With the July 21st release of her sophomore project Battlefield (also the title-track of her first single), Jordin Sparks is ready for follow-up musical combat showcasing a new lookand a confident maturity. The album was mostly recorded in New York, Los Angeles and Nashville with marquis collaborators Dr. Luke, T-Pain, Stargate and Max Martin.
Sparks was driven by the arts from a young age—but no one could have imagined just how fast ambition would rev into realization by the time the singer reached her mid-teens. Born in Phoenix, her father was an NFL player for the New York Giants and Dallas Cowboys, giving Sparks a first-hand view of life in the public eye. Early on, she demonstrated determination to score a musical touchdown, winning a number of talent competitions, including Gospel Music Association’s GMA Academy, NBC/PAX TV’s “America's Most Talented Kids,” Colgate Country Showdown and the Drug Free Arizona Superstar Search. In her home state, she was named Best Young Artist for three years running.
But it was Sparks’ audition for season six of “American Idol” in summer 2006 when the then-16-year-old moved into the fast lane toward international acclaim. After winning KSAZ-TV’s “Arizona Idol” contest and ultimately became the youngest victor on the nation’s No. 1 TV show in May 2007, at age 17.
On the heels of becoming the youngest American Idol winner, Jordin released her self-titled debut album in November 2007 on 19 Recordings/Jive Records, and the critically-acclaimed Jordin Sparks went on to sell over 1.6 million copies worldwide, earning U.S. platinum status, and spawning three Top 5 hits on Billboard’s Pop singles chart including: Tattoo, No Air, and One Step At A Time. Cumulatively, these popular singles have sold almost 9 million downloads/ringtones.
In a year of winning America’s biggest singing competition, completing a series of national and international tours, Jordin Sparks received further recognition as a talented singer in her own right: in addition to winning an American Music Award for Favorite Adult Contemporary Artist and receiving two MTV Video Music Award nominations for Best Female Video and Best New Artist; she earned one of the music industry’s highest honors with a Grammy nomination for Best Pop Collaboration With Vocals for No Air in 2008. “I will sing that song [No Air] for the rest of my life,” Sparks notes. “It took my breath away the first time I heard it. It can be applied to so many situations. I’ve heard stories from wives whose husbands are away at war, people going through break-ups or who have lost someone. I always wanted to touch just one person through my music, so this is such a cool thing.”
Another high mark for the singer came in April 2008, when she toured with Alicia Keys in the U.S., and again in New Zealand in December. “Listening to The Diary of Alicia Keys inspired me, because I wrote a lot of poetry, and realized that it can become music, a song,” Sparks says. “She told me, ‘I consider myself a big sister, and I want to thank you,’ and I said, ‘You’re thanking me?!” Next came a co-headlining stateside outing with Jesse McCartney. “Here’s this heart-throb, which was a totally different experience. The crowds were smaller, more intimate—which gave me a new way to connect.”
Currently Sparks joins the Jonas Brothers for the North American leg of their 52-date tour, sponsored by Mike and Ike candies and Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foundation which is helping to raise funds for children with cancer. This partnership is especially important to her as she has unfortunately had many people close to her in her life diagnosed with cancer.
After all her success thus far, Jordin still is in disbelief of it all. She says, “It’s been two years and I still wake up and I’m like, am I really doing this? Did this really happen? I get to do this for a living? I don’t know that I’ll ever get used to it. Every day is still such a thrill!”
Sparks was driven by the arts from a young age—but no one could have imagined just how fast ambition would rev into realization by the time the singer reached her mid-teens. Born in Phoenix, her father was an NFL player for the New York Giants and Dallas Cowboys, giving Sparks a first-hand view of life in the public eye. Early on, she demonstrated determination to score a musical touchdown, winning a number of talent competitions, including Gospel Music Association’s GMA Academy, NBC/PAX TV’s “America's Most Talented Kids,” Colgate Country Showdown and the Drug Free Arizona Superstar Search. In her home state, she was named Best Young Artist for three years running.
But it was Sparks’ audition for season six of “American Idol” in summer 2006 when the then-16-year-old moved into the fast lane toward international acclaim. After winning KSAZ-TV’s “Arizona Idol” contest and ultimately became the youngest victor on the nation’s No. 1 TV show in May 2007, at age 17.
On the heels of becoming the youngest American Idol winner, Jordin released her self-titled debut album in November 2007 on 19 Recordings/Jive Records, and the critically-acclaimed Jordin Sparks went on to sell over 1.6 million copies worldwide, earning U.S. platinum status, and spawning three Top 5 hits on Billboard’s Pop singles chart including: Tattoo, No Air, and One Step At A Time. Cumulatively, these popular singles have sold almost 9 million downloads/ringtones.
In a year of winning America’s biggest singing competition, completing a series of national and international tours, Jordin Sparks received further recognition as a talented singer in her own right: in addition to winning an American Music Award for Favorite Adult Contemporary Artist and receiving two MTV Video Music Award nominations for Best Female Video and Best New Artist; she earned one of the music industry’s highest honors with a Grammy nomination for Best Pop Collaboration With Vocals for No Air in 2008. “I will sing that song [No Air] for the rest of my life,” Sparks notes. “It took my breath away the first time I heard it. It can be applied to so many situations. I’ve heard stories from wives whose husbands are away at war, people going through break-ups or who have lost someone. I always wanted to touch just one person through my music, so this is such a cool thing.”
Another high mark for the singer came in April 2008, when she toured with Alicia Keys in the U.S., and again in New Zealand in December. “Listening to The Diary of Alicia Keys inspired me, because I wrote a lot of poetry, and realized that it can become music, a song,” Sparks says. “She told me, ‘I consider myself a big sister, and I want to thank you,’ and I said, ‘You’re thanking me?!” Next came a co-headlining stateside outing with Jesse McCartney. “Here’s this heart-throb, which was a totally different experience. The crowds were smaller, more intimate—which gave me a new way to connect.”
Currently Sparks joins the Jonas Brothers for the North American leg of their 52-date tour, sponsored by Mike and Ike candies and Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foundation which is helping to raise funds for children with cancer. This partnership is especially important to her as she has unfortunately had many people close to her in her life diagnosed with cancer.
After all her success thus far, Jordin still is in disbelief of it all. She says, “It’s been two years and I still wake up and I’m like, am I really doing this? Did this really happen? I get to do this for a living? I don’t know that I’ll ever get used to it. Every day is still such a thrill!”