American Idol Jordin Sparks

In the summer of 2006, Sparks auditioned twice for the sixth season of American Idol: once in Los Angeles (only auditioned for producers) and again in Seattle after winning Arizona Idol, a talent competition conducted by Phoenix Fox station KSAZ-TV. 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." 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]." 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. 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. 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 five times. She performed twice 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. The following year, Sparks took part in a tribute to Simon Cowell with other former contestants at the Season 9 finale on May 26, 2010. Most recently, during Season 10, Sparks performed her new song "I Am Woman" on the Top 4 results show.