About Ruben Studdard

Full name: Christopher Theodore Ruben Studdard.
Born: Sept. 12, 1978 on a U.S. Army base in Frankfurt, Germany.
Raised in Birmingham, Alabama; currently lives in Alabama.

Ruben's father was in the military and Ruben was born on a U.S. Army base in Germany. But the family moved to Birmingham, Alabama when Ruben was just nine months old. He was a three-year-old pre-schooler when he started singing with the choir at the Rising Star Baptist Church. By the age of seven he was singing at school functions, in various churches and at banquets and local events. His mother was a fan of Donny Hathaway, Luther Vandross and the O’Jays and Ruben learned to sing their songs. In high school, Ruben joined the football team as an offensive tackle and went back and forth between singing and sports. Eventually, he became more serious about singing and sang in a male quartet called Eternal Harmony that performed in a lot of talent shows around Birmingham. He eventually moved on to Alabama A&M University, where he majored in music. During his sophomore year, he dropped out of school to pursue a music career.

When a friend who wanted to audition for "American Idol" in Nashville asked Ruben to go with her, he went for emotional support, and also auditioned. Although she didn’t make it through to the second round of auditions, Ruben did, and kept making it through round after round on the show. He eventually survived every elimination, becoming a household name in the process and earning the nickname The Velvet Teddy Bear. And on May 21, 2003, he was crowned the winner of the second season of "American Idol." The show's runner-up was Clay Aiken, whom Ruben had become good friends with during the five months they spent together on the show.

Success on "American Idol" helped Ruben's recording career tremendously. His first single, "Flying Without Wings," debut at No. 2 on the Billboard charts when it was released in June 2003, and his debut album, Soulful, was released in December 2003. It debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard albums chart, selling over 400,000 copies during its first week in stores. This proved to be the highest point of his career, as his subsequent R&B and Gospel albums haven't come close to being as successful. However, he is still active as a recording artist, and has also branched out to acting. He's most known for having big roles in the musicals "Ain't Misbehavin" and "Heaven I Need a Hug."

Ruben married Surata McCants during a private ceremony on June 28, 2008. In November 2011, his attorney announced that the couple was going through a divorce. In January 2012, he released a song about the breakup called "June 28th (I'm Single)."
In March 2005, Ruben sued his godfather and business advisor Ronald Edwards, alleging that Edwards ran up $156,000 on Ruben's credit cards and stole $90,000 from his checking account. In June 2006, a judge awarded Ruben $500,000 for personal losses and $1.5 million in punitive damages.

2012: Letters From Birmingham
2009: Love Is
2006: The Return
2004: I Need and Angel
2003: Soulful

"I was the number one New Edition fan and in middle school I switched over to Boyz II Men. My father bought a lot of records, and that’s how I heard John Coltrane and Miles Davis. I became a big jazz fan." -- Ruben Studdard, from his official bio.