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==Life and career==
==Life and career==
===Early life===
===Early life===
Sparks was born in [[Phoenix, Arizona]], to a white mother Jodi Wiedmann<ref name="island_born" /> and [[Phillippi Sparks]], a black former [[American football|football]] player for the [[New York Giants]] and [[Dallas Cowboys]] who at the time was playing in college for the [[Arizona State Sun Devils]]. She has a younger brother PJ (Phillippi Sparks, Jr). She lived briefly in [[Ridgewood, New Jersey]], and attended Orchard school. Sparks attended [[Sandra Day O'Connor]] High School until 2006, then she was [[homeschool]]ed to better concentrate on her singing.<ref>http://phoenix.about.com/od/actors/a/jordinsparks.htm</ref>
Sparks was born in [[Phoenix, Arizona]], to a Jodi Wiedmann<ref name="island_born" /> and [[Phillippi Sparks]], a former [[American football|football]] player for the [[New York Giants]] and [[Dallas Cowboys]] who at the time was playing in college for the [[Arizona State Sun Devils]]. She has a younger brother PJ (Phillippi Sparks, Jr). She lived briefly in [[Ridgewood, New Jersey]], and attended Orchard school. Sparks attended [[Sandra Day O'Connor]] High School until 2006, then she was [[homeschool]]ed to better concentrate on her singing.<ref>http://phoenix.about.com/od/actors/a/jordinsparks.htm</ref>


===Religious faith===
===Religious faith===

Revision as of 23:21, 3 February 2008

Jordin Sparks

Jordin Brianna Sparks (born December 22, 1989)[1] is an American pop singer. On May 23, 2007, she was declared the winner of the sixth season of the reality television show American Idol. Sparks won at the age of 17, making her the youngest winner in American Idol history.

Life and career

Early life

Sparks was born in Phoenix, Arizona, to a Jodi Wiedmann[1] and Phillippi Sparks, a former football player for the New York Giants and Dallas Cowboys who at the time was playing in college for the Arizona State Sun Devils. She has a younger brother PJ (Phillippi Sparks, Jr). She lived briefly in Ridgewood, New Jersey, and attended Orchard school. Sparks attended Sandra Day O'Connor High School until 2006, then she was homeschooled to better concentrate on her singing.[2]

Religious faith

Sparks is a committed Christian and attends Calvary Community Church in Phoenix, Arizona. On her American Idol biography, she thanks her parents and God for her win.[3] She also appeared on the cover of World, An Evangelical Christian news magazine. She endorsed Michelle Buckman's Christian novels for teens: Maggie Come Lately and My Beautiful Disaster.[4] On her MySpace page, she displayed a picture of herself posing next to a sign that read "Stop Abortion Now." This has sparked some controversy, especially among liberals.[5]

Before-Idol

Sparks finished second overall in 2004 at the Music in the Rockies national competition for aspiring Contemporary Christian Music artists, and won the talent portion of the event.[6] In 2004, Sparks appeared in America's Most Talented Kids twice, winning in her first appearance. She was one of seven to appear in a special championship edition of the show. This appearance followed two noted auditions in 2003, one with American Juniors and the other, Star Search. Sparks has performed the national anthem at various sporting events, notably for the Phoenix Suns, the Arizona Cardinals, and the Arizona Diamondbacks. She has also sung in such events as Country Thunder, a country music venue. She has appeared with Alice Cooper (in his 2004 Christmas show) and has twice toured with Grammy-winning Christian contemporary singer Michael W. Smith. Smith has shown support of Sparks by encouraging Idol viewers to vote for her on his website.[7][8] In 2003, at the age of thirteen, Sparks recorded a five-song album which is titled For Now, working with Matthew Ward, a legendary Christian music artist, and Gary Leach, an engineer who has worked on several of Leann Rimes' albums. She appeared in a compilation album titled Live at Mr. Lucky's in 2004. As an actress, Sparks has appeared in several plays, recently starring in a dual role as characters Deborah and Bea in Magdalene at the Plumbline Theater in Franklin, Tennessee. She's also performed several times with Vaudeville Youth Theatre Company and Valley Youth Theatre in Phoenix. Her first appearance was in March 2002 as an Emerald City dancer and as a poppy in The Wiz. She also appeared in Viet's production of Cinderella in June 2002 and another production of The Wiz in August 2002.[9]

Sparks appeared on the January 17, 2007 broadcast of American Idol, earning 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,"[10] which he admitted was Sparks. Before going on to American Idol, she had won Arizona Idol. In 2006, Sparks was one of two winners who won the Phoenix Torrid search for the "Next Plus Size Model." She was flown to California where she was used in a number of Torrid ads and promotional pieces.[11] A full-page ad for Torrid featuring Sparks ran in the December 2006 issue of Seventeen magazine.

American Idol

Audition

Sparks first auditioned in Los Angeles, California. She was not invited to Hollywood. She returned home to compete in the Fox affiliate-sponsored Arizona Idol, which she won. The winner of Arizona Idol was guaranteed an audition with the producers of American Idol at the Seattle, Washington auditions.[12] Sparks was featured in the audition episode that aired on January 17, 2007. She sang "Because You Loved Me" by Celine Dion. The judges were overall impressed with her vocals, though Simon criticized her for "being too cute", but Sparks was sent on to the Hollywood rounds of the show.[13]

Week # Song Choice Original Artist Result
Top 24 "Give Me One Reason" Tracy Chapman Safe
Top 20 "Reflection" Christina Aguilera Safe
Top 16 "Heartbreaker" Pat Benatar Safe
Top 12 "If We Hold On Together"
from "The Land Before Time" 		Diana Ross Safe
Top 11 "I (Who Have Nothing)" Tom Jones/Shirley Bassey Safe
Top 10 "Hey Baby" No Doubt Safe
Top 9 "On a Clear Day" Tony Bennett Safe
Top 3
Top 8 "Rhythm Is Gonna Get You" Gloria Estefan Safe
Top 7 "A Broken Wing" Martina McBride Safe
Top 6 "You'll Never Walk Alone" Rodgers and Hammerstein Safe
Non-Elimination Week
Top 6 "Livin' on a Prayer" Bon Jovi Safe
Top 4 "To Love Somebody"
"Woman in Love" 		Bee Gees
Barbra Streisand / Bee Gees 		Safe
Top 3 "Wishing On A Star"
"She Works Hard for the Money"
"I (Who Have Nothing)" (Encore) 		Rose Royce
Donna Summer
Shirley Bassey 		Safe
Finale "Fighter"
"A Broken Wing" (Encore)
"This Is My Now" 		Christina Aguilera
Martina McBride
Jordin Sparks 		Winner


Semi-finals/Finals notes

Sparks was never in danger of elimination. Sparks is the fourth contestant to have won without ever being in the bottom 2 or 3, joining Kelly Clarkson, Carrie Underwood, and Taylor Hicks. (Season 2 winner Ruben Studdard was in the bottom 2 once, and season 3 winner Fantasia Barrino landed in there twice).[14]

Weight controversy

MeMe Roth, of the National Action Against Obesity group in the U.S., said of Sparks, "When I look at Jordin I see diabetes, I see heart disease, I see high cholesterol. That's what's so sad about this - she is not the vision of health - she is the vision of 'unhealth'. Her extra weight is a reflection of today's society and a culture where many of our children have compromised health due to unhealthful food choices and inactivity ... We have to stop with the 'baby fat,' 'curvy,' 'goddess' euphemisms and own this child health crisis."[15]

As a result of these and other statements, Roth has been the victim of hate-mail and death threats. However, criticism notwithstanding, Roth continues to stand by her statements.[16]

Post-Idol

Sparks' songs from the American Idol have been on sale at the iTunes Store and the American Idol official website as Jordin Sparks - EP (called a "bundle" on Idol official website) shortly after the finale of Idol, along with other songs that did not make the EP's cut that are being sold as individual singles. According to SoundScan figures posted in USA Today, Blake Lewis sold more digital singles than Sparks, but her mini album sold more than Lewis'.[17]

After the finale of Idol, Sparks has made several appearances on television shows. She performed the finale song, "This Is My Now"on The Morning Show with Mike and Juliet, The Today Show, Live with Regis and Kelly, The Early Show and The View. Sparks had also appeared on Total Request Live, The Morning Show with Mike and Juliet with the runner-up of Idol, Blake Lewis, Larry King Live with contestants who made into the top ten of American Idol.[18][19] and 106 & Park. On July 4, 2007, Sparks performed "God Bless America" and "America the Beautiful" on Macy's Fourth of July Fireworks Spectacular with Lewis and Melinda Doolittle.[20][21]

Along with television and radio appearances,Sparks has been on the cover of Entertainment Weekly and World and featured in VIBE, TV Guide, Glamour and other publications.

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. She revealed in an AOL interview that the concert will be more group collaborations and duets as well as bringing along her acoustic guitar.[22]

Jordin sang the National Anthem at the Super Bowl XLII[23] as well as performed for Diana Ross for the 30th Annual Kennedy Center Honors. She performed on New Years Eve Live on FOX alongside Blake Lewis.[24]

2007-present: Jordin Sparks

Main article: Jordin Sparks (album)

Template:Sound sample box align left Template:Multi-listen start Template:Multi-listen item Template:Multi-listen end Template:Sample box end On August 17, 2007, it was announced Sparks had signed to 19 Recordings/Jive Records/Zomba Label Group, becoming the first Idol winner to join the label group — all past Idol winners and runners-up have signed with the RCA Label Group’s J (Fantasia, Ruben Studdard), Arista (Carrie Underwood, Taylor Hicks) or RCA (Kelly Clarkson, Chris Daughtry, Clay Aiken, Katharine McPhee) labels. Sparks has stated that she recorded some songs for the album but the bulk of the recording would be done in Los Angeles after the tour is over.[25] She said the album would be "Top 40, radio-friendly, uplifting stuff" hopefully mixing "the pop rock sound of inaugural Idol Kelly Clarkson with the R&B edge of Beyonce".[26][22] Her debut album came out on November 20 and November 27, 2007. On The Morning Show with Mike and Juliet, it was mentioned that the album had gone gold.

The album came out to generally favorable reviews. Some critics felt Sparks' vocals were not suited for modern pop music while others thought the album's atypical American Idol material helped Jordin to find a secure future in today's ever-changing music landscape.[27]

Along with the label announcement, the first single was revealed to be "Tattoo", which was released to U.S. radio on August 27, 2007.[28] The song became the album's first top ten single. The next single is slated to be "No Air" a duet with Chris Brown,[29] but Jordin's official website is polling fans to decided whether "No Air", "Freeze", "One Step at a Time," or "Shy Boy" should be the next single.

Discography

Jordin Sparks discography
Studio albums1
Music videos1
Singles3
EPs2
Collaborations1
Tours1

The following article is a complete discography of every album and single released by American pop/R&B music artist Jordin Sparks.

Albums

Statistics Singles
Jordin Sparks[30]
  • "This Is My Now"
  • "Tattoo"
  • "No Air"

Singles

Year Title Chart positions[31][32] Album
U.S. Hot 100 U.S. Pop 100 U.S. Hot AC CAN Hot 100 ARC UWC
2007 "This Is My Now" 15 13 - 66 38 - Jordin Sparks
"Tattoo" 8 6 14 5 4 14
2008 "No Air" (featuring Chris Brown) 51 28 TBA 61 30 TBA

EPs

Album information
For Now
Jordin Sparks - EP

Soundtracks

Unreleased songs

Before appearing on Idol, on Sparks' old website, new songs were released on it. The first three were co-written with Gary Leach. However, none of these songs were added to Sparks' debut album.

  • "The Inside"
  • "When The Pain Goes Away"
  • "Just Me"
  • "Crazy"
  • "Give Me One Reason"
  • "Reflection"
  • "Overcome"

Accomplishments

Honors

  • Coca Cola Rising Star 2002
  • Family Night Talent Show Five-time 1st Place Finals Winner at Mr. Lucky's in Glendale, Arizona, 2003
  • Glendale Youth Fest 2003: Teen Talent Show, 1st Place
  • GMA (Gospel Music Association) Academy, Washington, D.C., Overall Spotlight Winner & Country/Southern Gospel First Place Winner, 2004
  • Country Thunder Young Guns Second Place Winner, 2004
  • The Proof Is In The Pudding Talent Winner, Phoenix, Arizona, 2004
  • NBC/PAX America's Most Talented Kids, 2005
  • Colgate Country Showdown, Arizona state title, 2006.
  • Runner-up in the 2007 Drug Free AZ Superstar Search, Tempe, Arizona[33]
  • Plus-size model search winner for Torrid[11]
  • Winner of KSAZ Fox 10's "Arizona Idol" contest, giving her a guaranteed chance to audition in front of the judges.
  • American Idol Winner, May 2007

Awards

Year Award/Nomination
2007 Teen Choice Awards nomination for Choice Female Reality/Variety Star
2008 NAACP Image Award nomination for Best New Artist

Footnotes

  1. ^ a b c Staten Island Advance "Contrary to popular belief, this 'American Idol' is not from Island" June 17, 2007
  2. ^ http://phoenix.about.com/od/actors/a/jordinsparks.htm
  3. ^ [http://www.worldmag.com/articles/13002
  4. ^ Full text endorsement on Michelle Buckman's official web site
  5. ^ http://www.worldmag.com/archives/2007-06-02
  6. ^ GMA Music in the Rockies winner takes a shot at Idol, cmcentral.com, Retrieved March 14 2007
  7. ^ http://www.michaelwsmith.com/aboutmichael/blog4/smittysblog/voteforjordinsparks.htm
  8. ^ http://www.michaelwsmith.com/news-detail.php?pageid=2685&newsid=806
  9. ^ http://www.vyt.com/Alumni.php
  10. ^ NYPost.com
  11. ^ a b Torrid Model Search winner
  12. ^ http://www.azreporter.com/?itemid=466&catid=44
  13. ^ http://www.realitytvmagazine.com/blog/2007/01/jordin_sparks_d.html
  14. ^ http://www.imdb.com/name/nm1341750/bio
  15. ^ http://www.accesshollywood.com/news/ah5598.shtml
  16. ^ NBC 11 Obesity Expert Takes Heat From Sparks Fans
  17. ^ Barnes, Ken (July 18, 2007). ""Monitoring the 'Idol' Buzz: Who's Selling the Most Downloads?"". USA Today. Retrieved 2007-07-18. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  18. ^ ""The Winner of American Idol!" (video)". The Morning Show with Mike and Juliet. May 25, 2007. Retrieved 2007-06-21. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  19. ^ ""'American Idol' Finalists" (transcripts)". Larry King Live. May 25, 2007. Retrieved 2007-06-22. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  20. ^ Weinstein, Farrah (July 5, 2007). ""Starry, Starry Night"". New York Post. Retrieved 2007-07-05. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  21. ^ ""TV's Top 5! Macy's Fireworks Spectacular - 'Idol' Top 3 Perform" (video)". AOL.com. July 4, 2007. Retrieved 2007-07-06. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  22. ^ a b Jordin Sparks AIM Interview
  23. ^ http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/local/articles/1214jordin1214.html
  24. ^ [1]
  25. ^ Graff, Gary (August 13, 2007). "Season Six Idol Stars Prepping Debut Albums". Daily News. Retrieved 2007-09-20. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  26. ^ Graff, Gary (July 2, 2007). "Idol Sparks Juggling Touring, Recording". Daily News. Retrieved 2007-09-20. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  27. ^ [2]
  28. ^ http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/20320480/
  29. ^ Release Date
  30. ^ Jordin Sparks
  31. ^ "Jordin Sparks worldwide chart positions and trajectories". aCharts.us. Retrieved December 22 2007.
  32. ^ All Billboard Charts
  33. ^ [3]


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