Top 20 ‘Idol’ Contestants of All Time – 11: Jordin Sparks

January

The bubbly Jordin Sparks can take pride in being the youngest ever to be crowned “American Idol” champ. She was just 17 when she upended Blake Lewis to claim the Season 6 title.

Despite a catchy, radio-friendly song—“Tattoo,” from her self-titled debut album—the weight of the “Idol” crown could be a lot to bear. The album sold only 110,000 units in its first week, the lowest number of any “Idol” champ.

So why is she ranked as high as No. 11?

For one, as “Idol” judges repeatedly reminded viewers (in nauseating fashion), Sparks is very young and has great vocal and marketing potential. Second, Sparks didn’t have the pure voice of Melinda Doolittle, but she did have a spark and style that “Idol” voters embraced week after week. Third, it’s a little tough to penalize Sparks only months after her crowning achievement in May. Also, she’s the daughter of a former New York Giant, Phillippi Sparks, so that’s always going to win extra points from this fan of Big Blue.

And hey, is Taylor Hicks or Ruben Studdard performing this week on Jay Leno and Jimmy Kimmel’s talk shows? Didn’t think so.

Also see:

– Top 20 ‘Idol’ Contestants of All Time – Epilogue
-No. 1: Kelly Clarkson
-No. 2: Carrie Underwood
-No. 3: Chris Daughtry
-No. 4: Jennifer Hudson
-No. 5: Sanjaya Malakar
-No. 6: William Hung
-No. 7: Clay Aiken
-No. 8: Fantasia Barrino
-No. 9: Blake Lewis
-No. 10: Tamyra Gray
-No. 12: Melinda Doolittle
-No. 13: Bo Bice
-No. 14: Elliott Yamin
-No. 15: Ruben Studdard
-No. 16: Katharine McPhee
-No. 17: Taylor Hicks
-No. 18: Diana DeGarmo
-No. 19: Frenchie Davis
-No. 20: Lisa Leuschner
-Top 20 intro and criteria/Honorable Mentions (Nos. 21-31)
(Photo courtesy of FOX.)

This entry was posted on Sunday, January 13th, 2008 at 11:15 am by Chris Serico.
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