American Idol is the star among the star-makers. For most alums of the wildly popular reality TV show, fame comes regardless of whether they win the competition or not. But the fact that David Cook did win during his stint on the program could only have added to his success. If his current position in the industry is anything to go by, his performance on American Idol was just a sample of what this pop rock star could really do.

David Cook: A Different Mix

"I'm just going to let the music speak for itself."

American Idol is the star among the star-makers. For most alums of the wildly popular reality TV show, fame comes regardless of whether they win the competition or not. But the fact that David Cook did win during his stint on the program could only have added to his success. If his current position in the industry is anything to go by, his performance on American Idol was just a sample of what this pop rock star could really do.

David Cook: Early Starter

Many adult celebrities today discovered their talent young, and Cook is one such person. Born David Roland Cook in Houston, Texas on December 20, 1982, he was performing at school functions as early as second grade. Musical theater became his primary stage all through primary school, and then at Blue Springs South High School; he is credited with roles in high school productions of plays like West Side Story and The Music Man.

Picking up his first guitar at age 13, however, drastically changed his artistic course. His musical theater track got switched to rock and roll, especially when he formed his first band, Axium, at 15 with friend Bobby Kerr on drums. Axium went on to record locally popular songs like Hold and winning area competitions before fizzling out in 2006.

Although he received a scholarship for theater at the University of Central Missouri, he eventually graduated from the university's graphic design program. While there, Cook was able to record enough songs for a solo album, Analog Heart, which earned a few fans when it was distributed locally. He had finished recording enough material for a second album when he made it to the televised portion of the American Idol competition.

David Cook, America's Idol

Everything changed when he showed up at the Nebraska auditions for the seventh season of American Idol. His rendition of Livin' On a Prayer (originally by Bon Jovi) sent a then unknown David Cook all the way to Hollywood. Once there, his version of Edwin McCain's I'll Be got him the running to be the next American Idol. He would go on to win with a 12% vote margin over final competitor David Archuleta on May 21, 2008.

Less than a week after his landslide win, Cook was already every bit the music industry star. With a whopping eleven songs simultaneously on the Billboard Hot 100 charts, he holds the current record for most songs on the listing at any one time. Almost a million downloads of his songs were recorded in the first week of selling alone.

By November of that year, the David Cook debut album was released with numerous music industry heavyweights contributing to the production. Light On, the first single of the album, was quick to climb the charts. In January 2009, the album earned certified platinum status from the RIAA for sales exceeding one million units.

Did You Know That...

• ...brain cancer is one of Cook's biggest charity causes? He lost his elder brother Adam to a brain tumor in May 2009, and has since raised thousands of dollars to help fund research on the condition.
• ...David Cook wasn't even supposed to audition for American Idol? His younger brother Andrew was supposed to be the only one to audition, but David put his name in as well upon prompting from his mother.
• ...he puts his degree to good use? He designed his own album art for his pre-Idol debut album.

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