It’s amazing how much she taught us. She will be missed very much, but her music lives on through the work of many artists she inspired during her lifetime.
After that, she said, “Rest in peace, Debra.” After making it to the finals of American Idol with Debra in 2004, Jennifer became famous.
Clay Aiken and other alumni talked about how much Debra helped them. “I don’t think it would be an exaggeration to say that no one was a better mentor, coach,
teacher, or champion to us Idol contestants than Byrd was,” he wrote on the web. Someone else spent more time with us than us.
“I will never forget how hard she drilled us to look straight into the camera and connect with the people watching at home.”
