(Photo: AP / Phil McCarten)The twelve remaining contestants pose for photographs at an American Idol celebration of this seasons' top 12 finalists held at Astra West Thursday March 8, 2007 in West Hollywood, Calif. They are, front row from left to right; Brandon Rogers, Blake Lewis and Chris Richardson. Back row from left; Chris Sligh, Haley Scarnato, Melinda Doolittle, Jordin Sparks, Sanjaya Malakar. Stephanie Edwards, Phil Stacey, LaKisha Jones and Gina Glocksen.
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Several Christians made the big cut to make it as the final 12 competitors in this year's American Idol, one of America’s most watched television programs.
Jordin Sparks, Melinda Doolittle, and Chris Sligh have all sung their way into America's homes and each of them share a link to the Gospel Music Association (GMA) to some degree.
The trio stands as an achievement for Christians as they help break stereotypes in mainstream media, which has often looked down upon the Christian genre as lower in quality. And, in addition to proving that people of faith can sing, these contestants are also becoming witnesses for Christ.
“I want them (non-believers) to know that God loves them, Jesus died for them, and that God has a plan for their life,” explained Sparks in her online e-profile at the GMA website. “I want them to see and hear that being a Christian and singing about it isn't weird!”
Each of the three artists has strong Christian accolades backing themselves.
Sparks and Sligh both have roots back to the GMA Music in the Rockies - a showcase event for aspiring, often unsigned, songwriters and artists in the Christian music industry. Today's renowned professional artists also attend to help these amateurs mature.
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Sligh took home first place in the Pop-Adult Contemporary/Inspirational Song category during the conference in 2003 for writing "Only You Remain."
Sparks became the Overall Spotlight Winner at the 2004 GMA Academy in Washington, D.C., and grabbed top prize in the Country/Southern Gospel category.
As for Doolittle, she has performed as a backup singer in Nashville, home to most of today's Christian chief artists.
Now that they have all reached the current round, the twelve remaining singers on American Idol will all compete together and be eliminated one by one every week until a winner is crowned.
Last week, Sligh resonated one of Christian music's greatest hits by singing dcTalk's "We Just Wanna Be Loved."
The competition resumed last night on its broadcasting station, FOX. Tonight, at 9 p.m. ET, the live results show will announce who has been slashed from the contest.
