Although William Hung was taken out before even passing the auditions of “American Idol,” his hilarious cover of Ricky Martin’s hit “She Bangs” ended up going viral. The young singer began getting approached by various record companies who wanted to ride the wave of his popularity and happily obliged them with an album that reached 34 on the U.S. charts.
William Hung definitely rode on some unfortunate Asian stereotypes to reach his level of fame and success at the time. He has since retired from music and is currently a crime analyst for the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department. Luckily, the hilarious singer managed to grab a cool half a million dollars on his way out the door and left quite a legacy on YouTube.
Danny Gokey - $600,000
Although Danny Gokey ended up in third place on "American Idol", he still managed to take the spotlight and make a moderately successful singing career for himself. The singer made both the judges and fans cry with his incredibly tragic story about his wife’s passing. After the show, Gokey was nominated for an American Country Music Award and a Grammy.
Since then, Gokey has signed on with Capitol Christian Music Group and continues releasing mostly Christian-oriented music. He’s still very much active as a singer, and his songs regularly reach millions of views on YouTube. The singer ended up receiving another Grammy Award nomination for Best Contemporary Christian Music Album.
Fantasia - $5 Million
This list could not be complete without the wonderful Fantasia, who ended up winning the third season of "American Idol" by a longshot. The beautiful and talented singer is admired by many and even garnered respect from her idol. She was called “Baby Patti LaBelle” by her mentor and iconic soul singer, Patti LaBelle, a title which she proudly carries to this day.
Fantasia is one of the most inspirational success stories to ever come through "American Idol", as she had to claw her way from a tragic childhood and functional illiteracy to reach her position. The singer is a multi-platinum artist and continues to star on the Billboard 200 chart many years after her initial marketing boost from appearing on the popular reality show.
Jordin Brianna Sparks - $10 Million
You knew we’d eventually get to Jordin Sparks, the award-winning singer who secured first place on the sixth season of "American Idol." What makes this talented musician so unique, is that she was the youngest winner in the show’s history, achieving her victory before she was even eighteen. After her win, Sparks released an album that sold over two million copies.
Jordin Brianna Sparks went on to release several best-selling singles. Her most successful song was “No Air,” which she recorded with Chris Brown. The single ended up becoming the third highest-selling single by any "American Idol" contestant, with over three million digital copies sold in the United States alone. Did we tell you she even won a Grammy?
Chris Daughtry - $10 Million
Although Chris Daughtry came quite short of winning the fifth season of "American Idol" (he ended up in fourth place), he used this opportunity to become one of the most successful ones to come from the famous reality TV show. With a net worth of $10 million, this man’s career is nothing short of a miracle, as he managed to surpass even the season’s winner.
Immediately after his appearance on "American Idol," Chris Daughtry was approached by RCA Records, who saw a lot of potential in the singer. He has since founded a band called Daughtry, and their self-titled album ended up becoming the fastest-selling debut rock record in history. This is probably the most successful fourth-place post-competition win of all time.