American Idol Winners Who Didn't Get The Success They Expected

It's no secret that "American Idol" catapulted stars like Kelly Clarkson, Jennifer Hudson, Adam Lambert, Fantasia, and Carrie Underwood into the stratosphere. However, as time has proven again and again, a strong run on the reality competition series doesn't guarantee a strong music career. While a handful of "American Idol" contestants — winners and otherwise — have done incredibly well for themselves following their time on the singing competition series, most of the show's alumni have not been so fortunate.

Lest anyone assume "American Idol" is a foolproof way to not only launch wickedly talented singers straight to the top of the charts, but make sure they stay there for years on end, we've seen time and time again that it's not that easy. A number of winners have indeed found some level of success in the music world after the show, but many have struggled to become bona fide music superstars.

In Season 9 of "American Idol," Lee DeWyze successfully beat Crystal Bowersox out for the top honors, but his career quickly went downhill from there. His first album after the show, "Live It Up," sold just over 150,000 copies — a huge disappointment, which led label, RCA records, to drop him in October 2011. First week sales were so bad that DeWyze actually set a record for the lowest-selling debut week for any "American Idol" winner at that time.

Though DeWyze's music has been featured in television shows such as "Nashville" and "The Walking Dead," the audience for his content continues to dwindle. His second album, "Frames," sold only 3,000 copies in its first week when it was released back in 2013, despite its lead single "Fight" charting on the Adult Top 40. Subsequent albums, including "Oil and Water" (2016), "Paranoia" (2018), "Ghost Stories" (2021) and "Gone for Days" (2024) have all come and gone without making a dent in mainstream culture.

Candice Glover auditioned twice for "American Idol" before finally making it onto the show in Season 12. Her powerful pipes wowed audiences and were enough to beat out Kree Harrison for the title. Nonetheless, Glover struggled to maintain her momentum after the show and never realized her potential. The "Idol" alum's debut, "Music Speaks," barely spoke a word when it was released in 2014, and the first single "Cried" was not a radio hit.

According to Glover, there were issues with her debut album from the start, which led to its release being pushed back multiple times. "So long story short: we delayed the album, and one of the times that we decided to delay it, Interscope, which was the label that you get signed to when you win, was not in contact with iTunes at the time or 19 Entertainment, who was the management company," she told NBC News. "There was a communication issue, and so my album came out by accident, actually." 

Glover has barely released music since, save for a couple of singles in 2017 and 2018. The most visible activities in which Glover has participated have been live performances revolving around the holidays. In 2013, Glover appeared on Broadway in the Christmas musical "Home For the Holidays." She also performed in the Savannah College of Art and Design's Holiday Spectacular in 2024.

Caleb Johnson auditioned for "American Idol" in 2011 and 2012 but failed to make it into the final rounds. The rocker finally established himself as a contender in 2014 and won the Season 13 title. Johnson's success was short-lived, however. Plagued by poor album sales for his debut album, "Testify," he parted ways with record company Interscope in 2015. As Johnson told Billboard, "I want to find the right home and the right team of people that are going to get behind my music and really do something. What's the point of doing it if the [label] isn't going to do anything?"

After leaving Interscope, Johnson crowd-funded for an EP that never came out. He then created a band and released an album, "Born From Southern Ground," in 2019, under the moniker of "Caleb Johnson & The Ramblin' Saints." In 2021, he dropped his solo project "Mountain Mojo Vol. 1" to little fanfare. Then, in 2023, the "American Idol" winner participated in a one-week Meatloaf celebration tour in the United Kingdom. A 2024 single called "Blind" also came and went, but Johnson's days in the spotlight seem to be over.

Nick Fradiani did not expect to be crowned the victor on "American Idol" Season 14. "There have been some powerhouse vocalists on the show. I can sing, but I never considered myself a powerhouse vocalist, but more of a rock-pop singer," he said at a press conference, per the Orlando Sentinel. "I tried to just paint a picture of how I am as a person and get my personality to come through." Despite his doubts, Fradiani beat Clark Beckham, who was favored to win the competition. Alas, his music career petered out soon after.

Early in 2017, the singer left Big Machine Records, after disappointing sales for his first album "Hurricane." "It just wasn't the right fit," he told Billboard. "I couldn't be more happy. It needed to happen, and I was hoping for it." He has dropped a bunch of singles in the years since, as well as the 2022 album "Past My Past," but with little attention. That said, Fradiani has found success in the theater world. He starred as Neil Diamond in the Broadway musical "A Beautiful Noise," and then led the North American tour once the run ended in June 2024. Prior to this, Fradiani led the North American tour of "A Bronx Tale. 

We hate to put "American Idol's" Season 6 winner Jordin Sparks on this list because she has had far more success than many of the reality show's other winners. However, as popular as the singer was thanks to her epic "American Idol" audition, her music career unfortunately lost momentum after the show. Her self-titled debut album did well enough, going platinum thanks to the hit singles "Tattoo" and "No Air" (featuring Chris Brown). Sparks' follow-up album, "Battlefield," was immediately considered a bust when it sold less than half as much as her first album in its first week.

Sparks' career took a huge hit when RCA dissolved her label Jive, delaying her third album for years. This led the star to explore acting opportunities, such as the film "Sparkle" and a guest spot on "CSI." She also appeared on Broadway in "In The Heights" in 2010 (and again, in "Waitress," in 2019). Despite having over 2 million Instagram followers, however, Sparks has received much more attention for appearing on reality shows such as "The Masked Dancer" and "Dancing With the Stars" than for her music or acting.

Sparks finally released that third album, "Right Here Right Now" in 2015, but it debuted at 161 on the Billboard Hot 200. Subsequent musical ventures — like 2020's "Cider & Hennessy" and 2024's "No Restrictions" — have failed to produce any hits, either.

Season 7 of "American Idol" brought us the battle of the Davids and fans were shocked when David Cook beat the projected winner, 17-year-old wunderkind David Archuleta. Despite this stunning upset, Cook failed to achieve the level of fame that you'd think such a victory would bring him. His highest profile project has been on Broadway, where he played Charlie Price in "Kinky Boots" for two stints in 2018. "I've had conversations about finding creative outlets outside of being a musician, but the timing was never right," Cook said on his website. "I was honored to be part of the show and get to work with so many amazing people. I love the collaborative aspect of theatre too, the idea of being part of a creative team and working it out in front of an audience each night."

Cook was able to turn to theater because his music career had all but dried up — and long before 2018. The singer's only album that sold well was the one he released just after "American Idol" (his first album predated the show). Though the album went platinum, subsequent releases barely made a dent on culture. This includes albums "The Loud Morning" (2011) and "Digital Vein" (2015), four EPs, and more than a handful of standalone singles. In February 2025, Cook announced that a new album is on the way, and he launched a tour a few months after that.

Trent Harmon won "American Idol" in 2016, but his first record, 2018's "You Got 'em All," debuted at a dismal number 60 on the Billboard Top 200 — and dropped off the chart entirely a week later. Perhaps this was also because the album was a rock one, whereas Harmon's first single, coronation song "Falling," was a country track. But even that song did poorly for an "Idol" winner, entering the Hot Country Song chart at number 33 back in 2016.His first post-show single, "There's A Girl," was also a minor country hit, but it peaked at number 27 after 33 weeks on that same Billboard chart. Harmon also released an ill-fated EP in December 2016.

After parting ways with his record label in 2018, Harmon all but vanished from the public eye. He even quit social media for 17 months during this time period. In 2025, he finally dropped another EP, but it bore little resemblance to his earlier music. The six-song "Scars & Sins" marks Harmon's shift into Christian music, which makes sense given his long relationship with worship music. "I love the journey I've had, and I wouldn't change a thing. But this new path feels right, feels destined. This is what my soul's been put here to do," Harmon said on his website.

Taylor Hicks barely made it through the audition round of "American Idol," being told by Simon Cowell that he wouldn't advance very far in the competition. Hicks, however, proved Cowell wrong, beating Katharine McPhee for the Season 5 title. Since then, Hicks has been moderately successful — just not in the music industry. The singer-turned-restaurateur hosted a food show called "State Plate" on INSP between 2016 and 2018. He also starred as Teen Angel in "Grease," first on Broadway in 2008 and then for a couple of years on the national tour. A year before Broadway, Hicks released a memoir through Random House.

As far as music goes, Hicks' first post-show single, "Do I Make You Proud," spent eight weeks on the Billboard Hot 100 and hit number one, while his cover of "Takin' It To The Streets" also charted, peaking at number 69. And while his first post-show album sold less than any "American Idol" winner who predated him, later winners would likely have killed to sell the 705,000 copies that Hicks did.

After being dropped from his label in early 2008, Hicks created Modern Whomp Records. His next album, "The Distance," barely crossed the 60,000 mark in sales. Though he has released a few singles over the years, Hicks has yet to drop his third post-"Idol" album — but it is reportedly in the works, as of 2025.

The 2003 rivalry between Ruben Studdard and Clay Aiken was one for the books. Studdard managed to clinch the title by a narrow margin of less than one percent. His first album, "Soulful," debuted at number one and sold more than a million copies in pre-orders alone. He then shifted genres and subsequently released "I Need An Angel," which sold over a half a million units — very strong for a gospel album. But when his 2006 album "The Return" sold only 235,000 units, Studdard was considered a failure by his record label. They dropped him the following year.

Studdard went on to appear in the national tour of the Broadway show "Ain't Misbehavin'," then released the album "Love IS" in 2009. This was followed by albums in 2012, 2014, 2018, and 2023. While none of these albums brought Studdard back to his original level of fame, the singer has occasionally re-entered the zeitgeist thanks to reality television. For example, Studdard cancelled some concerts in 2013 so he could prioritize his health and appear as a contestant on a celebrity version of "The Biggest Loser."

In 2024, the singer returned to the small screen on "The Masked Singer," where he sang in a joint costume with his former "Idol" challenger Clay Aiken. The close friends had worked together prior, having appeared in the horribly titled 2018 Broadway production, "Ruben & Clay's First Annual Christmas Carol Family Fun Pageant Spectacular Reunion Show." They also did a joint tour in 2023

While Adam Lambert has thrived in recent years — as the new frontman for Queen, on Broadway in "Cabaret," and as a judge for "The Voice Australia" — he did not win Season 8 of "American Idol." In a huge upset, the crown actually went to Kris Allen. Yet, while Allen may have won over America with his singing and guitar skills, his star faded after the show.

Allen started out fine after "Idol," but never moved as many units as a Kelly Clarkson or even a Jordin Sparks. His self-titled debut album was released in November 2009, entering the Billboard charts at number 11 and, ultimately, selling 346,000 units. While the album's first single, "Live Like We're Dying," went platinum, it remains Allen's sole big hit. RCA Records dropped the singer from its roster after his sophomore album — 2012's "Thank You Camellia," which entered the chart at number 26 — sold less than 40,000 copies in total.

Despite a lack of mainstream success, Allen has continued to release music and tour, both on his own and in collaboration with other artists. In addition to releasing solo albums in 2014, 2016, and 2024, Allen has co-released albums as part of the trio "Triangle Offense." He has also contributed to a number of other artists' records as a sideman. Allen also works at Williams College, where he teaches music and serves as Director of the Williams Jazz Orchestra.

While Laine Hardy still has over half a million Instagram followers and about half that on TikTok, his music career all but went up in flames in 2022 when he was arrested for bugging his ex-girlfriend's dorm room. Not long after, the singer was dropped by both 19 Entertainment and his label, Disney Music Group. "I was just 17 years old when I first tried out for American Idol, and at the time, I couldn't have ever imagined where I was headed," Hardy wrote on X at the time. "I had to grow up quickly and I am still learning more about myself every day."

Even though "American Idol" had not produced a true star in quite some time, Hardy had all of the components necessary for success. After all, America loves a good-looking country music star with a good story — and considering Hardy was let go prior to the semifinals in Season 16 before returning to take the crown in Season 17, he had one of those. Still, the album he released in 2021, "Here's to Anyone," barely made a peep. Hardy has had only two songs, 2019's "Flame" and 2021's "Memorize You," become even mild hits. Both charted on Billboard's Digital Song Sales chart, with the former reaching number eight for a week. Hardy started releasing music again in 2024, but the star has lost his luster.

Viewers were smitten with Noah Thompson from the start of Season 20 of "American Idol." The talented singer lacked confidence in himself and had to be persuaded to audition for the competition by a friend. When he did, he totally wowed all three judges — and even brought Luke Bryan to tears. Thompson ended up gaining confidence as the show progressed. Then he won the crown.

Though his first post-show single, "One Day Tonight," did well on streaming, it still only hit number 48 on Billboard's Hot Country Songs chart. The 40 million Spotify streams for the song were also an anomaly, as subsequent songs received far less listens. In fact, only two other songs have cracked a million Spotify streams as of 2025. After the underperformance of Thompson's six-song EP, 2023's, "Middle of God Knows Where," 19 Recordings opted to drop the singer from its roster.

Thompson — who released an EP independently in 2025 — has only appreciation for the show that gave him his start. "I was just a small-town kid from Kentucky, and all I really knew how to do throughout my life are the two things I learned from my Dad; pick up a car and play a little bit or do construction," he told Entertainment Focus. "At the end of the day, I'm beyond grateful for 'American Idol.'"

Just Sam beat out runner-up Arthur Gunn during the chaotic 18th season of "American Idol." Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the contestants who made the finals all performed remotely. This meant Sam didn't get to perform on the "Idol" stage during their season. By the time they did return to the show for a guest performance in 2024, Sam had been through the wringer. The pandemic was just the start of it.

Though Sam signed with Hollywood Records after winning their season, they left the label without ever releasing any music and had to pay the label to reclaim what had already been recorded. "I thought it was gonna be easy," they said on an Instagram Story (via Chicago Defender). "Just go to the studio, record, put out music, and that's not how the world works. That's not how the industry works. It takes time, it takes money that I don't have. It takes patience."

It was not long before Sam found themselves back underground, busking in the New York City subways. In 2024, Sam signed with a new agent at the CrowdMGMT management company. They released two singles in early 2025, but neither hit.