OlderKelly Clarkson vs. Leona Lewis
Have you ever heard of Leona Lewis? Probably not unless you live in England. Leona, 21, was this past season’s winner on X-Factor (England’s version of American Idol) and was the series’ first female winner. Leona apparently covered Idol’s Season One winner Kelly Clarkson’s “A Moment Like This” back in December and I just discovered it now.
Leona’s cover of “A Moment Like This” broke a world record by being downloaded 50,000 times within 30 minutes of being available online. Pretty impressive, eh? She’s also rumored to meet with Clive Davis, founder of Arista Records, to secure a record contract. Leona’s headed for the big leagues!
Check out Leona performing her cover of “A Moment Like This” below and compare it to Kelly’s original rendition of it below that. How do the two measure up?
Leona Lewis - “A Moment Like This” (Dec. 2006)
Kelly Clarkson - “A Moment Like This” (Sept. 2002)
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Im from the UK, and i followed this show and wanted Leona to win right from the start. People are saying she was off key, ithats cause this was her last performance before the final vote, so shes so nervous. But yeah Leona is so talented, and such an amazing voice. Shes got a big future ahead of her! xo
I love Leona, and I think she has a wonderful voice and will be picking her album up whenever it drops, but Kelly wins this one. I might not like her “rock” sound now, but I gotta say she killed that song. Leona puts a different twist on the song which sounds really great and fresh, but Kelly’s is classic.
well, being english i think i can give an honest opinion (!?!?).
leona is by far the best vocal talent i have heard in the UK for quite some time, and for this particular song - a moment like this - i think leona performs it better than clarkson. i do have to say though that i think clarkson is really, really good, and is certainly a stronger, better overall performer than leona (for now anyway).
i’m still unsure if leona’s career will go the way many people think it will. time will tell i guess
Leona just found out she won, she burst into tears, she never before done a bumb note, search leona on youtube and watch her previous performaces they are flawless, and im a massive kelly clarkson fan! Just didnt think kellys version was very good, much better songs shes sang.
Hate Leona’s version. I’m a Kelly fan.
Leona bites. Kelly rules.
I’m a Brit and I can appreciate good vocals. I love Whitney, Aretha, Shaka, Mariah etc. so its not just because Leona is from my home country and Kelly from the US, but anyone with proper hearing can tell Leona’s rendition is far superior to Kelly’s. Kelly starts within a low range and stays there - a good performance but not great. Leona however is in a different league - its not surprising that Whitney is going to mentor her - Leona will go from strength to strength.
Kelly, way better. :) She has a much stronger voice.
I would have to agree with the people who are saying that ‘A Moment Like This’ is a Kelly song, however, I much prefer Leona’s voice. It’s soft, nice to listen to, not so scream-ish and over the top as Kelly sometimes can be. I love Kelly, but I prefer Leona’s voice. I could totally see her doing the sort of music that Aaliyah did. Her voice would be perfect for that! If any of you would like more information or pictures of Leona, check out this awesome site: http://www.leona-lewis.net/ =)
To all the people that are claiming to that Leone is off pitch let me just mention that the youtube clip on the website is not her best performance simply because this was the song she sang AFTER she was awarded.
Just watch these two clips http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oE1MbmDNUiA (Summertime- Leona Lewis), http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GRqj7v8PF7Q (Over the Rainbow- Leone Lewis)
I am not a big fan of Kelly, though the fact that she was a winner in the States means a lot.
But Leona, I strongly believe, is much more genuine, grounded and humble. And the fact that she is not confident is a good thing, simply because it makes her try even harder, just so that she sounds even better. After all, a voice that remains static and unchanged over time is utterly useless.
Finally, as far as Leona’s looks are concerned, I really do think she’s beautiful. Of course she has her faults, potentially more than the average person, but her genetic combination is such that she has beautiful skin that doesn’t show imperfections because of the depth of her colour. She also has the most amazing eyes that penetrate the mind of anyone who looks at them. My personal favourite clip of hers where she looks simple yet illuminating at the same time is the following: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=50EWmXsKKe4 and more importantly her audition song.
Enjoy her people; ceteris paribus, she’s a gem.
listening to Leona was like listening to Ashlee Simpson. HORRID. She also looks a bit like a drag queen in the face. But all looks aside, Kelly def sang that song better. She has a better voice and stage presence, plus she wasn’t sweating like Whitney. Leona definitely needed to bring a towel onstage with her. There’s a reason why people in America haven’t heard of Leona and why people in England have heard of Kelly Clarkson. That would be because Leona is no comparison.
Kelly is WAY better. I like Leona but her voice didn’t sound all that great.
Oh gosh…there is NO comparison here. Can you imagine that other girl singing “Since U Been Gone” She wouldn’t be able to pull it off. Kelly is MUCH better. And to Cindy who said Kelly wasn’t attractive….You are CRAZY!! Kelly is beautiful and has the personality to back her up….much more than I can say for Leona girl….isn’t her 15 minutes about up?
KELLY ROCKS!!
In just 4 years Kelly is already a worldwide success. I don’t see Leona having the same longevity that Kelly has.
I think the main problem here is the song…………….it really sucks………..I love me some Kelly, and the things she has done since have really rocked………LEONA on the other hand has an incredible voice, power of Whitney combined with the range of Mariah. Somewhere over the Rainbow is amazing…………her version blew Kathy Mc Phee out of the water. Yes, She is shy, and occasionally hits a flat spot, but I think she will have a great career with Simon and Clive backing her………she had better……………I look forward to many more Kelly and Leona songs on my Ipod!
I watched some of Leona’s other performances on youtube and she has a great voice. However, for this particular song, Kelly’s much better, hands down. Kelly has the voice and the presence, the latter which is seriously lacking in Leona’s performance. In addition, she was out of tune in some places.
who the hell is leona?
why even the comaparison ..
of course Kelly Clarkson !
Leona has an awesome voice but she was off key a couple of times….
I also loved Kelly…..
If I had to choose based on these performances….I’d choose…Kelly…
♥Luv Ya
I have listen to both. I have to say that Kelly did a better job. Of course it is her song. They need to sing a song that isn’t written for them and their type of voice. I like to see them do something that gives them both a challenge.
Donna A.
Ok! Just wanna put someone else between Leona and Kelly. There is a girl in Spain who won a show like American Idol. Her name is Lorena and here is the link where she sings “I surrender” in her very first performance on the show. Same Kelly Clarkson’s version. What do you think?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3bAOg3bF0tE
Just a question- don’t you all think Kelly has had lessons? Both in voice and stage since she won AI? Not comparing the two versions, but it just seems to me that one is an “amateur” while the other is “professional”. One is singing “live” the other is in studio with lots of mechanical/takes. I know this sounds like I prefer one version over the other, but what I am actually trying to do is ask who has the potential to go farther with the same “help”.
definitely love kelly more. she owned that song. but leona’s good too.
jared, why must you always instigate and cause celebrity feuds??
I personally never even heard of that “Leonnmmm Lew”? somebody before this thread. Kelly has a better voice.
pretty much repeating what some others have said, but - leona was off key several times during the song (made me cringe), so i dunno why simon was so friggin giddy. kelly’s version isn’t great, but at least she was in tune and she’s improved a lot since her AI days.
and yes, someone already said it, but the British version of AI is Pop Idol (the original). i dunno what X-Factor is, but if it’s a spin-off of Idol, it’s of the original British Pop Idol, not our copycat AI. (yeah i’m american, but i know when to give credit where it’s due!)
I think Kelly has a MUCH better voice. Kelly hit those notes, and I had no doubt that she would, but I honestly didn’t think Leona was going to get up there. She’s good, but her and Kelly are uncomparable. Kelly has a strong, high quality voice. Leona has an okay voice, but it’s definitley not the most spectacular thing I’ve ever heard. I wouldn’t download it.
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