Paula Abdul

From Arsenio Hall and every pre-teen girl in 1988 to sharp-tongued Simon Cowell, Paula Abdul has always had a colorful list of adoring fans. Her bubbly persona was first introduced to the public when she was a Lakers Girl. That gig launched Abdul's highly successful career as a choreographer and led to her first big opportunity while she was choreographing Janet Jackson in Jackson's "Control" video. As a choreographer, Abdul was in high demand for work on music videos, but a move to her long-time goal of singing career brought her to a new level of success. Her debut album Forever Your Girl was an international hit with hits like "Opposites Attract," "Straight Up" and "Cold Hearted," and her big-budget videos and over-the-top dancing abilities made Abdul an MTV queen. The follow-up album, Spellbound, was a bit darker than her pop heavy debut but still managed to sell over three million copies. A lackluster album appeared in '95, however, and her recording career fizzled. Abdul persevered in that perky manner in which fans had come to define her and later choreographed a sweet deal for herself as a judge for hit talent show American Idol.