Ruben Studdard

After giving his fans a strong debut disc, R&B singer and former American Idol season two winner Ruben Studdard has been reportedly dropped from his record label. Studdard, who has fallen victim to lackluster sales, delivered three albums to J before he was bumped off the roster. His first J Record release ‘Soulful,’ released in 2003, is RIAA certified platinum. His 2004 gospel follow up, ‘I Need An Angel’ also had a notable return buy going gold. However sales of his 2006 disc ‘The Return’ have been unable to match his previous success, selling only 71,000 copies in its first week to open at #8 on the Billboard 200 album chart. The album has moved 235,000 units to date. 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 is preparing to take on the role of Fats Waller in a national tour of “Ain't Misbehavin'.” Theater has proven to be a popular career move for many "American Idol" standouts, most notably Fantasia, who has starred as Celie in the Broadway version of "The Color Purple." Diana DeGarmo has appeared in "Hairspray," Frenchie Davis was featured in "Rent" and Tamyra Gray won roles in both "Rent" and "Bombay Dreams."