American Idol Contestants…Conquering Fame and Fortune After Defeat

American Idol Contestants…Conquering Fame and Fortune After Defeat
   The thrill of victory and oh the agony of defeat! But just because contestants didn’t win on American Idol would mean that they have blown their chances to fame and fortune! Take a look at these examples:
Chris Daughtry from season five was given a record deal by RCA records after his elimination American Idol. He formed a band called Daughtry and this self-titled debut album sold more than one million copies after just five weeks of release, thereby making it the fastest selling debut album in rock history. Chris Daughtry is now the third most successful American Idol contestant in terms of record sales, falling behind Kelly Clarkson and Carrie Underwood.
Mario Vazquez from season four made it into the top 12 only to drop out for “family reasons.” In 2005, he signed with Arista Records and in September 2006 he released his self-titled debut album and the single, Gallery, peaked at 35 on the charts.
Robyn Troup from season six didn’t even make the top 24 and she won the “My Grammy Moment” contest to perform live with Justin Timberlake at the Grammys and to top it off, she signed a deal with Timberlake’s production company!
Then there are those who tried out for American Idol that didn’t get the famous “golden ticket” along with hearing the words, “You’re going to Hollywood!” Ashley Quarles, a 2009 finalist for American Idol in Atlanta, Georgia is making quite a name for herself. Ashley,who is  the granddaughter to Country Music Hall of Famer, Miss Betty Logan, also made it to the finals for The Colgate Country Showdown in 2010 and she was just announced the monthly winner of an online talent competition by uploading a video of herself singing.
Ashley’s video received the most votes for the month of April making her the winner of 1,000 dollars along with the opportunity for her video to be seen by J Brawner Music who has written and produced for select contestants of American Idol from 2003 to 2007.
Jason Brawner of J. Brawner Music, a mentor for the 2B Awards,  will be viewing the top winning videos in all their musical categories…categories such as vocals, bands and solo instruments. Jason is an independent record producer who has helped over 500 artists and songwriters record and market original music since 2001. His songwriting, production and consulting skills have scored his clients contracts with most major labels and dozens of publishers, management companies, booking agents and television networks.
His songs have been recorded or on hold by dozens of major label artists including David Foster, Josh Groban, Clay Aiken, Hilary Duff, Rascal Flatts and Carrie Underwood. His film and TV credits include FOX, CBS, NBC, BBC, Bravo, Harpo Productions (Oprah), Five TV (UK) and Dogstar Media among others. From 2003-2007 Jason wrote and produced for select contestants of American Idol. From 2003-2007 Jason wrote and produced for select contestants of American Idol. As a teenager in the late 90’s, Jason toured with Lalapalooza, Tom Petty, Steely Dan, The Eagles, Grateful Dead and Sade.


Maybe you’ve been a little discouraged because you or your band  have been trying to gain a little fame and fortune. You know you got what it takes to make it it just hasn’t been an easy road. Or maybe you don’t have the money or the time to get to an American Idol audition (not to mention having to wait in those long lines!)
Why not  do what Ashley did and enter an online singing competition? Invite some friends over, get all glammed up and pull out the karaoke machine! You can take turns recording each other and enter your best performances! You might already be on top of your game and have a few videos of yourself or of your band already on YouTube that you could submit. How do you think Justin Bieber got discovered?
So go ahead, rise and conquer!! Make a date with destiny and let the world see your amazing talent! There just might be stars in your future!
Author: Amber Espanet