Many know Katharine McPhee Foster from season five of “American Idol,” however that was just the beginning of her multi-faceted career. In 2006, Foster was the runner up on “American Idol.” Following this feat, she released her debut album with RCA Records the next year. The self-titles album came out at number two on the Billboard 200. Foster’s next album, “Unbroken” she released in 2010 with Verve Records. It debuted at 27 on the Billboard 200. For her third album Foster released “Christmas Is the Time to Say I Love You,” in the fall of 2010. It debuted at 11 on the Billboard Top Holiday Albums chart. The single “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas” made it to number 16. In 2015, her fourth album “Hysteria” came out and two years later she came out with album number five jazz themed “I Fall in Love Too Easily.”

Beyond music, Foster has had an acting career as well. In 2007 she made a cameo in “Ugly Betty.” In 2008 she starred in “The House Bunny” alongside Anna Faris. She also appeared on Christ Botti’s concert filmed by PBS singing “I’ve Got You Under My Skin.” In 2009 she guest starred on CSI: NY and also played the lead in indie-film “You May Not Kiss the Bride.” That same year she participated in a benefit concert for the United Negro College Fund, which was broadcast on BET. In 2010 she participated in the “We Are the World 25 for Haiti,” benefitting earthquake relief. Later that year she was in a production of “110 Stories” at the Geffen Playhouse in Los Angeles and performed at the White House. She also guest-starred on “Community.”

During the summer of 2010, she traveled around the county to Feeding America foodbanks after partnering with Feeding America and ConAgra Foods. In 2011, Foster joined the cast of “Smash” which NBC would later pick up. The series debuted in 2012 and ran until 2013. In 2014 she was cast as Paige in “Scorpion,” which CBS picked up. The show ran for four years. Three years later Foster starred in “The Lost Wife of Robert Durst.” Later that year she landed the leading female role in “Waitress” on Broadway, performing for five months. She returned to the role in London at the Adelphi Theatre through June 2019 and went back to Broadway, where she remained until January 2020.