Was it really almost 10 years ago that the big-voiced, big-boned singer that Gladys Knight dubbed "the velvet teddy bear" won "American Idol?" Yes, Birmingham's own Ruben Studdard took that coveted prize in 2003, and he's still going strong.
 

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His latest album, "Letters From Birmingham," is a concept album inspired by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s "Letters from a Birmingham Jail." We think King would be proud of the association, as Studdard is not just a crooner, but an philanthropist who has started a foundation to help kids get scholarships and become a tireless advocate for sickle cell anemia awareness.

Here's more on today's "In-Studio Jam" artist.

BORN: Christopher Theodore Ruben Studdard in Frankfurt am Maim, Germany.

BIG BREAK: Becoming the "American Idol" of 2003. Studdard actually accompanied a friend to the Nashville auditions. His rendition of "Ribbon in the Sky" made him a local finalist, and then he went on to win the show.

EDUCATION: Alabama A&M, where he went not on a music scholarship but a football scholarship.

BACK STORY: Although he went to Alabama A&M on a football scholarship, he was a voice major. He was already singing in a local Birmingham, Alabama jazz band and making demos when he was called to the "Idol" stage.

Source: Black America Web | Tonya Pendleton