Before American Idol viewers decided to vote for the same guitar-playing male every season (David Cook… Kris Allen … Lee DeWyze), they selected Jordin Sparks as their champion. We’ve been big fans of the talented singer since since she took the Fox stage and we were lucky enough to speak with her this week, as she took time away from her summer tour. We thank Jordin for her time and we present this exclusive interview below… What has the American Idol experience been like for you? Can it be compared to what you imagined it would be like? I imagined it would be easy, just a singing competition. HA! It was a lot of work and pretty stressful. But I made friendships that will last forever and I am really happy with how it turned out. You’ve sung with Chris Brown. You’ve sung at the Super Bowl. What has been the most memorable professional experience for you? Well, the fact that I get to sing for my job is the best thing. Everything else, the duet, the Super Bowl, touring… it’s all a bonus. Idol has received some criticism for naming three consecutive winners that were all very similar. Any thoughts on that? I definitely think that when the show started to allow instruments, it opened itself up to a whole bunch of people who wouldn’t have auditioned before. So I’m glad those people can have the opportunity as well. But the show shouldn’t receive criticism for naming winners the audience voted for. Any thoughts on Simon leaving? It’s bittersweet. Simon was made out to be the villain. I’m going to miss him for sure… It’s going to be so different without [Paula and Simon]. I wish them nothing by the best in whatever they do moving forward. What was it like to participate in the We Are the World remake ? It was amazing for me. The original is such a classic and pretty much everyone knows it… to see all the artists there for a cause bigger than ourselves was so humbling. This is your first-ever solo tour. Talk about your plans and hopes
