Idol Chatter & Voice Views

Way back in her Road to Hollywood video, Candice Glover said she was hoping the third time would be the charm.

She’d auditioned for Idol in Season 10, made it to Hollywood, advanced to the Top 60, but got cut before the voting rounds.

She’d auditioned for Idol in Season 11, made it to the Vegas round of 40, but again, failed to make the semifinals.

Candice Glover is congratulated by Angie Miller, Ryan Seacrest and other cast members after being named the Season 12 American Idol Thursday night. (AP Photo)

But she watched friends like Jessica Sanchez sing their way to success on the show.

And she continued working, not only on her singing, but on her image, her interview skills, her style.

The goal, Candice told her hometown newspaper last year, was to make herself “bulletproof” to the Idol process.

Bulletproof indeed.

Candice Glover is overcome with emotion after being named the Season 12 American Idol Thursday night. (AP Photo)

When the confetti fell Thursday night, it was raining down on the 23-year-old from St. Helena Island, S.C., as she tried her best to sing “I Am Beautiful” through the emotion of being named the Season 12 American Idol.

The song will be her first single. Moments before, Ryan Seacrest announced that pre-orders are already being taken for Candice’s solo album.

It was a well-deserved victory for a young woman who wowed the judges in her Charlotte audition and continued delivering one impressive vocal after another through Hollywood Week, Vegas, the semifinals and the finals.

I grade each Idol performance. I never gave Candice less than a B– all season. Translation: She never stumbled. Not once.

And by the time she finished singing a brilliant version of “I Who Have Nothing” Wednesday night, it was crystal clear.

Of the final two, she won the night. Among the Season 12 cast, she was the best singer.

The only question was whether she’d also be the most popular.

Because on American Idol, being the best singer doesn’t necessarily translate into winning the crown.

Just ask Crystal Bowersox. Or Jessica Sanchez. Or Adam Lambert.

This year it did. For once, the best singer prevailed.

And in that sense, American Idol won as well.