Ruben Studdard (Christopher Ruben Studdard) was born on September 12, 1978 is an American pop/R&B/gospel singer who rose to fame as winner of the second season of the American Idol television program.

Studdard, the youngest son of two teachers, sang for the first time at the Rising Star Baptist Church in his hometown of Birmingham, Alabama, U.S., at the age of three.

He continued singing gospel in church, performing solos as a child while his mother sang in the local choir. While at Huffman High School, he played football and received a scholarship in that sport to Alabama A&M University. He also is a member of Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia fraternity.

After growing up listening to his mother's Donny Hathaway albums, Fred Hammond, and gospel music, Studdard began to pursue a career in the music industry, majoring in voice studies at Alabama A&M, graduating in 2000.

He sang with Just A Few Cats, a popular local Birmingham jazz and R&B band founded by members of Ray Reach's UAB Jazz Ensemble, along with other local musicians. "

A lot of people don't realize how hard I was trying to get into the business before American Idol," Studdard related several years later. "I was making demos and just working so hard."

A backup singer from Just a Few Cats asked him to accompany her to Nashville, Tennessee for an audition on the 2003 second season of American Idol.