American Idol is wrapping up its 19th season on Sunday, May 23rd, when the top 3 battle it out for the title. Having been on air for 19 seasons, there have been 1,000s of people who auditioned for the show.
Everyone knows the winners and the ones who made it big like Kelly Clarkson, Jennifer Hudson, Adam Lambert, etc., but did you know that there are big names celebrities and singers who auditioned for American Idol, but no one remembers or knows about their audition?
They got rejected by one of the biggest singing shows ever and now are making a name for themselves in Hollywood. Some of them didn't even make it past the producers. But these celebrities didn't let that get them down. In fact, it fueled them to keep living their dreams and they did.
Some of these singers made it bigger than some of the show's past winners. Find out who Idol rejected.
9 Tori Kelly
Tori Kelly was one of the lucky few who actually made it in front of the judges on season 9. She received three yes votes, from Randy Jackson, Kara DioGuardi, and guest judge Victoria Beckham. But Simon Cowell gave her a no and called her voice "downright annoying." After making it through the initial round, she got cut during Hollywood week. Since then, she's released four albums, three EPS, and has won two Grammy awards. Maybe Simon Cowell is regretting his words now.
8 Maren Morris
Maren Morris, who is one of the most popular country artists today and is responsible for getting the song "The Middle" stuck in our heads, got rejected by American Idol. When she was just 17-years-old, Maren did a cattle call audition, which means she stood in front of producers, and they told her no and she didn't even get to see the judges. Morris was even rejected from The Voice, America's Got Talent, and Star Search. But now she is a Grammy-winning artist, so she's the real winner.
7 Bebe Rexha
If it's meant to be, it'll be. But unfortunately for Bebe Rexha it wasn't meant to be. In a 2017 episode of Live With Kelly And Ryan, she revealed she tried out for the show. Bebe pestered Idol host Ryan Seacrest and former judge Randy Jackson for her not making it through. But it was all a joke, as Rexha had not even made it in to see the judges. Now, the Grammy-nominated artist just released a new album, went on tour with the Jonas Brothers and has written songs for major artists.
6 Colbie Caillat
Despite auditioning twice for the show, Colbie Caillat did not make it far. She even sang her hit, "Bubbly," but sadly didn't make it through to the judges round. Her life came full-circle when she came back, in 2018, to mentor and perform on the Idol stage. While mentoring, she told a contestant that she had stage freight during her audition and didn't think she was ready at the time. The Grammy-award winning singer has since released six albums and seven EPs.
5 Kane Brown
After watching how much success his friend, Lauren Alaina had on the show, Kane Brown decided to audition. However, he was shot down because he was told "the show didn't need another Scotty McCreery," who on the tenth season. After Idol, Brown took his chance on X-Factor, but they wanted to put him in a boyband, so he left. He finally turned to YouTube, where he was putting out covers, and soon, he became one of the most popular country artists today.
4 Amber Riley
At just 17-years-old, Amber Riley tried her luck at American Idol, but like many before her, she did not make it past the judges table. However, the world got lucky because they got to experience her voice on the FOX show, Glee. She was grateful because that was a paying job instead of singing on Idol, which is unpaid. Last year, Riley released her debut EP, "RILEY." Riley also went on to perform on Broadway, in TV, and even win Dancing With The Stars.
3 Naya Rivera
The late actress, Naya Rivera, auditioned for American Idol, after her father urged her to. Like many others, she did not make it past the producers. "For years [my dad] was like, 'You should audition for the show' and I never really wanted to. And then one year we drove up to San Fran and did it and I didn't make it past the first round!" Naya told The Talk in 2013. She auditioned with the Bee Gee's song, "Emotion," which turned out to be the song she auditioned for Glee with, and she got that part.
2 Chrissy Metz
This Is Us star Chrissy Metz revealed in her 2018 memoir, "This Is Me: Loving The Person You Are Today" that she had auditioned for American Idol. She stood in line for 8 hours and got third-degree sunburns before ultimately auditioning in front of producers with the song "Heavy" from Dreamgirls. Metz went on to pursue a career in acting, but fans of the show and Breakthrough know that she can sing her heart out.
1 Hillary Scott
Just like Colbie Caillat, Hillary Scott auditioned twice for the show. Scott performed for an intern and a producer who told her no. After that, Scott went on to form the Grammy-winning country band, Lady A (formerly Lady Antebellum). The band went on to make eight albums so far and tour around the world. She took her rejection and turned that into fuel to keep going and to work harder.