Stephanie Edwards is an American singer and was the eleventh-place finalist on sixth season of ''

American Idol ''American Idol'' is an American singing competition television series created by Simon Fuller, produced by Fremantle North America and 19 Entertainment, and distributed by Fremantle North America. It aired on Fox from June 11, 2002, to Ap ...

''. She is from

Savannah A savanna or savannah is a mixed woodland-grassland (i.e. grassy woodland) ecosystem characterised by the trees being sufficiently widely spaced so that the Canopy (forest), canopy does not close. The open canopy allows sufficient light to rea ...

, Georgia and first began singing around the age of two or three. After graduating from

Windsor Forest High School Windsor Forest High School is a public high school in the Windsor Forest section of Savannah, Georgia, United States. Managed by the Savannah-Chatham County School Board of Education, its attendance area includes the southside Savannah neighborhood ...

, Edwards pursued vocal instruction for a month and then went on to appear at the

Apollo Theatre The Apollo Theatre is a Grade II listed West End theatre, on Shaftesbury Avenue in the City of Westminster, in central London.

in New York when she competed in "

It's Showtime at the Apollo English auxiliary verbs are a small set of English verbs, which include the English modal verbs and a few others. Although definitions vary, as generally conceived an auxiliary lacks inherent semantic meaning but instead modifies the meaning of an ...

".Morris, Amy (February 20, 2007). "Stephanie Edwards: Savannah Idol local singer vies for title of 'American Idol'", ''

Savannah Morning News The ''Savannah Morning News'' is a daily newspaper in Savannah, Georgia. It is published by Gannett. The motto of the paper is "Light of the Coastal Empire and Lowcountry". The paper serves Savannah, its metropolitan area, and parts of South Ca ...

'', p. A1. Prior to ''American Idol'', she had won most singing contests she had entered, including "Savannah Star" in 2005.

''American Idol''

Edwards first auditioned for the reality show,

, in

Memphis Memphis most commonly refers to: * Memphis, Egypt, a former capital of ancient Egypt * Memphis, Tennessee, a major American city Memphis may also refer to: Places United States * Memphis, Alabama * Memphis, Florida * Memphis, Indiana * Memp ...

, Tennessee. She is the only one of the top 12 contestants on ''Idol'' not presented in the TV tryouts preceding the naming of the top 24 semi-finalists. During the initial broadcast for the Top 24, Edwards was praised for her rendition of “ How Come U Don't Call Me Anymore,” by Prince. For her second semifinal performance, Edwards attempted the song “

Dangerously in Love ''Dangerously in Love'' is the debut solo studio album by American singer Beyoncé. It was released on June 20, 2003, by Columbia Records and Music World Entertainment. During the recording of Destiny's Child's third studio album '' Survivor'' ( ...

,” to which

Randy Jackson Randall Darius Jackson (born June 23, 1956) is an American record executive and television presenter, perhaps best known as a judge on ''American Idol'' from 2002 to 2013. Jackson began his career in the 1980s as a session musician playing bas ...

exclaimed that she "sang her face off," although he felt her performance was too much like the original. The following week, Edwards pulled off another winning performance with the song " Sweet Thing". According to the judges, she was "darn near flawless and had a good command of the stage." On March 8, 2007, Edwards made it into Top 12. For the first theme week, she performed

Diana Ross Diana Ross (born March 26, 1944) is an American singer and actress. She rose to fame as the lead singer of the vocal group the Supremes, who became Motown's most successful act during the 1960s and one of the world's best-selling girl groups o ...

' song "

Love Hangover "Love Hangover" is a song by the Motown singer Diana Ross, recorded in 1975 and released as a single on March 16, 1976. It rose to number one on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 and Hot-Selling Soul Singles. It also hit number one on the Record World ...

." Edwards forgot her words at one point during the song. The judges bashed her arrangement of the song, saying that she teased them with the good part and then never delivered. Despite the criticism, Edwards secured herself a spot in the Top 11. She was eliminated from the show on March 21, 2007. She missed the summer tour along with Brandon Rogers.

''American Idol'' performances

Post-''American Idol''

After ''American Idol'', Edwards recorded a charity single called "On Our Way"McGinn, Andrew (April 23, 2008).
Back to school, studio for former 'Idol' finalist Stephanie Edwards
, ''

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'', p. D2. Retrieved February 15, 2011. which was written by Julie Wilde and became available in early-October 2007 as a CD single on

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. Sales of the album benefit the

Leukemia and Lymphoma Society The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society (LLS), a 501(c)(3) charitable organization founded in 1949, is the largest voluntary health organization dedicated to fighting blood cancer in the world. The LLS's mission is to cure leukemia, lymphoma, Hodgkin's l ...

'
Light the Night Walk
Her second single, "Here I Am", was also written by Wilde. It was released in April 2008. Edwards performed the song on ''

American Idol Extra ''American Idol Extra'' is a television show that was shown on the Fox Reality Channel and Star! and billed as "the show that picks up right where ''American Idol'' leaves off". The program featured the first full-length interview with the most ...

.'' As of 2008, she was studying towards a psychology degree at

Armstrong Atlantic State University Armstrong may refer to: Places * Armstrong Creek (disambiguation), various places Antarctica * Armstrong Reef, Biscoe Islands Argentina * Armstrong, Santa Fe Australia * Armstrong, Victoria Canada * Armstrong, British Columbia * Armstrong, O ...

. In 2010, Edwards performed in the review show ''Southern Nights'' at the Savannah Theatre.Mobley, Chuck (March 18, 2010). "Stephanie Edwards to appear at Savannah Theatre", ''

'', p. E4. She sang several classics, such as Georgia on My Mind, Midnight Train to Georgia and At Last.

References

External links

*
The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society
{{DEFAULTSORT:Edwards, Stephanie 1987 births Living people 21st-century American singers American Idol participants Singers from Baltimore Singers from Georgia (U.S. state) 20th-century African-American women singers 20th-century American women singers 20th-century American singers 21st-century American women singers 21st-century African-American women singers