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20 Best Female American Idol Singers

American Idol has had nine seasons. Some brought us breath taking performance after performance, and some brought us contestants we can barely remember. If you love singing, you probably couldn’t forget any of the lovely ladies on this list even if you tried. Let’s compare amazing vocal ranges, technique, song choices, and performance power and see who comes out on top. Consistency is important here, when you are up against women who not only won American Idol, but are world wide superstars. What Not to Sing will help us take the walk down memory lane.

(20) Nadia Turner: (Season 4) Nadia gets a 10/10 for amazing performing skills. She also had a knack for interesting song choices that were impossible to predict. She had amazing stage presence and a really cool tone. I wish we were still hearing new music from this talented beauty. Only her range and going home to soon keep her this far down the list.

(19) LaKisha Jones: (Season 6) With a powerhouse range, LaKisha’s main problem was picking obvious song choices and doing only decent on them compared to the original. Her breath control was off on big numbers like Carrie Underwood’s Jesus Take the Wheel. If you can’t top a song by one of the lovely ladies that are also on this list, that is certainly going to hold you back. She didn’t just do that with Carrie’s song, she also took on the season 4 winner’s single I Believe. Ballsy, that’s for sure.

(18) Katharine McPhee: (Season 5) When Kat was on her voice was gorgeous, but a few off nights in between were quite disastrous. Take into consideration All is Fair in Love and The Voice Within for examples. She also took on the Idol staple I Have Nothingthat has been done six times on the show! Five of the versions were done by ladies on this list. That said, her renditions of Somewhere Over the Rainbow and Someone to Watch Over Me were exceptional. It didn’t hurt that she was gorgeous.

(17) Kimberley Locke: (Season 2) A silky tone and a knack to choose the right songs is what got this lovely lady on this list. Performances like Heat Wave and a couple of bum notes keep her from zooming to the top. She definitely has a tone and sound that are her signature and is amazing at making a song her own without going overboard.

(16) Syesha Mercado: (Season 7) Syesha was up against the Davids, and there really was no beating either of them. She was quite the under dog her season, but always came out swinging. She had an amazing belt and also a gorgeous head voice. She wasn’t afraid to take on huge songs, but they weren’t always wildly successful. For instance, she took on winner’s single I Believe and much like LaKisha Jones, failed to give it the power that Diana DeGarmo and Fantasia Burrino did during season 4.

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(15) Paris Bennett: (Season 5) Incredible for her age, this girl packed a lot of power in her small frame. Her best numbers were when she did numbers from the 30s and 40s, but she could also pull out some Beyonce and not look like a fool. She was an amazing performer, and only weird song choices like Conga and The Way We Were held her back.

(14) Crystal Bowersox: (Season 9) The lone female star of season 9 on American Idol had quite a set of pipes on her. Especially, in comparison to the rest of the mediocre season. She was great on the guitar and 9 times out of 10 she picked a pretty good song for herself. About half way through the season she got cocky, picked some forgettable songs and always failed to make a total moment. That said, she had a vibe all her own and was refreshing.

(13) Vonzell Solomon: (Season 4) Vonzell took on some of the huge numbers and always prevailed. She was definitely the under dog to Carrie Underwood and Bo Bice, but she always gave it her all during every performance and sang her heart out. She was a rarity who could punch out a ballad and take on an up-tempo and be just as strong at both.

(12) Trenyce: (Season 2) If you want to talk big songs, this is your girl. She was early enough along in American Idol seasons to be the first person to take on I Have Nothing and she definitely set the bar high. The only thing holding her back was some throaty singing that really rubbed the audience the wrong way at times. However, she was a great performer with great range and technique.

(11) Allison Iraheta: (Season 8) We’re getting into the nitty gritty of the best American Idol has to offer. Allison was amazing for her age and rarely dissapointed on song choice and surprises. She always had incredible runs that really brought something new to an overdone song choice. The best example is her classy take on I Can’t Make You Love Me, which out did another lovely lady on this list, Kimberley Locke. She had such a cool, rocky, raspy tone that made her unique to the show.

(10) Diana DeGarmo: (Season 3) Diana DeGarmo’s voice can knock you over with her power and range. The only thing holding her back is at the time she had some trouble with nasality and her mid-range. If you hear her now, all of that is good to go. That must be why she’s on Broadway all the time. She still has the best held note into a key change ever done on this show, so check out Don’t Cry Out Loud to check it out. She also managed to out disco diva both Fantasia and LaToya London, which is now small feat.

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(9) Carly Smithson: (Season 7) Classy and seasoned, Carly had been around the block a few times by the time she hit the American Idol stage. This led her to sound amazing, but sometimes like a studio singer, not a performer connected emotionally to her song. She still had a voice that could take on any song with ease. Her best numbers were her subtle ballads like Blackbird during Beatles week.

(8) Jennifer Hudson: (Season 3) She’s won an Oscar for her singing since she was on American Idol, so you’d think she’d be number one. However, her run on Idol was where she was still learning to hone her performing skills and the best ways to show off her tremendous voice. It’s so amazing that we get to hear Jennifer’s CD and watch her in movies. She doesn’t care where she falls on an American Idol ranking, her career is set.

(7) LaToya London: (Season 3) The best range this show has ever heard belongs to this lovely lady right here. For me she has one of the most stunning voices I have ever heard. She was also an amazing performer, and was one of the shocking 4th place boots that we always hear about. She’s still hit the highest note we’ve ever heard on the show and took on songs like All By Myself with complete ease.

(6) Tamyra Gray: (Season 1) Coming out first in the semi-finals of the first season of American Idol had to be nerve racking, however, Tamyra set the bar so high that she still seemed like the one to beat when the semis was over. Tamyra had an amazing voice, range, and technique. She impressed each and every week and really gave Kelly Clarkson a run for her money. She lost some steam during her last week, which I think cost her the final. She was the first shocking 4th place boot.

(5) Fantasia Burrino: (Season 3) Fantasia had one of the most unique tones we ever had on the show, because of that it was very polarizing. Either way, you can’t deny her powerhouse vocals and amazing range. She was always absolutely consistent on the show and new how to pick the right songs for her voice. She had no trouble with the winner’s single, which is still the hardest winner’s single we’ve ever had on American Idol.

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(4) Jordin Sparks: (Season 6) Getting down to the kind of talent that is in this top 5, it was really hard to decide who goes where. Jordin might not have been as consistent as Fantasia, but she had more moments than Fantasia did. I Who Have Nothing is one of the most amazing moments on American Idol and Jordin pulled it off twice with complete ease. She has an incredible range and could hold out a note like nobodies business. Just amazing.

(3) Carrie Underwood: (Season 4) I toyed around with Jordin and Carrie, especially since Carrie didn’t really improve her performance skills till after American Idol, however Carrie Underwood had one of the cleanest runs on American Idol ever, vocally speaking. She had Alone, Independence Day, Cryin’, Trouble, God Bless the Broken Road, and more! There are only a couple performances in there that keep her from ranking higher, and she still has the longest held note on Idol ever.

(2) Melinda Doolittle: (Season 6) Melinda was the most vocally consistent person this show ever had. She never hit a wrong note or chose a bad run. She was completely solid. That said, she didn’t have quite the range the other girls in the top 5 had. Despite, incredible performance after incredible performance, she didn’t have as many moments. She could perform the crap out of any and every song she touched, and she always had an amazing handle on the classics. Then the next week, she could take on Bon Jovi like it was written for her.

(1) Kelly Clarkson: (Season 1) It’s hard to top the first, especially when the first didn’t hit a single note wrong during her entire run on the show, even when she had a terrible soar throat. She can fight through anything and any song you throw at her. She took on Mariah Carey and Celine Dion songs like they were easy. She could turn any song into an amazing vocal moment, and her range seemed endless. It’s no mistake that she has had such an amazing career after American Idol. She’s not just the best voice from American Idol, she’s one of the best voices of our entire generation.