Smallscreen News
Jordin Sparks the new American Idol
By Stone Martindale May 24, 2007, 5:12 GMT
Now the shock has worn off, and it is late. Young teen of seventeen, Jordin Sparks rose to the top of a season rife with scandal and controversy.
The Howard Stern campaign to prolong the agony of Sanjaya, and his crazy hair were all leading up to the new winner tonight who will take the mantle from previous Idols, Kelly Clarkson, Ruben Studdard, Fantasia Barrino, Carrie Underwood and Taylor Hicks.
The Glendale, Arizona cutie beat out 25-year-old Blake Lewis of Bothell, Washington, Wednesday nigh, becoming the youngest Idol ever.
"I can't thank you enough!" said a tearful Sparks at Hollywood's Kodak Theater, receiving the majority of a record 74 million votes, according to Seacrest.
Lewis had what Simon Cowell called the best performance of the night Tuesday, with a excellent version of Bon Jovi's "You Give Love a Bad Name," it was Sparks whose owned the evening, her rendition of "This Is My Now," made everyone swoon.
"You just wiped the floor with Blake on that song," Cowell told Sparks.
Sparks on cue teared up at the end of the song.
Sparks also nailed a winner with Martina McBride ballad "A Broken Wing" after Lewis sang Maroon 5's "She Will Be Loved," which was well-received.
Sparks won the $1 million contract with Sony BMG's Arista Records.
Wednesday's finale featured the usual assortment of live performances and b-roll from the series.
Gwen Stefani, Bette Midler, Green Day and even Tony Bennett performed, as did Smokey Robinson and Gladys Knight as they joined this season's top finalists for medleys of the Motown icons' greatest hits.
My favorite, Melinda Doolittle sang "Hold up the Light" with gospel stars BeBe and CeCe Winans.
Idol's previous winners performed their latest singles. Arista Records mogul Clive Davis took the stage to present Carrie Underwood n award for selling an Idol-best 6 million copies of her debut album, "Some Hearts."
Then the 40th-anniversary tribute to the Beatles' Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band began.
Take heart Idol junkies, the next American Idol search for the next superstar begins with auditions in August.
