Sanjaya Malakar facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Sanjaya Malakar
Sanjaya Malakar at the Mural Amphitheater, Seattle Center, Seattle, WA on May 12, 2007.
Background information
Birth name	Sanjaya Joseph Malakar
Born	(1989-09-10) September 10, 1989 (age 35) Seattle, Washington, U.S.
Genres	Pop
Occupation(s)	Singer, reality television personality, writer
Instruments	Vocals, guitar, keyboard
Years active	2006–present

Sanjaya Joseph Malakar (born September 10, 1989) is an American singer. He became famous as a finalist on the sixth season of American Idol. He got a lot of attention on the show. He made it to 7th place because of public votes. This was surprising because the judges, especially Simon Cowell, often didn't like his performances.

After American Idol, Sanjaya appeared on many TV shows. He was also often made fun of in funny ways in pop culture. He later came in fifth place on the reality TV show I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here!.

Early Life and Education

Sanjaya Malakar was born in Seattle, Washington. His father, Vasudeva Malakar, was an Indian immigrant from India. His mother, Jillian Blyth, had Italian, Dutch, English, and Irish family roots. Sanjaya later lived in Federal Way, a nearby town.

When he was three years old, his parents divorced. Sanjaya and his mother and siblings lived in a Seattle apartment. His mother remarried, but his stepfather passed away soon after. Sanjaya spent most of his childhood in Seattle. He also lived in California and Kauai, Hawaii. In Hawaii, he performed with the Hawaii Children's Theater group. While in Seattle, he sang for three years with the Total Experience Gospel Choir.

Sanjaya went to Martha Lake Elementary School in Lynnwood, Washington. For middle school, he attended the Seattle Waldorf School and Northshore Junior High School in Bothell, Washington. He went to Shorecrest High School in Shoreline, Washington for his first year of high school. He then attended Todd Beamer High School in Federal Way, Washington for his second year. After his second year, Sanjaya passed a test called the General Educational Development (GED). This allowed him to leave high school early. He wanted to focus on his music career and being on American Idol.

Sanjaya on American Idol

After making the top 10, Malakar performed on the American Idol Tour with fellow Idol alums, including Melinda Doolittle.

On September 19, 2006, Sanjaya Malakar tried out for American Idol in Seattle. He was a bit shy. His sister Shyamali also tried out with him. Judge Simon Cowell said Sanjaya had a better voice than his sister. Both of them moved on to the Hollywood round. Sanjaya said Stevie Wonder was his idol. He sang Wonder's song "Signed, Sealed, Delivered I'm Yours" at his first audition.

In Hollywood, Sanjaya sang "Some Kind of Wonderful". He was sad when his sister was cut from the show. But he made it to the Top 40. Next, he sang "Ain't No Mountain High Enough". The judges were mostly critical of his singing. However, Simon Cowell admitted that Sanjaya was popular with voters. Randy Jackson and Paula Abdul liked his "You Really Got Me" performance in the Top 11 more. During his Top 11 performance, a 13-year-old girl named Ashley Ferl was shown crying with joy. She also cried for other singers like Melinda Doolittle and Jordin Sparks.

On March 27, 2007, Sanjaya sang No Doubt's "Bathwater". He wore a unique hairstyle made of many ponytails, which host Ryan Seacrest called the "ponyhawk." Sanjaya forgot some words to the song. Simon Cowell said, "Sanjaya, I don't think it matters anymore what we say... I think you are in your own universe and if people like you, good luck." The next night, Ryan Seacrest wore a wig with the same "ponyhawk" hairstyle to make fun of it.

On April 3, Sanjaya sang "Cheek to Cheek". He wore a white suit and had a slick hairstyle. He even danced with judge Paula Abdul. Paula said, "I get it. I get why people love you. You are charming." The next night, it was announced that Sanjaya was in the "middle three" contestants.

Sanjaya's performance of "Bésame Mucho" on April 10 was his first performance that all the judges liked in the finals. During practice, Jennifer Lopez said, "I like this kid. I love Sanjaya!" after hearing him sing in Spanish. He was the only one of the top eight to sing in Spanish that night. Randy Jackson said, "You're one of the smartest contestants I've ever met. That was actually really good." Simon Cowell even said, "I'm going to hate myself for this. It wasn't horrible." Sanjaya continued to the Top 7 after this performance.

After singing "Something to Talk About", Sanjaya was in the bottom three. He was then eliminated in 7th place on April 18, 2007. During his farewell performance, he changed a line in the song. Instead of "let's give them something to talk about... how about love," he sang "let's give them something to talk about... other than hair."

American Idol's TV ratings dropped after Sanjaya was eliminated. Some people thought this was because he was no longer on the show.

At the American Idol finale on May 23, Sanjaya performed with the top six male singers. He also sang "You Really Got Me" with Aerosmith guitarist Joe Perry.

Performances on American Idol

• When Ryan Seacrest announced the results, Malakar was in the bottom three. He was declared safe second when Brandon Rogers was eliminated.

Public Reaction to Sanjaya

Sanjaya Malakar was the most talked-about contestant during his season of American Idol. This was based on articles and internet searches. Some fans created online groups like "Team Sanjaya" to support him. Other websites made fun of his success in a playful way.

An official fan website for Sanjaya was also created. It had his approval and help from his mother. This site shared updates from his 2007 American Idol Concert Tour.

Simon Cowell joked that if Sanjaya had won, he might not have returned as a judge. The show's producer also thought Sanjaya would not win. Some people noticed that the judges seemed to stop giving serious comments about Sanjaya's performances. They seemed surprised by how many people voted for him. Randy Jackson even said, "I cannot even say anything on the vocals anymore" after one of Sanjaya's performances. Some believed that if Sanjaya won, it would be a bad sign for American Idol. Others thought the show actually gained more attention because of the excitement around him. Simon Cowell later said that Sanjaya's performance was "hideous" on one show.

A website called Vote for the Worst encouraged people to vote for Sanjaya. This was to make fun of the show. On March 19, 2007, radio host Howard Stern asked his listeners to vote for Sanjaya. He wanted to "corrupt" the most popular TV show. Some of Stern's listeners said they voted for Sanjaya over 300 times. They hoped to annoy traditional American Idol fans. Sanjaya later told Jimmy Kimmel that his aunt had voted 1,100 times.

Sanjaya's fan, Ashley Ferl, who cried a lot, was made fun of on Saturday Night Live. Actor Andy Samberg played Sanjaya. The crying girl was played by Kristen Wiig. The excitement around Sanjaya led to new words like "Sanjayamania" and "Fanjaya" for his fans.

Homecoming and Tour

After Sanjaya's time on American Idol, people wanted his hometown to honor him. The city of Federal Way first said they couldn't find information about his ties to the city. They said they had "more important things to deal with."

But the local mall, The Commons at Federal Way, found Sanjaya. They arranged for him to appear there. Sanjaya was met by many screaming fans. The Mayor of Federal Way, Michael Park, and King County Council member Pete von Reichbauer praised him. They said he was a great role model. Mayor Park said Sanjaya's "charismatic personality, contagious smile, positive attitude and enthusiastic pursuit of his dreams are qualities to be admired." Sanjaya received a Certificate of Appreciation from the Mayor. He also got a declaration of "South King County Sanjaya Malakar Day." In May 2007, he was also honored at Seattle Center in Seattle, Washington. Fans greeted him, he signed autographs, and answered questions.

Since Sanjaya finished in the top 10, he got to perform on the 2007 American Idol Concert Tour. This tour visited over 50 cities in Canada and the U.S. over three months. Sanjaya sang Michael Jackson's "The Way You Make Me Feel" during the tour.

Career After Idol

TV Appearances and Awards

Soon after American Idol, Sanjaya attended the White House Correspondents' Association Dinner. He was a guest of People magazine. He met then-President George W Bush. Sanjaya was popular with the press and fans there. Even then-New York Governor Eliot Spitzer asked for his autograph.

Many magazines featured Sanjaya, including Us Weekly, People, TIME, and Teen. In TIMEs 2007 "TIME 100 POLL for The Most Influential People of the Year," he ranked third based on online votes. He was also nominated for Teens 2007 "Top Ten Most Cutest."

Sanjaya also won awards. He won two of TV.com's Fashion Awards for "Best Hair – Male" and "Best Trendsetter – Male." He was nominated for "Best Reality Show Star" at the AZN Television's Asian Excellence Awards. He also won the "Favorite Reality Game Loser" award at Fox's 2007 Golden Realitini Awards. His "Ponyhawk" hairstyle was ranked No. 3 in AOL's "Top TV Moment" video searches in 2007.

In the months after Idol, Sanjaya appeared on many TV shows. These included The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, The Today Show, Good Morning America, Are You Smarter than a 5th Grader?, and Live with Regis and Kelly. He also appeared on Larry King Live with the rest of the top 10 Idol contestants.

Other Projects

On May 22, 2007, a short video called I Am Art was released online. It was co-produced with Will Ferrell. In it, Sanjaya played a character who created "Sanjaya Malakar" for American Idol as part of his school project. Sanjaya later made another video explaining it was just a joke.

Sanjaya also hosted an American Idol show on the TV Guide channel. It was called Idol Stars: Where Are They Now?. He talked about what past Idol stars were doing. Sanjaya also helped write the book, Chicken Soup for the American Idol Soul. In 2009, he wrote his own book called Dancing to the Music in My Head: Memoirs of the People's Idol. He said he received $100,000 for the book.

In 2009, Sanjaya starred in the second season of the reality TV show I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here!. He earned the nickname "Jungle Boy" because he seemed so comfortable in the jungle. He became good friends with Holly Montag on the show.

In May 2010, the Seattle Weekly reported that Sanjaya was singing for Pagliacci Pizza. This is a pizza chain in Seattle. In February 2011, Sanjaya joined the off-Broadway musical Freckleface Strawberry. He also was a guest judge for a talent show in Seattle called "Seattle Superstar Search." In July 2011, Sanjaya toured the U.S. with a band called The Brave Chandeliers.

By May 2012, Sanjaya was working as a bartender in Queens, New York. He said that he had lost most of the money he made. He explained, "I was young. I didn't know anything. Some people took advantage."

In April 2014, Sanjaya stopped working at the bar. He wanted more time to focus on his music. This included his album Life ~ Love ~ Music and recording cover songs. On July 14, 2016, he performed at the Suquamish Clearwater Casino Resort in Suquamish, Washington.

Sanjaya sings seven jazz songs on an album called Good Merlin by The Chaz Lipp Groove Tripp. The album came out on June 23, 2017. Sanjaya received good reviews for his singing. Critics said his voice "goes directly for the core" of these classic songs. They also described his voice as "remarkable" and "incredible, flexible."

Discography

Sanjaya Malakar's American Idol CD album, Sanjaya Malakar, and some singles were available on iTunes starting June 10, 2007. The album reached the Top 100 Pop Albums in sales. Sanjaya's EP (Extended Play) album, Dancing to the Music in my Head, was released on January 20, 2009. Songs from this EP include "A Guy Like Me" and "A Quintessential Lullaby". The EP came out on the same day as his book, which had the same title. In 2011, he also released his album Life ~ Love ~ Music. The first song from this album was a cover of "Tempted" by Squeeze.

Albums

Singles

Images for kids

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  Sanjaya Malakar at the Mural Amphitheater, Seattle Center, Seattle, WA on May 12, 2007.