Celebrities who started off in Talent Shows

The reasons why talent shows are a hit because they give hope to those who have talents that need to be discovered. The downside to these talent shows is that you compete amongst equally-talented individuals who share similar dreams.

Joining talent shows is not an easy feat. Thus, we hold these celebrities close to our heart because they just did not become famous out of nowhere. Like everyone else who had a dream, they had to go through all the rigorous process and scrutiny that talent shows bring. They prove to us that dreams do pay off.

Here are some famous celebrities that started off in talent shows:

Beyonce (Star Search, 1993)

Even before Beyonce became Queen B, a twelve-year old girl joined a talent show called Star Search. Together with Destiny Child co-member Kelly Rowland, they were in a group called Girl's Tyme. Ironically, they didn't win the competition. They lost to a an all-boy group called Skelenton Crew.

Carrie Underwood (American Idol, 2005)

Back in 2005, Carrie auditioned for American Idol and she was this simple farm girl who just loved to sing. She won the fourth season of American Idol, where Simon Cowell predicted that she would win and that she will become a famous country artist. True enough, Carrie won, and a decade later, she has made a mark in both country and music, bagging Grammy awards left and right. Sources say, she now earns more than the current American Idol judges, including then-judge Mariah Carey.

Famous artists who also came from American Idol are Kelly Clarkson and Jennifer Hudson.

Christina Aguilera (Star Search, 1990)

Now judging a talent show herself (The Voice) and dubbed as one of the most beautiful voices in our generation, Christina started early. She was 10 years old back in 1990 and singing "A Sunday Kind of Love). Unfortunately, Christina didn't win but she came in second place. Three years after, she joined the Mickey Mouse Show together with Britney Spears, Justin Timberlake, etc. The rest is history.

Britney Spears (Star Search, 1992)

Two years after Cristina's stint in Star Search, a 10-year-old Britney Spears sang "Love Can Build a Bridge" looking adorable in a huge black bow. She also joined the Mickey Mouse Club and her song "Hit Me Baby One More Time" opened up new doors for pop music history.

Lucy Hale (American Juniors, 2003)

You know her as Aria in Pretty Little Liars but her first on-screen appearance was actually in a talent show. American Juniors was a youth mimic of American Idol made by FOX where it would hail five winners. Lucy was one of them and together with the 4 other winners, they made a pop group and recorded their own album.

Pentatonix (Sing-Off, 2011)

The Youtube a cappella quintet sensation, Pentatonix, did not start from YouTube. Instead, they joined the talent show, Sing-Off back in 2011 where they sang, " Telephone" a cappella style. They won the competition and has been touring and releasing albums. Every time they perform on stage, they never fail to perform "Telephone" as tribute to where they started.

One Direction (The X-Factor UK, 2011)

During the Series 7 of the top UK show, The X-Factor, Harry Styles, Zayn Malik, Liam Payne, Louis Tomlinson and Niall Horan all enter as solo artists. Unfortunately, the judges didn't see much potential in them individually. Luckily, through the ingenuity of Simon Cowell and Nicola Scherzinger, they grouped the boys together and made them into One Direction. The boys placed third in the competition but hey, they are now one of the most successful boybands in the generation.

Great work yet again Simon Cowell and Nicole Scherzinger. Simon, with his prediction on Carrie Underwood and the One Direction Boys, only goes to show he is the master when it comes to talent shows. I wonder who he will see as the potential star in his new DJ talent show soon called Ultimate DJ.