Background and career
Christopher Theodore Ruben Studdard (born September 12, 1978) is an American singer and actor. He rose to fame as the winner of the second season of American Idol and received a Grammy Award nomination in 2003 for Best Male R&B Vocal Performance for his recording of "Superstar". In the years following Idol, Studdard has released seven studio albums, including his platinum-selling debut, Soulful, and the top-selling gospel follow-up, I Need an Angel. He is most well known for his recording career, which has produced hits including "Flying Without Wings", "Sorry 2004", and "Change Me", but he has also segued into television and stage work. Most notably, he starred as Fats Waller in a national tour revival of Ain't Misbehavin', which spawned a Grammy-nominated soundtrack. In 2013, Studdard appeared as a contestant on the fifteenth season of weight-loss competition show The Biggest Loser. He later signed to Verve Records and collaborated with the label's chairman, David Foster, on Studdard's sixth studio album, Unconditional Love, in 2014. That album received strong reviews as a return-to-form and included a tour with Lalah Hathaway. In 2018, Studdard, who has long been compared to R&B singer Luther Vandross, released a cover album called Ruben Sings Luther and launched his Always & Forever national tour. He made his Broadway theater debut with his Idol runner-up Clay Aiken in December 2018 in Ruben & Clay's First Annual Christmas Carol Family Fun Pageant Spectacular Reunion Show (aka Ruben & Clay's Christmas Show) at the Imperial Theatre. In 2023, Studdard and Aiken reunited for Twenty The Tour, a joint nationwide tour in celebration of the twentieth anniversary of their American Idol debut. Studdard also continues to tour the United States in support of his Ruben Sings Luther album, and in 2023, launched his eighth studio album, The Way I Remember It.
Studdard was born in Frankfurt, West Germany, to American parents, while his father was stationed there with the U.S. Army, and grew up in Birmingham, Alabama. Some sources give Birmingham, Alabama as his birthplace, but Studdard has said in interviews that he was born in Frankfurt while his father was stationed there with the U.S. Army. The youngest son of two teachers, at the age of three, he sang for the first time at the Rising Star Baptist Church in his hometown of Birmingham. He continued singing gospel in church, performing solos as a child while his mother sang in the local choir. While at Huffman High School, he played football for which he received a scholarship to Alabama A&M University. While at Alabama A&M, he joined the Omicron Delta chapter of Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia, the men's music fraternity of North America. After growing up listening to his mother's Donny Hathaway albums, Fred Hammond, and gospel music, Studdard began to pursue a career in the music industry, majoring in voice studies at Alabama A&M. He sang with Just a Few Cats, a popular local Birmingham jazz and R&B band founded by members of Ray Reach's UAB Jazz Ensemble, along with other local musicians. Years later, Studdard stated: "A lot of people don't realize how hard I was trying to get into the business before American Idol. I was making demos and just working so hard." A backup singer from Just a Few Cats asked him to accompany her to Nashville, Tennessee for an audition on the 2003 second season of American Idol.
When auditioning, Studdard sang Stevie Wonder's "Ribbon in the Sky". On American Idol, he impressed viewers with his performances of the Leon Russell/Bonnie Bramlett song "Superstar" and the Peabo Bryson/Regina Belle duet "A Whole New World". During his time on the show, Studdard received praise from music legends such as Lionel Richie, Neil Sedaka, Robin Gibb of the Bee Gees, Luther Vandross, and Gladys Knight. During the televised competition, Studdard gained the nickname "Velvet Teddy Bear" and was noted for his shirts printed with "205," the telephone area code of his hometown of Birmingham. He won the contest over runner-up Clay Aiken by only 134,000 votes out of 24,000,000 cast in the May 2003 finale, becoming the second American Idol winner. Alabama Governor Bob Riley declared March 11, 2003, as "Ruben Studdard Day".
Studdard released his first single, a cover of Westlife's "Flying Without Wings" (which he had sung on the American Idol finale), produced by The Underdogs and Babyface. Fueled largely by sales, it debuted at number two on the Billboard Hot 100. In December 2003, advance orders for his album Soulful topped the one million mark before it was released in stores. The album debuted at number one on the Billboard 200 album chart that month, selling over 400,000 copies in its first week and attaining the second highest first-week sales of any American Idol winner and the highest ever by a debut male R&B act. The single "Sorry 2004" from this album found substantial airplay, reaching number nine in the Billboard Hot 100 and number two on the Billboard R&B singles chart. Studdard received a Grammy Award nomination in December 2003 for Best Male R&B Vocal Performance for "Superstar", nominated alongside his idol Luther Vandross, who ultimately won the category. In March 2004, Ruben won the NAACP Outstanding New Artist award.
Studdard released the gospel album I Need an Angel on November 23, 2004. The title track and first single "I Need an Angel" was a cover of 2002 single performed by R&B singer Daniel DeBourg and written by R. Kelly. The album sold over 96,000 copies in its first week, entering the Gospel charts at number one and number twenty on the Billboard 200 chart. It since has sold over 500,000 copies, securing Gold certification from the Recording Industry Association of America. It was also number one on the 2005 Billboard Year-End Gospel Albums Chart. In March 2005, Studdard filed a lawsuit against his godfather and business advisor Ronald Edwards. The suit alleges that Edwards ran up $156,000 on Studdard's credit cards and stole $90,000 from his checking account. Edwards filed a countersuit. On June 15, 2006, Studdard was awarded $500,000 for personal losses and another $1.5 million in punitive damages. Between his second and third albums, Studdard began a diet and fitness program to deal with his weight, out of concern for a family history of diabetes and hypertension, resulting in his losing over 70 pounds on a vegetarian diet. In 2004, Studdard made a cameo in the film Scooby-Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed, singing a cover of Earth, Wind & Fire's "Shining Star". He also made guest appearances on TV shows including Life on a Stick, 8 Simple Rules, One on One, All of Us and Eve.
Studdard's third album, The Return, was released in October 2006. Returning to R&B music on this album, Studdard collaborated with a variety of producers, including Scott Storch, Stargate, and Ne-Yo. Studdard also co-wrote several songs on the album. The Return sold 71,000 copies in its first week to open at number eight on the Billboard 200 album chart. The lead single, "Change Me", reached number one on Billboard's Urban Contemporary chart, while the follow-up track, "Make Ya Feel Beautiful", also made a strong impression on the R&B charts. Studdard continued to tour, saying he would play a variety of music: "Coming out to my show is like coming to my house. I'll play the songs I love. It's like a party. For me, a party has all different types of music happening." Studdard appeared on the finale of American Idol season 6 in May 2007. He spent a few weeks touring with Robin Givens in the comedy-drama Heaven I Need a Hug and prepared to take on the role of Fats Waller in a national tour of Ain't Misbehavin' in 2008. The tour is scheduled to begin November 17, 2008, in Atlanta, GA, and end May 14, 2009, in Syracuse, NY. In December 2007, Studdard had been dropped from his record company, J Records, due to poor sales of The Return and "[falling] short of expectations". He remained under contract with 19 Recordings and was assigned the high-profile position of performing the seventh season farewell song on American Idol, a recording of Kenny Loggins' "Celebrate Me Home", in a new version produced by Terry Lewis and Jimmy Jam. Studdard performed "Celebrate Me Home" live on May 20, 2008, at the Nokia Theatre for the first night of the two-night grand finale of American Idol's seventh season. In 2008, Studdard also collaborated with gospel singer Deitrick Haddon and duo Mary Mary on the hit gospel song "Love Him As I Do".
