Here's How Much Clay Aiken Is Really Worth

During Clay Aiken's years in the spotlight, the star went from American Idol to American politics. "In 2003, more than 38 million people tuned in for the Idol finale, and 12 million of them voted for Aiken. That feels like a long time ago," according to The Washington Post. While Aiken found success both on and after his run on Idol, thanks to his singing skills, he eventually left the music industry behind to pursue a career in public service. 

"Gone are the sold-out stadiums, performances at the World Series and a single atop the Billboard Hot 100 chart," WaPo noted in their 2014 report. Beyond that, the star has pretty much ditched the "days of Celebrity Apprentice [and] guest spots as some version of himself on Scrubs, 30 Rock, and Law and Order: SVU (which he says he did ... to stay on his Screen Actors Guild health insurance)." Aiken's IMDb is littered with various cameo roles, though.

While the singer shifted his focus from attempting to win votes on reality TV to attempting to win votes in a congressional run, he can still credit his career on-stage performing popular songs, like "Invisible" and "The Way," for making him a millionaire.

Thanks to the fact that Clay Aiken enjoyed success during his time in the music industry — including earning a Billboard award for releasing the Best-Selling Single of 2003 and pleasing holly jolly crowds with his popular holiday tours — the star has $7 million, according to Celebrity Net Worth. While that's the kind of money that many people would love to win in the lottery or inherit from a long-lost, rich relative, it's a relatively small fortune when you take a look at what other American Idol stars have made since their days on the show.

Season 6 winner Jordin Sparks has $10 million, which is less than half of Adam Lambert's $25 million. Season 3 standout Jennifer Hudson also has $25 million, which is topped by Kelly Clarkson's $45 million. And while those are undeniably enviable amounts money, here's a fact that'll make your jaw drop: Even if you combine all of the funds Aiken, Sparks, Lambert, Hudson, and Clarkson have into one massive fortune, that total amount still wouldn't match Carrie Underwood's $140 million.

While that may make the others feel a bit bad about the balance in their bank accounts, they can at least still claim they have more than Fantasia Barrino, who only has $3 million these days. Granted, $3 million isn't an amount to be ashamed of. Frankly, each and every one of the Idol alums should be proud of what they've earned!