Noah Thompson was just a dad working construction in the small town of Louisa, KY before he stepped into the American Idol audition room. Now that he’s held his spot in the competition and is nearing the final rounds, Thompson is taking a moment to step back and reflect on his journey that has been a “dream come true.”
Many young artists come to the show looking for a chance to reach stardom. During an interview with Music Mayhem, Thompson revealed that he can relate to the past contestants like Carrie Underwood who experienced a lot of firsts on the show.
“It was actually my first flight, because of Idol,” he shared. “First time ever meeting famous people, first time going to Hawaii…that’s why I’m so grateful for the show because there are a lot of things I would’ve never gotten to do in my lifetime if it wasn’t for the show.”
Every time Thompson hears his name called on stage by Ryan Seacrest letting him know he has made it to the next round, a lot of shock and disbelief takes over his face.
“It’s all kind of surreal,” he humbly told Music Mayhem. “It’s almost hard to believe that it’s kind of happening to me though. Blows me away.”
Not only have the Idol viewers loved watching Thompson take the stage, but the judges have also enjoyed seeing him go so far in the competition. Earlier on the show, Katy Perry called him “the American Dream” while Luke Bryan dubbed him as “a heavy front-runner,” before predicting that the Kentucky native could be crowned winner.
“There are no words for it,” Thompson shared in response to hearing the high praise from the celebrity judges. “I never dreamed of being here and doing something like this. So, to hear that from those judges, who I love, for them to say that to me, I’m just so grateful for the whole experience and for them to say that to me, I’m just… I don’t know. It’s beyond my words, man… something that I can’t explain. It’s just so hard to believe for me, almost.”
In addition to Bryan, and Perry, Lionel Richie also told the singer that he thinks he has the talent to make it through to the very end of the competition. When Thompson was first persuaded to audition by his hometown friend, he was shy and uncomfortable in his abilities. As the weeks continue in Idol though, he has slowly started to believe what the judges are telling him.
“Lionel came up to me the other day and he hugged me, and just Lionel Richie, walking up to you and hugging you, it’s just crazy… I have such a hard problem believing in myself and I’m still working on it, but Lionel, he told me I could win the show. And he said, ‘You keep on. You just keep pushing and just keep believing in yourself.’ It blows my mind. It’s so surreal, it truly is.”
Aside from the kind words he has exchanged between the judges on-camera, the rising star shared that he’s also received some substantial advice when the cameras aren’t rolling. Thompson gave the same warm praise right back to the judges saying they “really care” about him and the other contestants on the show.
“All three of the judges, truthfully, not behind a camera, they will sit and talk to us as much as they possibly can… They’re very busy people, but when we actually get a chance to sit and talk with them, all three of them are so down to earth, truly goodhearted, good people. So, they really care. They truthfully care how we feel and they know how we feel. So they take that into consideration, and when they talk to us, you can tell they genuinely care… I feel like every time we get a chance to actually sit and talk to one of the judges off of a camera, I feel like that’s the biggest thing for me. I love that. Because we get to see and talk to the judges, for who they really are.”
The Kentucky native recently released his debut single, “One Day Tonight.”
Next up, Thompson will find out if he will become the next American Idol during the three-hour season finale on Sunday, May 22 at 8/7c on ABC.
