American Idol Contestant Requested Simon Cowell Stay Away – and Won The Show
Telling the judge to stay away from her was the catalyst for her success.
American Idol has been on the air for more than two decades, bringing many talented singers into the spotlight and allowing them to build successful creative careers.
Of course, at some points during its long run, the series' reputation was marred by the contestants getting in trouble with the law or the judges making controversial comments about the singers. And it looks like even the first season of the cult show wasn't without controversy!
Simon Cowell revealed an interesting detail about his communication with one of the contestants from Season 1 — this singer asked the judge to stay away from her for no apparent reason. But you'll be even more surprised to find out who that contestant was.
That was… wait for it… Kelly Clarkson!
In 2022, more than 20 years after winning the first season of American Idol, Clarkson got her own star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, and that's what prompted Simon Cowell to share his memories from the show's early days.
Talking to Kelly, Simon recalled, 'You turned around to me and said, "Simon... Without being rude, I would much rather we do not talk — seriously until the end of the series." And I'm like, "Wow, what does that mean?" "It means stay away from me".'
We all know that Cowell can be quite strict as a judge, but at the same time, he really does care about the contestants. Was Clarkson distracted by that? In fact, it turns out the singer wanted to keep away from anyone involved in the voting process, so she and the other cast members would get fair and unbiased judgement.
'I didn't wanna talk to anyone involved that was voting us through. I was just trying to be respectful,' the star explained.
And as we know, Kelly Clarkson did not need to make an extra impression on the judges or get involved in any behind-the-scenes intrigue. She proved she was worthy of the title of American Idol and won the competition with her talent alone.
Clarkson is now one of the best-selling artists with many prestigious music awards in her portfolio. What's more, she decided to follow in Simon Cowell's footsteps, building a career on TV and becoming a judge on The Voice.
Source: People