10. LEE DEWYZE, “HALLELUJAH”
Okay, so this former paint salesman's career didn't exactly take off following his stint on Idol, but Dewyze did unleash some iconic performances during season 9. His most memorable? Undoubtedly this soulful take on singing-competition staple “Hallelujah.”
9. CARRIE UNDERWOOD, “ALONE”
It's still amazing to see just how far Carrie Underwood has come since taking the Idol title in 2005. Back then, well before the six Grammy wins, the small-town country girl was still a bit rough around the edges—in a good way. Her cover of Heart's “Alone” was not only a season 4 highlight, but a performance many of her megafans still revisit today.
8. JOSHUA LEDET, “IT'S A MAN'S MAN'S MAN'S WORLD”
Made-for-TV talent shows can lead fans to believe that a contestant possesses more talent than he or she actually does. But every so often, there are contestants like season 12's unsung hero, Joshua Ledet, who didn't even make it to the finale. Randy Jackson called the soul singer's performance of “It's A Man's Man's Man's World” “one of the best performances in the history of any singing show.”
7. PHILLIP PHILLIPS, “VOLCANO”
We'll admit it: Back when Phillip Phillips was a season 11 contestant, we couldn't help but feel as if we were back on the DMB summer circuit. But then the Georgia boy pulled out a wild card in the form of Damien Rice's “Volcano.” Sure, Phillips' relationship with Idol hasn't been exactly smooth of late, but even he can't deny it was Idol (and performances like this one) that first put him on the map.
6. JENNIFER HUDSON, “CIRCLE OF LIFE”
True Idol fans are still ticked off that J. Hud didn't take the season 3 crown—and with good reason. Showings like this rendition of Elton John's Lion King belter “Circle of Life” not only gave us goose bumps but also showed that Hudson had true star potential. She may not have won Idol, but we're pretty sure an Oscar and a Grammy look pretty damn good on her mantel.
5. TRENT HARMON, “CHANDELIER”
After taking advice from the singer herself, season 15 finalist Harmon belted out Sia's massive, octave-shattering single a few weeks back. And wow, did he do the song justice! Like Adam Lambert before him, Harmon has one of those logic-defying voices that can leap to an unimaginable falsetto at a moment's notice. It was only right he reprise his performance of “Chandelier” last night on Idol's penultimate episode before heading into tonight's finale.
4. KRIS ALLEN, “HEARTLESS”
In one of the biggest shockers in American Idol history, season 8 underdog Allen catapulted himself into contention for the crown with a folksy take on Kanye West's “Heartless.” So powerful, in fact, was this performance, that the following week Allen went on to upset Adam Lambert in the finale.
3. KELLY CLARKSON, “YOU MAKE ME FEEL”
Hard to believe, but it's been 13 years since Kelly Clarkson fought off Justin Guarini to win the inaugural American Idol crown. It was downright obvious from the get-go, though, that the Texan powerhouse was the real deal. Check out her mammoth spin on “You Make Me Feel” from season 1. You can almost hear Guarini conceding.
2. ADAM LAMBERT, “MAD WORLD”
Lambert certainly isn't the only Idol contestant to have lost the competition and gone on to great commercial success, but he may very well be the one with the most raw talent ever to do so. It seemed like every week the octave-defying singer was one-upping his previous performance. To that end, there are several Lambert performances we could have chosen here, but for our money his rendition of “Mad World” was the most memorable.
1. KATHARINE MCPHEE, “SOMEWHERE OVER THE RAINBOW”
Say what you will about Smash or even Scorpion, but this season 5 contestant first entered our lives as an innocent, angelic-voiced beauty vying for our Idol votes. And wow, what a rendition of “Somewhere Over the Rainbow” Katharine McPhee's truly is. It's so wonderful, in fact, that we had no choice but to place it as the #1 Idol performance of all time. Let the debating begin!
USA Records Organization_USKINGS are still collecting more information from many sources and it is our pleasure listening to everybody's comments to have a full evaluation on the USA Record Top: “The 10 Best Performances in American Idol History“
According to elle.com
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