Kelly Clarkson "Already Gone"

Remember the great Feud of 2009? Of course you don't, but here's what you forgot didn't care about what happened during August 2009. Just before releasing "Already Gone", Kelly Clarkson wanted to shelve the ballad because she thought it sounded too similar to Beyonce's "Halo". Before joining Clarkson to co-write "Already Gone", Ryan Tedder worked with Beyonce on her I Am...Sasha Fierce album. One quick listen and you'd pick up notable similarities in "Halo" and "Already Gone": hand claps, mellow piano, and the drum rhythm. Clarkson didn't want to be accused of ripping off Miss Sasha Fierce and wanted to ditch the single. Her record company released it anyway and she blasted them and even ripped Tedder (who defended himself on Myspace -- remember that?). In the end, "Already Gone" went to #13 on the Hot 100 (#3 on Adult Contemporary) and finished #1 and #5 on the Adult Top 40 and Mainstream Top 40, respectfully. Tedder, you may recall, also went on to fame with One Republic. I think everything worked out just fine.

Lifehouse "You and Me"

We already covered American Idol's influence on Adult Contemporary music and to further illustrate that point, let's take a look at the AC Top 20 this week in 2006. Three of the Top 20 songs came from Idol alum (Kelly Clarkson, Taylor Hicks and Bo Bice). Coincidentally, Daniel Powter's "Bad Day" topped the chart and, while he wasn't an Idol contestant, the show used the song to play off the week's losing contestant. Another ballad, "You and Me" from Lifehouse, also remained in the Top 5 despite having been released a year earlier.

Kelly Clarkson "Miss Independent"

Fox stunned all the television networks when its reality singing contest American Idol: The Search for a Superstar caught fire during the summer of 2002. Rarely did summer television shows ever become a sensation, but Idol connected. The show made Simon Cowell, Paula Abdul, Randy Jackson, and Ryan Seacrest household names. Season 1 of Idol culminated with Kelly Clarkson defeating Justin Guarini on September 2, 2002. While Idol went on to change the way television networks programmed their schedules, it also changed the music business. Artists regularly appeared on the show hoping to promote their new single and theme nights helped introduce older music to a new audience. No format seemed to benefit from Idol more than Adult Contemporary who embraced the show's winners (and losers). Names like Daughtry, Carrie Underwood, Clay Aiken, and Season 1 winner Kelly Clarkson peppered the AC Chart. Clarkson alone charted more than a dozen AC singles including 2002's "Miss Independent" -- a song initially written for Christina Aguilera.

Kelly Clarkson "A Moment Like This"

Do you remember the name Brian Dunkleman? Dunkleman infamously co-hosted season one of American Idol alongside Ryan Seacrest only to disappear after Kelly Clarkson won the first season. His name became a joke as the show's popularity took off after he left leaving Seacrest to collect all the profits. Word is that Dunkleman resigned from the show just before the show was about to fire him.

Lauren Christy - "The Color of the Night"

One listen to Lauren Christy's "The Color of the Night" and you'll likely hear some similarities to Toni Braxton's "Unbreak My Heart".  The ballad only managed to top out at #24 on the Adult Contemporary Chart, but helped launch Christy's career in 1994. While Christy's own singing career never really blossomed, she went on to write and produce numerous hit songs and albums for other artists including Britney Spears, Kelly Clarkson, Chris Brown, and Avril Lavigne.  Most recently, she worked with Bebe Rexha and G-Eazy on "Me, Myself & I" in 2016.