Paula Abdul has been through a variety of phases in her long career in the entertainment business, and all of them have given her enormous success and acclaim. Born June 19, 1962 in San Fernando, CA, Abdul attended Van Nuys High School in L.A. where she excelled as an honor student, flute player, and cheerleader. Abdul’s primary extracurricular interest from an early age was dance, and after graduating she auditioned for the L.A. Lakers’ famous cheerleading team, the Laker Girls. Then studying broadcasting at California State University at Northridge, Abdul dropped out to join the squad, where she was made head choreographer after only a short time on the team.
The talented dancer quickly became one of the most sought-after pop choreographers of the 1980s, famous for working on music videos with the Jackson family, The Pointer Sisters, Prince, George Michael, and many other major pop acts of the period. She was only 20 when the Jacksons discovered her fast-paced, street-influenced style while attending a Lakers game. Abdul has also choreographed dance and movement sequences for numerous Hollywood films, including “Coming to America”, “American Beauty”, and “The Doors”. She has garnered two Emmy Awards for her television choreography – in 1989 for “The Tracey Ullman Show” and in 1990 for the 17th annual “American Music Awards”.
Abdul worked incredibly hard during this period, and in 1987 decided that pop stardom would be her next challenge. Though her voice was slight and relatively untrained, Abdul had a unique sound and was able to use her exceptional ability as a dancer to receive a major contract with Virgin Records. MTV was booming at the time, and her energetic dance videos proved to be a key to her success. Her debut album in 1988, “Forever Your Girl”, sold a colossal 17 million copies worldwide and produced four #1 singles. A remix album, “Shut Up and Dance”, sold nearly 3 million copies two years later. Her long-awaited follow-up, 1991’s “Spellbound”, didn’t match her first album’s success, but nonetheless sold 10 million copies worldwide and scored two #1 singles. Abdul’s third album in 1995, “Head Over Heels”, reached Gold sales but was seen as a failure considering her previous success as a pop singer.
The multi-talented star slowed down for the rest of the 90s, but remained a force to be reckoned with behind the scenes, continuing her work as a choreographer and occasionally dabbling in writing and producing for other musicians. In 2002 Abdul entered a new phase in her career as a judge on Fox’s mega-hit talent program “American Idol” alongside Simon Cowell, Randy Jackson and Ryan Seacrest. Abdul’s persona on the show has been characterized as a foil to the notoriously negative Cowell, as she is consistently reassuring to contestants when they fail to meet expectations. A bona fide pop goddess herself, Abdul has been a comforting presence for the star-struck youngsters as they rise the ladder of fame with extraordinary brevity. A former contestant on the show, Corey Clark, famously claimed in 2005 that he had an affair with Abdul, which ABC’s “Primetime Live” picked up as a news story. Curiously, Clark was releasing an album around the same time and negotiating a book deal, and Barbara Walters blasted ABC on “The View” for attaching legitimacy to cruel, unfounded rumors. Fox launched an investigation, and found nothing to support Clark’s claims.
Abdul is rumored to be working on a new album with fellow “Idol” judge Randy Jackson, and has signed on for three more seasons of the hit show. Undoubtedly this is good news to “Idol” fans, for as entertaining as Simon Cowell may be, the thought of losing Abdul is enough to make any wannabe diva cower in fear.