Stephanie Edwards (born November 5, 1987) is an American singer and was the eleventh-place finalist on sixth season of American Idol. She is from Savannah, Georgia and first began singing around the age of two or three. After graduating from Windsor Forest High, Edwards pursued vocal instruction for a month and then went on to appear at the Apollo Theatre in New York when she competed in "It's Showtime at the Apollo." She has won many singing contests since then, including "Savannah Star" in 2005.
American Idol[]
Edwards first auditioned for the reality show, American Idol, in Memphis, Tennessee. She is the only one of the top 12 contestants on Idol not presented in the TV tryouts preceding the naming of the top 24 semi-finalists.
During the initial broadcast for the Top 24, Edwards was praised for her rendition of “How Come U Don't Call Me Anymore,” by Prince. For her second semifinal performance, Edwards attempted the song “Dangerously in Love,” to which Randy Jackson exclaimed that she "sang her face off," although he felt her performance was too much like the original. The following week, Stephanie pulled off another winning performance with the song "Sweet Thing". According to the judges, she was "darn near flawless and had a good command of the stage."
On March 8, 2007, Edwards made it into Top 12. For the first theme week, she performed Diana Ross' song "Love Hangover." Stephanie forgot her words at one point during the song. The judges bashed her arrangement of the song, saying that she teased them with the good part and then never delivered. Despite the criticism, Edwards secured herself a spot in the Top 11.
She was eliminated from the show on March 21, 2007. She missed the summer tour along with Brandon Rogers.
After American Idol[]
After American Idol, Edwards recorded a charity single called "On Our Way" which was written by Julie Wilde and became available in early-October 2007 as a CD single on eBay. Sales of the album benefit the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society's Light the Night Walk . Her second single, "Here I Am", was released in April 2008.
| Season 6 |
| Finalists |
| Jordin Sparks · Blake Lewis · Melinda Doolittle · LaKisha Jones · Chris Richardson · Phil Stacey · Sanjaya Malakar · Haley Scarnato · Gina Glocksen · Chris Sligh · Stephanie Edwards · Brandon Rogers |
| Semifinalists |
| Sundance Head · Sabrina Sloan · Antonella Barba · Jared Cotter · Leslie Hunt · A.J. Tabaldo · Alaina Alexander · Nicholas Pedro · Rudy Cardenas · Nicole Tranquillo · Amy Krebs · Paul Kim |