Top 11 Country Artists Who Got Their Start on ‘American Idol’

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American Idol will launch its 23rd season in early 2025, easily becoming one of the most popular reality TV talent shows in the years since the show began. American Idol, unlike some other singing competitions, has successfully launched the careers of numerous artists, especially those within country music.

Keep reading to find 11 artists who have enjoyed success in country music after their time on Idol.

11. Josh Gracin

Gracin came in fourth place on Season 2 of American Idol. Serving in the Marines at the time of his time on American Idol, Gracin left the show and finished his time in the military, before fully committing himself to a career in country music. Gracin signed with the now-closed Lyric Street Records, releasing two albums, both his eponymous debut in 2004, followed by We Weren’t Crazy in 2008. Now on his own, Gracin continues to release music, and perform.

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10. Colin Stough

Colin Stough came in third on Season 21 of American Idol in 2023. Stough didn’t waste any time in working on music, dropping “I Still Talk to Jesus” and moving from his native Mississippi to Nashville to focus solely on his career. Stough also released his debut EP, Promiseland, in October, followed by his second EP, Lookin’ for Home, which is out now.

“Each one of these songs is a piece of my heart, and they outline trials and tribulations that I’ve been through personally. They’ve made me into who I am today,” Stough said when the project was released. “The EP title ‘Lookin’ For Home’ comes from that feeling that something is missing – that no matter where you are, who you’re with, or what you’re doing, you feel like you don’t belong, and there’s something just over the horizon that would make it better.”

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9. Casey James

Casey James came in third on Season 9 of American Idol in 2010. Following his time on the show, James quickly got to work releasing music, dropping. James released “Let’s Don’t Call It A Night” in 2011, from his self-titled debut album, out in 2012.

In 2020, James announced he was part of a new trio, Texas Hill, joined by Season 7 winner of The Voice, Craig Wayne Boyd, and Season 10 runner-up on The Voice, Adam Wakefield.

“We all saw the benefit of bringing three different audiences together from a touring perspective, but none of us were committed to the band until we sat down and actually started making music together,” James told Billboard. “The first day that we really worked up a few songs to test the waters really sealed the deal for us. Hearing our voices blend together was something that got us all excited and, from that point on, we have all been 100 percent resolved to make it happen.”

In early 2023, Boyd exited the group.

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8. Kelly Clarkson

Kelly Clarkson isn’t technically a country music star, but her influence still runs rampant in the genre. Clarkson, who won the inaugural season of American Idol in 2022, quickly started releasing music, with her debut Thankful album going multi-platinum, and kicking off a lengthy string of successes that is still going strong more than 20 years later. Clarkson also hosts her own, award-winning television show, The Kelly Clarkson Show.

An outspoken fan of country music, Clarkson has collaborated with numerous artists over the years, including Brett Eldredge, Reba McEntire, Jason Aldean, Vince Gill, Jake Hoot, Trisha Yearwood, Kelsea Ballerini (with Carly Pearce) and more. Most recently, Clarkson teamed up with Terri Clark for a new version of Clark’s “If I Were You,” from the Grand Ole Opry member’s Take Two album.

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7. Kellie Pickler

Kellie Pickler not only found success in country music, after coming in sixth on Season 5 of American Idol in 2006, but in other forms of entertainment as well. In addition to hit singles like “Red High Heels,” “Didn’t You Know How Much I Loved You” and more, Pickler also found fame on TV.

In 2013, Pickler was crowned the 16th winner of Dancing With the Stars, along with her partner, Derk Hough. Pickler also co-hosted a TV daytime talk show, Pickler & Ben, and starred in the Hallmark movie, Christmas at Graceland, in 2018.

In 2022, Pickler became the midday host of SiriusXM’s The Highway, a position she held until her husband, Kyle Jacobs, tragically passed away in 2023.

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6. Noah Thompson

Noah Thompson was crowned the Season 20 winner of American Idol in 2022. After his time on Idol, Thompson, released his Middle of God Knows Where EP on Broken Bow Records, before deciding to continue his career as an independent artist.

“I am excited to officially announce that I have chosen to continue my career as an independent artist,” Thompson said in a video posted on social media. “I feel like I’ve been writing some of the best songs of my career, and I really can’t wait for you all to hear some of these new things that I’ve been working on …I’m also very excited to announce that a song that I wrote is being released by Luke Combs.”

That song is “Front Door Famous,” from Combs’ Father & Sons album, out now.

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5. Chayce Beckham

Chayce Beckham won Season 19 of American Idol in 2021. An original song, “23,” hit No. 1, after he performed the song during a live show, an early indication of the success waiting for him in country music. Beckham released his debut EP, Doin’ It Right, in 2022, followed by his first full-length album, Bad for Me, in April of 2024.

Beckham was also invited to join Luke Bryan as an opening act on Bryan’s massive Mind Of A Country Boy Tour.

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4. Gabby Barrett

Gabby Barrett came in third on Season 16 of American Idol in 2018, with her now-husband, Cade Foehner, also landing in the Top 5 that season. Barrett released her platinum-selling Goldmine album in 2020, which included her award-winning, record-setting, multi-platinum debut single, “I Hope.” Barrett followed that with “The Good Ones,” which also hit No. 1, and “Pick Me Up,” which became a Top 10 hit. It was, by her own admission, a happy whirlwind to have so much success so quickly after her time on Idol.

“It’s overwhelming but in the best way,” Barrett tells Entertainment Tonight. “This is one of those things where it’s hard to put into words because it doesn’t really feel real. When you work for so long towards something and it actually happens, it’s hard for me to switch gears because I’ve just been in the mode of trying to get to these places, getting on the award, and getting number one songs. Now that you’re actually at the pit stop, ‘We’re here, we’re making a stop.’ It’s like ‘Whoa!’ It’s really cool.”

Barrett’s sophomore Chapter & Verse album was released in early 2024.

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3. Lauren Alaina

Lauren Alaina was the runner-up on Season 10 of American Idol in 2011, coming in second to Scotty McCreery. Alaina immediately got busy, releasing her debut Wildflower album the following October, which included two Top 20 singles, “Like My Mother Does” and “Georgia Peaches.”

Alaina achieved her first No. 1 five years later, with “Road Less Traveled,” the title track of her sophomore album. In 2022, Alaina announced she was leaving her longtime record label, later signing with Big Loud to release her Unlocked EP in 2023.

More than any success with albums or singles, Alaina’s biggest career dream also came true in 2022, when she was inducted into the Grand Ole Opry.

“I don’t even know still how to explain what it means to me,” Alaina told Everything Nash. “My entire life, all I remember is being a little girl and thinking that I’ve gotta make it to the Grand Opry. If I ever get to the Grand Ole Opry, I will have made it. So to not only get there and get to perform, but to be welcomed into the family. It’s just unbelievable. It was my dad’s dream to play at the Grand Ole Opry, so I inherited it from him. And as a daddy’s girl, those are some big shoes to fill.

“It’s meant so much to me, and honestly, I will never, ever, ever achieve anything that means more to me than that, genuinely, ever,” she added. “It was the best day of my life.”

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2. Scotty McCreery

Scotty McCreery won Season 10 of American Idol in 2011, when he was just 17 years old. The North Carolina native released his Clear as Day album on Interscope Records, which included “I Love You This Big” and “The Trouble With Girls,” both Top 20 singles. He followed that project up with See You Tonight, out in 2013, which included two Top 10 hits, with the title track and “Feelin’ It.”

Unfortunately, when his next single, “Southern Belle,” failed to chart, McCreery was dropped from his record label. What could have been a disappointing end to a career for some, turned into determination for McCreery, who released “Five More Minutes” on his own, a song that became his first No.1 hit. Since then, McCreery has had a total of six chart-topping singles, plus a No. 1 album with his latest release, Rise and Fall.

With all of the highs and the lows, the Grand Ole Opry member is grateful for all that happened because of his time on American Idol.

“It’s been a wild ride,” McCreery said on The Jennifer Hudson Show. “I think if somebody would have told me back at 16, when I auditioned for the show that 13 years later you’ll still be doing it, writing country songs, touring the country, the world, having fun, I would have shook their hand in a heartbeat and said, ‘I’ll take that deal. This is fun.’”

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1. Carrie Underwood

Carrie Underwood was a college student at Northeastern State University in Oklahoma when her mother drove her and a friend to St. Louis, Missouri, to audition for American Idol in 2004. Underwood, who sang Bonnie Raitt’s “I Can’t Make You Love Me,” not only made it through to Hollywood, but was the Season 4 winner. Her debut Some Hearts album, released in 2005, quickly went multi-platinum, with her debut single, “Jesus, Take the Wheel,” becoming her first of many No. 1 hits.

In the almost 20 years since her time on American Idol, Underwood has continued to release multi-platinum albums, achieve more than 20 No. 1 singles, win numerous awards, sell-out massive tours, launch a Las Vegas residency, and more.

Although Underwood turned down part of her prize package — the use of a private jet — after she won American Idol, she still has one of her other prizes, a Ford Mustang, which she still uses today.

“I do still have the car that I won when I won American Idol,” Underwood said on Apple Music’s Today’s Country Radio with Kelleigh Bannen. “So I have my blue Mustang. And every once in a while something will happen where I’ll have my car getting serviced or whatever, and I’ll get to drive that car. And it always makes me want to drive it more, because it was such a pivotal point in my life. That was the car that I was driving around when I first moved to Tennessee, and I’m very, very glad I still have that car. Every time I get in it, I’m always like, ‘Why don’t I just drive this more often?’”

In the summer of 2024, Underwood announced she was returning to American Idol, this time as a judge, working alongside Luke Bryan and Lionel Richie.

“it feels like home,” Underwood teold Good Morning America. “There are so many people that even still work on the show that were there when I was a contestant. And I feel like being on both sides of the coin, I’ll be able to hopefully offer some insight and help and kind of offer a different viewpoint.”

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