Entertainment Careers, Even For The Losers

American Idol Creates Entertainment Careers, Even For The Losers
Copyright (c) 2007 Trent Lampe
American Idol Unauthorized
http://www.idolunau thorized. com

At this year's Oscars, Jennifer Hudson won the
supporting-actress Academy Award for her role on Dreamgirls.
Nobody could have ever projected this sort of success for last
year's American Idol finalist. But this story only adds to the
long and illustrious careers that have been created by American
Idol.

There is clearly no bigger example that America Idol can lead a
contestant to an entertainment career than Jennifer Hudson. The
Idol loser went from an unknown talent, to a household name in a
matter of a year. Much of her success can be attributed to her
appearance on American Idol. The show exposed her to millions,
and undoubtedly helped launch her into stardom.

Clearly, Hudson is destined to become a showbiz star, and it all
started when she was prematurely voted off American Idol while
less talented contestants remained. In a way, her being booted
off outraged the audience so much, that we all wanted to see her
succeed.

But up until her appearance on Idol, Jennifer Hudson, 24, didn't
have anyone who took notice of her amazing voice. It was not
until American Idol that America became aware of her immense
potential.

That same potential led to a starring role in DreamWorks' movie
version of the '80s Broadway musical Dreamgirls, in which she
can now add the title of Oscar winner.

In-fact, American Idol even had an influence in the auditions for
Dreamgirls. Among the hopefuls who tried out was Fantasia
Barrino, last year's Idol winner who too has become a bona fied
star in her own right. The list of American Idol contestants who
became instant stars goes on and on.

Prior to becoming the first American Idol winner, Kelly Clarkson
too was struggling to be heard, working as a cocktail waitress at
a comedy club in Arlington, Texas. But thanks to American Idol,
Her first single, "A Moment Like This", released October 2002
made history when it jumped straight from No. 52 to No. 1 on the
Billboard Charts. The jump surpassed the jump that the Beatles'
"Can't Buy Me Love" made when it jumped from No.27 to No.1.

On season two of American Idol, runner-up Clay Aiken had immense
success while season winner Ruben Studdard's career saw minimal
triumph. Ruben's debut album was released several weeks after
Clay's, both on the American Idol label, and despite hitting #1
sold about 200,000 less than the runner ups disk in its first
week.

On season three of American Idol even a non-contestant had a
career created thanks to an appearance on the audition rounds of
American Idol. Deemed the worst audition of the season, William
Hung's oddly convulsive dancing and atonal singing got a huge
buzz, helping Hung to enjoy a notable career parodying himself.

Season three winner Fantasia Barrino, also gained pop-star status
and is enjoying musical success. For Fantasia, The victory
brought Barrino ongoing fame. She went on a concert tour opening
for hip hop superstar Kanye West. She was even able to buy her
mother a $500,000 house. Fantasia is approaching the double
platinum mark with her debut album "Free Yourself" and American
Idol 2 runner-up Clay Aiken's Christmas album, "Merry Christmas
with Love" recently soared past the million-unit mark.

"Some Hearts," the debut album by American Idol 4 winner Carrie
Underwood, rose from Number 5 to Number 2 on the chart with more
than 271,000 units sold for the week. "Some Hearts" was certified
platinum, with over one million albums sold, within just five
weeks of its November 15, 2005 release.

American Idol 4 finalist Bo Bice's debut album, "The Real Thing"
entered the chart this week at Number 4, with more than 226,000
albums sold. In addition, Bice's hit single "Inside Your
Heaven/Vehicle" was number three on the Billboard Singles
Chart.

Even on a smaller scale, the American Idol influence continues.
Robyn Troup who was shown the door on season five of American
Idol, was selected by fans on an Internet-generated contest to
perform live with Justin Timberlake at the 49th annual Grammy's.
Troup clearly generated enough of a fan base from her American
Idol appearance that helped in getting plenty of votes.

Bucky Covington recently became the eighth contestant from the
fifth season of American Idol to ink a recording contract, as the
29-year-old recently signed a deal with Nashville's Lyric Street
Records.

American Idol truly takes aspiring talents and gives them a
platform where they could be heard. Even if they are voted off
the show, many contestants receive more exposure than they would
have from any other show or activity.

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Trent Lampe writes about entertainment and its impact on the
world. Hands down, American Idol has been one of the most
profitable and influential shows on television. Some pundits
and commentators reflect that American Idol is bringing out
the worst America has to offer, while others say that it
reflects the best of America. Who is right? American Idol
Unauthorized is an uncensored view into the world of
American Idol behind the cameras. Is American Idol
good clean fun, or just dirty,backroom politics?
You be the judge. Buy the DVD today:
http://www.idolunau thorized. com and
discover the truth for yourself.