Jordin Sparks

FashionDream · March 20, 2011

Jordin Sparks

Jordin Brianna Sparks (born December 22, 1989)[1] is an American pop / R&B singer, songwriter, model and actress from Glendale, Arizona, who rose to fame as the winner of the sixth season of American Idol. Sparks won when she was 17 years old, making her the youngest winner in Idol history. She followed her American Idol victory with the release of her self-titled debut album in 2007, which has gone platinum in the U.S. and has sold around 2 million copies worldwide. Sparks' single, "No Air" is the highest selling single by any American Idol contestant, selling about 4 million digital copies worldwide.[2] Due to the success of her debut album and its four top 20 singles, she has received numerous awards and nominations including an American Music Award in 2008 and her first Grammy nomination in 2009.

Sparks' second album Battlefield was released in July 2009 worldwide and debuted at #7 in the U.S., three spots higher than her first album. The album's lead single, also titled "Battlefield", peaked in the top 10 on the Billboard Hot 100, making it her third top 10 single and fifth consecutive top 20 single. Sparks is the only Idol contestant to have their first five singles reach the top 20 on the Billboard Hot 100. "Battlefield" has sold almost 2 million copies worldwide. Sparks has sold over 9 million singles worldwide to date, making her one of the most successful idol winners. Battlefield's second single, "S.O.S. (Let the Music Play)", was her first song to top the U.S. Billboard Hot Dance Club Play making it her first U.S. number one single.[3] Sparks followed her success in 2010 by making her debut on Broadway. Sparks starred as Nina Rosario in the Tony Award winning broadway musical, In The Heights.

American Idol

In the summer of 2006, Sparks auditioned twice for the sixth season of American Idol: once in Los Angeles, California (only auditioned for producers) and again in Seattle, Washington after winning KSAZ Fox 10's Arizona Idol. The Seattle audition is the one seen in the January 17, 2007 broadcast of American Idol, in which she earned a "gold ticket" and the right to appear in the Hollywood Round. American Idol judge Randy Jackson made the offhand prediction that, "Curly hair will win this year."[7] While on the show, Sparks gained a loyal fan base known as "Sparkplugs". On May 23, 2007, Sparks was crowned the winner of the sixth season of American Idol. She remains the youngest winner in American Idol history. Cowell said, "Jordin was the most improved over the whole season – didn't start the best, but midway through this was the girl who suddenly got momentum." He included that "Young girl, likeable, and the singer won over the entertainer [Lewis]."[8]

Four selected songs Sparks had performed on American Idol, including the season's coronation song, "This Is My Now", were made available on her self-titled EP, released on May 22, 2007, the day before the grand finale.[9] The coronation song, "This Is My Now" peaked at number fifteen on the Billboard Hot 100, becoming Sparks' first top fifteen hit on the chart.[10] The following summer, Sparks took part in the American Idols LIVE! Tour 2007 from July 6 to September 23, 2007 along with other contestants in the top ten.

Since her win in 2007, Sparks has returned to Idol four times. She twice performed on the seventh season of American Idol, once on the Idol Gives Back results show singing "No Air" with Chris Brown and again with "One Step at a Time" on May 21, 2008 for the finale. She performed "Battlefield" on the May 13, 2009 episode of American Idol. Most recently, she performed in a tribute to Simon Cowell with other former contestants at the Season 9 finale on May 26, 2010.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jordin_Sparks