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Despite being the show's lowest-rated season finale ever, season 11 of "American Idol" ended last night with a new victor: 21-year-old Georgia native Phillip Phillips took home the microphone-shaped trophy and the crown as the next American Idol after a staggering 132 million votes were tallied.
Hopefully Phillips' future is set for stardom like past winners Kelly Clarkson or Carrie Underwood rather than into obscurity like forgotten winners Taylor Hicks and Lee DeWyze. But before we find out how well the Season 11's alumni will do in the real world, we've compiled a list of the best and worst track records of previous "American Idol" finalists.
Sanjaya Malakar is now a bartender in Manhattan.
Season: 6
Finished: 7th
Before he became the infamous "Idol" contestant with the ridiculous hairstyles, Sanjaya Malakar was just a high school student auditioning with his sister. Now, he hasn't had much success in the music business but he hasn't stopped trying.
After appearing on the show "I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out Of Here" in 2009, Malakar was supposed to sign with a modeling agency in Seattle—but that must have fallen through because now he's working as a bartender in the East Village of Manhattan.
Malakar's Audition:
Ace Young & Diana DeGarmo just got engaged on the season 11 finale.
Season: 5 and 3, respectively
Finished: 7th and Runner-Up
We put these two contestants from different seasons together because the two started a relationship after starring in a Broadway production together and just got engaged on this season's finale. The two are now consistently working on the stage, mostly on Broadway.
Young's audition:
DeGarmo's audition:
Kristy Lee Cook hosts a hunting show.
Season: 7
Finished: 7th
After releasing a mediocre single, Kristy Lee Cook moved to Nashville and became the host of "Goin' Country," a hunting show for NBC Sports. Weird.
Cook's audition:
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After a long six-year hiatus, it was recently announced that Justin Timberlake would return to music—via the film industry.
"The Social Network" star will produce the soundtrack for the upcoming film, "The Devil and the Deep Blue Sea," which coincidentally stars and is produced by his fiancé, Jessica Biel.
Justin hasn't been in the studio since 2006, when his second album "Future Sex/Love Sounds" was released. The multi-platinum CD was produced by Timbaland and featured the catchy hits "SexyBack," "My Love," and "LoveStoned."
Fans of the singer have been wanting him to get back into the studio for years, but Justin has been focusing his time on other ventures, including acting and designing.
In an interview with Playboy, Justin stated "the business of music is what taints an artist's desire to make music ... I love making music but there is a level where making music becomes a total life-sucking commitment."
SEE ALSO: President Obama and Mitt Romney Lip Sync The Latest 'Call Me Maybe' Parody >
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Sci-fi/fantasy author Neil Gaiman's commencement speech at The University of the Arts in Philadelphia is getting passed around like crazy.
You can watch the video, read the transcript or check out his six key points below:
"First of all: When you start out on a career in the arts you have no idea what you are doing.
Secondly, If you have an idea of what you want to make, what you were put here to do, then just go and do that.
Thirdly, When you start off, you have to deal with the problems of failure. You need to be thickskinned, to learn that not every project will survive. A freelance life, a life in the arts, is sometimes like putting messages in bottles, on a desert island, and hoping that someone will find one of your bottles and open it and read it, and put something in a bottle that will wash its way back to you: appreciation, or a commission, or money, or love. And you have to accept that you may put out a hundred things for every bottle that winds up coming back.
Fourthly, I hope you'll make mistakes. If you're making mistakes, it means you're out there doing something. And the mistakes in themselves can be useful. I once misspelled Caroline, in a letter, transposing the A and the O, and I thought, “Coraline looks like a real name...”
And Fifthly, while you are at it, make your art. Do the stuff that only you can do.
Sixthly. I will pass on some secret freelancer knowledge. Secret knowledge is always good. And it is useful for anyone who ever plans to create art for other people, to enter a freelance world of any kind. I learned it in comics, but it applies to other fields too."
See also: Great commencement talks by Carol Bartz, Maria Bartiromo, Sonia Sotomayor and Sheryl Sandberg.
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Phillip Phillips Wins American Idol!
By · CommentsA new American Idol has been crowned and this year’s lucky winner is Phillip Phillips. Yet another guy has won AI but trust me when I say he totally deserved it.
It has been one heck of a season this year for American Idol and last night’s finale was no exception. The final two were both freaking awesome and although I was secretly hoping that Jessica Sanchez would win because it has been forever since a girl won, I was not surprised when Phillip’s name was announced. I mean lets be honest the guy earned a freaking standing ovation on Tuesday night’s show there was no way he wasn’t going to win.
So what is it about the new American Idol that made America fall in love with him? From his cutie good looks, to his amazing voice to his playing the guitar, he was kind of the whole package. If you don’t believe me then be sure to check out the below video and you will see exactly what I am talking about. P
This win is something that Phillip almost didn’t have happen. As you may or may not recall at the beginning of the season the singer he was almost sidelined because of heath issues. He had some ongoing health problems that could of cost him the competition. Thankfully though he pulled through and is just fine. In fact I would say after his big win that things are looking really good for him.
Like I said above I was rooting for Jessica because I thought it was about damn time a chick one but that wasn’t in the cards, oh well there is always next year. I don’t want to say the best person one because Sanchez was really freaking good as well but Phillip Phillips definitely deserved the honor. I can’t wait to see what he does next how about you?
Photos by: Wenn/Nikki Nelson
