North Carolina's Caleb Johnson is best known as the versatile rock singer who was crowned the winner of American Idol's 13th season. Raised on a steady diet of classic hard rock and metal, Johnson had begun to make his name regionally as the frontman for Asheville rockers Elijah Hooker. By this point, at his parents' suggestion, he had already auditioned for both the tenth and 11th seasons of Idol, making a respectable showing each year, but it wasn't until the winter of 2014 that his impressive renditions of Aerosmith, Journey, and Rolling Stones songs vaulted him into the show's final round, which he eventually won. Citing Led Zeppelin, Queen, Meat Loaf, and Aretha Franklin as inspirations, his debut album, Testify, was released in August 2014. ~ Timothy Monger