American Idol's Past Winners

American Idol: Kelly Clarkson
Fred Prouser / Reuters / Corbis

How She Won
After performing Aretha Franklin's "Respect" and two of her own compositions in the final pairing, Clarkson beat Justin Guarini with 58% of the vote. In this photo, she chokes back tears during a performance of "A Moment Like This," the song written for the winner that season.

Get the Latest Photos from Time.com
Get TIME photos and pictures of the week delivered directly to your inbox.