Season 20 of “American Idol” concluded on May 23, 2022 on ABC with Noah Thompson taking the title. This Emmy-winning reality competition series began in 2002, For more than a decade, it was a ratings powerhouse for FOX with many of those winners enjoying some success. Scroll through the photo gallery above to see all the “American Idol” winners and find out where are they now.
The first-ever champ, Kelly Clarkson, has won three Grammys and turned her fame into a string of hit records as well as ongoing gigs as a judge on NBC’s’ “The Voice” and host of her own talk show. And season 4 winner Carrie Underwood has done even better, having sold upwards of records and won a shelf load of music awards.
However, many of the more recent music newcomers to be named “American Idol” have found that their time in the spotlight is fleeting. Let’s take a look back at the first 19 “American Idol” winners and see how many have been lucky so far and which have been jinxed.
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Season 1: Kelly Clarkson
Won: Sept. 4, 2002
Runner-up: Justin Guarini
Winning Song: “A Moment Like This”
Now: This three-time Grammy winner has released eight studio albums and is now a judge on NBC’s reality-competition series “The Voice.”
Season 2: Ruben Studdard
Won: May 21, 2003
Runner-up: Clay Aiken
Winning Song: “Flying Without Wings”
Now: He has released six studio albums, including his platinum-selling debut, “Soulful,” and the top-selling gospel follow-up, “I Need an Angel.”
Season 3: Fantasia Barrino
Won: May 26, 2004
Runner-up: Diana DeGarmo
Winning Song: “I Believe”
Now: This Grammy winner has released six studio albums and appeared on Broadway in “The Color Purple” and “After Midnight.”
Season 4: Carrie Underwood
Won: May 25, 2005
Runner-up: Bo Bice
Winning Song: “Inside Your Heaven”,
Now: The most successful winner by far, she has released six studio albums and won seven Grammy Awards, 8 CMA Awards, 10 Billboard Music Awards and 12 ACM Awards.
Season 5: Taylor Hicks
Won: May 24, 2006
Runner-up: Katharine McPhee
Winning Song: “Do I Make You Proud”
Now: He has released three studio albums, appeared on Broadway in “Grease” and had long-term residencies in Las Vegas.
Season 6: Jordin Sparks
Won: May 23, 2007
Runner-up: Blake Lewis
Winning Song: “This Is My Now”
Now: She has released three studio albums, been nominated for a Grammy, and acted in “Sparkle.”
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Season 7: David Cook
Won: May 21, 2008
Runner-up: David Archuleta
Winning Song: “The Time of My Life”
Now: He has released four studio albums and will make his Broadway debut this spring in the Tony-winning musical “Kinky Boots.”
Season 8: Kris Allen
Won: May 20, 2009
Runner-up: Adam Lambert
Winning Song: “No Boundaries”
Now: He has released five studio albums, is married to his high school sweetheart Katy O’Connell and is the father of two.
Season 9: Lee DeWyze
Won: May 26, 2010
Runner-up: Crystal Bowersox
Winning Song: “Beautiful Day”
Now: He has released six studio albums and tours extensively.
Season 10: Scotty McCreery
Won: May 25, 2011
Runner-up: Lauren Alaina
Winning Song: “I Love You This Big”
Now: He has released three studio albums and reached #1 on the country charts in 2018 with his first single in five years, “Five Minutes More.”
Season 11: Phillip Phillips
Won: May 23, 2012
Runner-up: Jessica Sanchez
Winning Song: “Home”
Now: He has released three studio albums, with the third, “Collateral,” spawning the recent hit “Miles.”
Season 12: Candice Glover
Won: May 16, 2013
Runner-up: Kree Harrison
Winning Song: “I Am Beautiful”
Now: Her solo studio album, “Music Speaks,” was delayed and released a year after her win to modest success.
SEE Everything to know about ‘American Idol’ Season 20
Season 13: Caleb Johnson
Won: May 21, 2014
Runner-up: Jena Irene
Winning Song: “As Long as You Love Me”
Now: His sole studio album, “Testify,” was released just weeks after his win. He has since gone the indie music route.
Season 14: Nick Fradiani
Won: May 13, 2015
Runner-up: Clark Beckham
Winning Song: “Beautiful Life”
Now: His sole studio album, “Hurricane,” was a sales disappointment. He released an EP, “Where We Left Off,” in the fall of 2017.
Season 15: Trent Harmon
Won: April 7, 2016
Runner-up: LaPorsha Renae
Winning Song: “Falling”
Now: After releasing another hit single, “There’s a Girl,” in 2016 he followed up with an album in 2018: “You Got Em All.”
Season 16: Maddie Poppe
Won: May 21, 2018
Runner-up: Caleb Lee Hutchinson
Winning Song: “Going Going Gone”
Now: She followed up this hit single with another, “”Keep On Movin’ On”,” and released her debut album, “Whirlwind,” on May 17, 2019.
Season 17: Laine Hardy
Won: May 19, 2019
Runner-up: Alejandro Aranda
Winning Song: “Flame”
Now: He followed up this hit single with a nationwide tour. He released two new songs, “Ground I Grew Up On” and “Let There Be Country”, in April 2020.
Season 18: Just Sam
Won: May 17, 2020
Runner-up: Arthur Gunn
Winning Song: “Rise Up”
Now: She recently release the single “Africando” to good reviews.
Season 19: Chayce Beckham
Won: May 23, 2021
Runner-up: Willie Spence
Winning Song: “Blackbird”
Now: He is on working on his first album.
