Winners: Some hits, mostly misses

April 5, 2016 at 1:57 a.m.

by Michael Storey

Thousands of American Idol hopefuls lined up to audition in Little Rock in August 2015. The series ends its long run Thursday.
Thousands of American Idol hopefuls lined up to audition in Little Rock in August 2015. The series ends its long run Thursday.

American Idol debuted June 11, 2002, based on the British hit, Pop Idol, created by Simon Fuller. It was in TV's top two shows between 2004 and 2012, and at its peak boasted more than 30 million viewers.

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• 15: Number of seasons.

• 13: Grammys won by alumni. See below for winners' Grammys. Among nonwinners, Jennifer Hudson won a Grammy in 2009, and Mandisa won in 2014.

• 178: Number of finalists.

• 556: Number of episodes.

• 121: Number of auditions held, including Little Rock in August 2015. Most visited city was San Francisco (eight).

• 11: Number of judges. They were Randy Jackson, Paula Abdul, Simon Cowell, Kara DioGuardi, Ellen DeGeneres, Jennifer Lopez. Steven Tyler, Mariah Carey, Nicki Minaj, Keith Urban and Harry Connick Jr.

• 1 million plus: Number of auditioners.

• 7 billion: Number of votes cast.

• 14: Winners. No. 15 is to be crowned Thursday. Here they are in season order:

  1. Kelly Clarkson. The winner of three Grammys has put out seven studio albums.
  2. Ruben Studdard. Has six studio albums and was a participant on Season 15 of NBC's The Biggest Loser (he was eliminated twice).
  3. Fantasia Barrino. Starred in a Lifetime movie about herself, appeared on Broadway, and won a Grammy in 2011.
  4. Carrie Underwood. The seven-time Grammy winner is Idol's most successful graduate. She has sold the most albums (20 million) and the most records (58 million) and is already a member of the Grand Ole Opry.
  5. Taylor Hicks. He is a regular in Las Vegas and co-owns an Alabama barbecue restaurant.
  6. Jordin Sparks. Has three studio albums and had the title role in Whitney Houston's final film, Sparkle.
  7. David Cook. He has put out three albums and moved to Nashville, Tenn., since Idol.
  8. Kris Allen. See main story.
  9. Lee DeWyze. A couple of albums haven't made much of a splash.
  10. Scotty McCreery. Became a country star while still going to college. The 22-year-old has sold more than 2.5 million albums and has three platinum singles.
  11. Phillip Phillips. He has released two studio albums and filed a lawsuit against his label, calling his contract "oppressive."
  12. Candice Glover. Her debut album was a bust, but she keeps busy performing at corporate and professional sporting events.
  13. Caleb Johnson. He rushed his debut album to market, then parted ways with his label nine months later.
  14. Nick Fradiani. His debut single, "Beautiful Life," fizzled and his debut album has yet to come out.

-- Michael Storey

Style on 04/05/2016

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