If anything, the familiarity of Idol works against her, as her desperate-to-please persona is so deeply ingrained in her identity that any shift in music on Jordin Sparks can't help but be seen as the work of her producers, not her.
That energy, that enthusiasm, that eagerness to perform was all mildly ingratiating when seen on a weekly basis, as it made her relatable, either for the teens who followed her, or for older viewers who saw her as a daughter or a kid sister, but they're all ingredients that make for a pop star with almost no presence.
When she won the title, it was like she was crowned Homecoming Queen.Īll this makes for fine, not great, reality TV, but everything that made Jordin Sparks succeed on TV works against her on record.
She was the one contestant with a character arc, plus she appealed to the show's core constituent of teens because still seemed like a teenager, totally wrapped up the excitement of it all. Sparks surprised by living up to those challenges - she didn't always thrive, but she always strived, so she provided a rooting interest and the one real dramatic story line in a season painfully lacking in any kind of intrigue. This separated her from her two main competitors, the beat-boxing Blake Lewis, whose vocals always took a backseat to his style, and Melinda Doolittle, the former backup vocalist whose reliability was a liability, as she never ever seemed to be challenged. King classic revealed a flair for drama and subsequent weeks revealed that she took direction well, absorbing the judges' criticisms and attempting something a little different with each passing week. Until that song, Sparks had seemed like little more than an enthusiastic amateur, a teenager who loved to put on a show, but that rendition of the Ben E. Partway through the sixth season of American Idol, Jordin Sparks pulled out a heated, melodramatic interpretation of "I (Who Have Nothing)," a riveting performance that helped the spunky teenager pull apart from the bland pack. Purchase and download this album in a wide variety of formats depending on your needs.