American Idol Season One : Where Did They Go?

What do you think of when hear the words "American Idol"? For some, those two words make them cringe. Some may say that they have never heard of it, and some may simply say that it is just "ok.". If you are like me and millions of other though, this hit reality television show simply called American Idol is addictive and highly entertaining.

Us followers are there from early on, laughing at the singing attempts and forming opinions on our favorite singers before the cut throat part of the competition even begins. Thousands upon thousands contestants show up to audition for the popular singing competition, yet only a small percent get the chance to perfrom in front of the three judges. Of that small percent, and even smaller percent has the actual chance of letting their talents shine for the world to see.

The contestants that happen to be lucky enough to impress the judges also impress the millions of fans that watch the show religiously. Fans start picking out there favorite singer, and are crushed if their favorite contestant is eliminated. Many are often left wondering what happened to that great singer that seemed to fall off the face of earth after American Idol.

Many of our favorite past contestants have went on to better things, while many seem to have given up on singing altogether. Here is the first part of my list of the top past but not forgotten American Idol contestants from Season One. Be sure to check back for past contestants of all four seasons.

Tamyra Gray

Tamyra Gray was that wonderful singer from Season One. The live audience and fans at home were utterly astonished and outraged when she was voted off the show. Many felt that there were many contestants still standing what couldn't hold a candle to Tamyra's voice and personality.

However, being voted off has not been a bad thing for Tamyra. Riding on the popularity and success of the show, Tamyra landed a recurring role of the (now cancelled) television show Boston Public. She has also guest starred on another television show called Tru Calling. After proving that her acting skills were up to par with her singing talent, Tamyra decided it was time to go back to her first passion: singing. She has recently released her debut album entitled The Dreamer.

Nikki Mckibbon

Season One also brought us Nikki Mckibbon. Nikki was the southern punk rock girl that wowed the audience with her smoky voice and unconventional style. After the show, Nikki starting running and managing a karaoke business in Dallas, Tx. Although she has not been signed to any labels, she has also recorded a few solos and is not giving up on her dream.

Justin Guarini

Personally, Justin was my absolute favorite from Season One, and possibly the most popular contestant. No, he was not the best singer there, but there was something about Justin that had hearts breaking and people cheering him on til' the end. After being out voted by the incomparable Kelly Clarkson, Justin still had high hopes for his future. In fact, he and Kelly made a movie together entitled From Justin to Kelly.

Justin was also signed to RCA records. Unforntunately (yet, rightly so), Justin's movie was a disappointment and a huge flop. Later he was also dropped from RCA because his self titled debut album did about as good as the movie. Snce then, Justin has shaved off his curly locks (that helped his fame on the show) and it still trying to break into the business any way that he can.

R.J. Helton

Another personal favorite was R.J. Helton. With boyish good looks, R.J has been compared to the popular boy band Menudo. After the show, R.J. made an album entitled Real Life, which skyrocketed to Number 14 on The Billboard's Top Christian Albums. He has also shown off his acting abilities in an independent film entitled Mrs. Johnson.

Jim Verraros

Jim Verraros was the boy with the sweet sounding voice that would sing to his parents in sign language. Many wondered how he even got into the top spot of the competition to begin with, and even more were not that suprised when he was finally voted off. However, Jim hasn't stopped for a second in his musical career. In 2004, Jim released and indie-cd entitled Unsaid & Understood.

The music was so wonderful that JIm won an Out Music Award for Best New Recording Debut. In 2005, Jim grew his hair out, donned a new style, and released an album entitled Roller Coaster. His first single debuted at number 21 in on The Billboard Hot Dance Club Chart. Not only has he been singing, but Jim also starred in a hit indie movie entitled Eating Out, which has won Best Feature Film at the Phoenix International Film Festival and the Honolulu Rainbow Film Festival.

Ryan Starr

After being voted off, the rocker idol went on to star in an array of different television shows. She can be seen guest starring on past seasons of CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, That 70's Show, and What I like about You. However, her most famous performance to date was on the Vh-1 show The Surreal Life in 2003. Ryan played herself in this "reality" role, and was met ith a mixture of criticism and praise. In 2004, Ryan starred in a made for television movie entitled Rings of Darkness. As of 2006, she is working on not only one, but two movies that are in post production at this time. Even with television success, Ryan has not given up her passion for music. She has released a single called My Religion and hopes to continue to pursue both careers.

Christina Christian

After the show, Christina used her model good looks and impressionable voice to land her the role as a correspondent on The TV Guide Channel. She also made a guest appearance in 2003 on CSI: Crime Scene Investigation during the third season. She also released an album in Europe a few years back under Simon Fuller's label (creator of American Idol), but it was a flop.

Kelly Clarkson

Kelly has proven that she truly deserved to win the competition. It was no surprise to me that Kelly did indeed walk away the winner, and I am not surprised at all at her growing success. She recently won two Grammys at the 2006 Grammy Awards for her album Breakaway, and her smash hit single Since You've Been Gone. Since the show, Kelly has released hit single after hit single. Not even the flop of her movie From Justin to Kelly has stopped her.

At least there is still hope to see our favorite Idols shine like they did a few years back. It seems that almost all of them have chosen to continue in the entertainment field in one form or another. Stay tuned for a Season Two review, and maybe we can find out what happened to likes of Kim Locke and Joshua Grayson (and more).