What happens to the loser on American Idol?
It's just hours to the season finale of American Idol, and you can bet both Taylor Hicks and Katharine McPhee are wondering, "What happens if I lose?"
Don't worry. As Scarlett O'Hara famously said "Tomorrow is another day." In Idol terms this means that the both Hicks and McPhee might live to see their celebrity star shine for a few more years.
Kelly Clarkson, Ruben Studdard, Fantasia Barrino and Carrie Underwood have all been discussed and dissected around the watercooler thousands of times. Last night, Underwood was named top new female vocalist and won the single of the year award at the Academy of Country Music awards. Not bad for a chanteuse who has only been at it for little more than a year.
There are no guarantees that being a silver winner on American Idol translates into platinum records, world tours, and thousands of screaming fans. Consider: Clay Aiken's success is balanced by mop-haired Justin Guarini's failure. In 2003, Guarini sold 142,000 albums while the original "American Idol" champion Kelly Clarkson sold 2.5 million. Guarini lost his record deal; Clarkson is now a Grammy winner. (Frankly, the most successful person on Idol is it's host Ryan Seacrest, but that's a whole other story...)
As ABCNews.com reports, "from silver medalist Nancy Kerrigan to former Vice President Al Gore to The Bachelor's Trista Rehn, there's a long legacy of noble second-place finishers, but not every runner-up finds lasting fame."
Third season finalist Diana Degarmo parlayed her success on Idol to a Broadway role in Hairspray. "When you get down to that close, it's like 'Oh! You came so close to winning.' But at the same time, I think it's better that I didn't win because it makes me keep going," Degarmo told ABC News recently.
No matter who America votes for and vaults into the top spot tonight, Hicks and McPhee shouldn't be stressed out. If William Hung could earn and then hang on to his fans, neither of this year's finalists are going to have a problem chasing their dreams.
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