![Tove Styrke: The Swedish electro-pop artist is reluctant to dwell too much on her Swedish Idol beginnings.]()
Tove Styrke: The Swedish electro-pop artist is reluctant to dwell too much on her Swedish Idol beginnings. "Its really hard to talk about music and a thing like Swedish Idol at the same time," she told Gigwise last year, "because they have nothing to do with each other.” Like it or not though, the show gave her the platform to make some of the most enjoyable and cohesive left-field pop of 2015. It’s not every day, after all, the someone writes a pop song inspired by The Matrix that's about smashing the patriarchy.
![Beyonce: At this point in Beyonce’s career, most people have forgotten that she was even in one of the most successful girl bands of the ‘90s (Destiny’s Child, obviously), let alone the fact that she got her start on a show called Star Search - the largest talent show on national TV at the time. With her latest album, Lemonade, she proved her commitment not just to being a popstar, but to changing what it means to be one.]()
Beyonce: At this point in Beyonce’s career, most people have forgotten that she was even in one of the most successful girl bands of the ‘90s (Destiny’s Child, obviously), let alone the fact that she got her start on a show called Star Search - the largest talent show on national TV at the time. With her latest album, Lemonade, she proved her commitment not just to being a popstar, but to changing what it means to be one.
![One Direction: Held up as the poster boys (quite literally) of talent show success, One Direction can’t do much right in many people’s eyes. Their phenomenal success, though, didn’t come about by accident. Nor did they simply fool a generation of young fans with good looks and charisma. That helped, sure, but so did their succession of catchy pop hooks, their distinctive voices and the consistent hard work they’ve poured into their careers. Also, their recent single, ‘History’, is a banger.]()
One Direction: Held up as the poster boys (quite literally) of talent show success, One Direction can’t do much right in many people’s eyes. Their phenomenal success, though, didn’t come about by accident. Nor did they simply fool a generation of young fans with good looks and charisma. That helped, sure, but so did their succession of catchy pop hooks, their distinctive voices and the consistent hard work they’ve poured into their careers. Also, their recent single, ‘History’, is a banger.
![Zayn Malik: The mysterious one from One Direction took something of a leap of faith when he decided to part ways with one of the most successful bands of all time - but it seems to have paid off. His debut solo album, Mind Of Mine, was a little too poe-faced for its own good, but it clearly signposted where Malik intends to go, and we have every intention of following him there.]()
Zayn Malik: The mysterious one from One Direction took something of a leap of faith when he decided to part ways with one of the most successful bands of all time - but it seems to have paid off. His debut solo album, Mind Of Mine, was a little too poe-faced for its own good, but it clearly signposted where Malik intends to go, and we have every intention of following him there.
![Otis Redding: Now considered one of the most important artists in the history of soul - despite the fact that his career, and his life, were cut short by a plane crash when he was just 26 - Redding started out as a talent show regular in Macon, Georgia. In fact, he won fifteen in a row before securing a record deal - though sadly, they weren’t televised.]()
Otis Redding: Now considered one of the most important artists in the history of soul - despite the fact that his career, and his life, were cut short by a plane crash when he was just 26 - Redding started out as a talent show regular in Macon, Georgia. In fact, he won fifteen in a row before securing a record deal - though sadly, they weren’t televised.
![Little Mix: If you want an example of a nigh-on perfect pop album, look no further than Little Mix’s latest release. Get Weird - which navigates the tricky balance between earnest balladry and stadium anthems without ever sounding stale or cynical - earned the former X Factor winners their rightful place as one of the best girl bands around at the moment.]()
Little Mix: If you want an example of a nigh-on perfect pop album, look no further than Little Mix’s latest release. Get Weird - which navigates the tricky balance between earnest balladry and stadium anthems without ever sounding stale or cynical - earned the former X Factor winners their rightful place as one of the best girl bands around at the moment.
![Carrie Underwood: As one of the few country artists you’ll have probably heard of even if you have no interest in country music, Underwood carries quite the burden of responsibility on her shoulders. She’s got it nailed at this point though, and ‘Last Name’ and ‘Before He Cheats’ - the perfect angry karaoke tunes - will never, ever get old.]()
Carrie Underwood: As one of the few country artists you’ll have probably heard of even if you have no interest in country music, Underwood carries quite the burden of responsibility on her shoulders. She’s got it nailed at this point though, and ‘Last Name’ and ‘Before He Cheats’ - the perfect angry karaoke tunes - will never, ever get old.
![Adam Lambert: When the American Idol contestant joined Queen as their temporary touring frontman, the news was met with more than a few raised eyebrows. Five years on, though, and he’s proven his mettle as Freddie Mercury’s successor (though no-one, of course, could ever truly replace him) - all while peddling his own successful solo career.]()
Adam Lambert: When the American Idol contestant joined Queen as their temporary touring frontman, the news was met with more than a few raised eyebrows. Five years on, though, and he’s proven his mettle as Freddie Mercury’s successor (though no-one, of course, could ever truly replace him) - all while peddling his own successful solo career.
![Carly Rae Jepsen: If you live outside of Canada, you probably didn’t even realise that Jepsen started out on Canadian Idol at the age of 21. It was a few years before her breakout hit, the ubiquitous ‘Call Me Maybe’, catapulted her beyond Canada’s borders. The 'one-hit wonder' label was unthinkingly applied to her before she’d even announced her next single, but the success of her 2015 album, Emotion, soon shut her critics up. Well, a little bit at least.]()
Carly Rae Jepsen: If you live outside of Canada, you probably didn’t even realise that Jepsen started out on Canadian Idol at the age of 21. It was a few years before her breakout hit, the ubiquitous ‘Call Me Maybe’, catapulted her beyond Canada’s borders. The 'one-hit wonder' label was unthinkingly applied to her before she’d even announced her next single, but the success of her 2015 album, Emotion, soon shut her critics up. Well, a little bit at least.
![Astrid S: “People look at me like I’m an alien,” the Norwegian pop-noir sensation told Gigwise at the start of this year. Well if that’s true, then we can only hope there’s more extra-terrestrial life out there. She first landed on earth on Norwegian Pop Idol.]()
Astrid S: “People look at me like I’m an alien,” the Norwegian pop-noir sensation told Gigwise at the start of this year. Well if that’s true, then we can only hope there’s more extra-terrestrial life out there. She first landed on earth on Norwegian Pop Idol.
![Kelly Clarkson: With a powerhouse voice, consistently impactful songs, and a resolute disinterest in playing the music industry’s game, Clarkson has quietly (and loudly) kept her position as one of the world’s biggest popstars for over a decade now, since winning American Idol way back in medieval times (2002).]()
Kelly Clarkson: With a powerhouse voice, consistently impactful songs, and a resolute disinterest in playing the music industry’s game, Clarkson has quietly (and loudly) kept her position as one of the world’s biggest popstars for over a decade now, since winning American Idol way back in medieval times (2002).
![Jennifer Hudson: After a successful few years following her appearance on American Idol in 2004, Hudson took a quick break in order to go and win an Academy Award. As you do. Despite a horrific personal tragedy in 2008, she remains one of the mainstays in the world of R&B.]()
Jennifer Hudson: After a successful few years following her appearance on American Idol in 2004, Hudson took a quick break in order to go and win an Academy Award. As you do. Despite a horrific personal tragedy in 2008, she remains one of the mainstays in the world of R&B.