Ola

If one thing spelled instant fame in Sweden in the early 2000s it was an appearance on Swedish Idol, and this was certainly the case for Ola Svensson (aka Ola), who became a celebrity in his homeland following his stint on the 2005 edition of the show. An avid footballer, Ola was grooming himself to become a professional athlete by the time he reached high school. Pressured by his friends, who had been wowed by his performance in a school musical earlier that year, the young athlete tried out for the second season of Idol. He soon found himself competing with the likes of Agnes Carlsson, Sebastian Karlsson, and Måns Zelmerlöw in what would prove to be a truly tough edition of the show. He was trounced in the fourth week, defeated by Zelmerlöw and Jens Pääjärvi (both of whom would succumb to Carlsson in the end). Ola was contacted by producer Jonas Saeed soon after, and over the course of the next two years Ola enjoyed success on the Swedish charts with singles like "Rain," "Natalie," and "Brothers." His first studio album, 2006's Given to Fly, debuted at number one in his homeland.