It was also the biggest U.S. single of 2003, selling over one million copies and reaching six times platinum status in Canada as well as number one in New Zealand.

[3] In addition to Studdard and Aiken, Kimberley Locke, Joshua Gracin, Kimberly Caldwell, and Carmen Rasmusen all signed with various record labels.

Radio DJ Angie Martinez was originally signed up as a fourth judge,[17] but quit after a few days, stating that "it became too uncomfortable for me to tell someone else to give up on their dream.

"[18] Amber Riley was rejected by producers and did not get to audition for the judges,[19] but later went on to co-star on the television series Glee as Mercedes Jones.

The remaining 48 boys chose from The Carpenters' "Superstar," Seal's "Kiss from a Rose," and Barry Manilow's "Tryin' to Get the Feeling Again," while the remaining 32 girls chose from Melissa Manchester's "Don't Cry Out Loud," Freda Payne's "Band of Gold," and Dionne Warwick's "You'll Never Get to Heaven (If You Break My Heart)."

Nine of those who failed at any of previous stages, including the Hollywood rounds and the initial regional auditions, were given one more chance to perform again in the Wild Card show.

Each of the three judges put one contestant from the Wild Card group through to the top 12, with the final one selected by the public vote.

Ryan Seacrest also added fuel by mistakenly announcing the difference in vote count first as 13,000, then 1,335, but eventually revealed later to be around 130,000.

[23] In an interview prior to the start of the fifth season, executive producer Nigel Lythgoe revealed that Clay Aiken had led the fan voting from the wild card week onward until the finale.

[24] There was controversy when contestant Frenchie Davis was disqualified from the competition after it was revealed that she had once posed for topless photos on the Internet.

The Sex, Lies and Paulatics of One of America's Idols, that he and judge Paula Abdul had had an affair while he was on the show and that this contributed to his removal.

A subsequent investigation by an independent counsel hired by Fox "could not corroborate the evidence or allegations provided by Mr. Clark or any witnesses".

[27] Paula Abdul was therefore considered exonerated but an "enhanced non-fraternization policy" was put in place after the investigation.

Shortly after the end of the contest, Studdard sued 205 Flava, Inc. for $2 Million dollars for using his image for promotional purposes.

205 Flava responded by alleging that Studdard had accepted over $10,000 in return for wearing 205 shirts, and produced eight cashed checks to validate their claim.