American Idol season 20 contestant Noah Thompson revealed that country singer Kameron Marlowe called him, labeling the experience as “one of the coolest things that’s ever happened to [him].”
Thompson spoke with Music Mayhem about his time on Idol and shared his reaction about receiving a phone call from Marlowe.
“Oh man, I thought that [Kameron Marlowe calling him] will, and always be one of the coolest things that’s ever happened to me, period,” Thompson shared. “Because yeah, I look at, I look at him and his songs, he’s an inspiration to me. So for him to reach out, because he didn’t have to do that at all, for him to reach out and say what he said. I just thought, that was really one of the coolest things ever happened to me.”
Thompson auditioned for this season of Idol, singing Marlowe’s song, “Giving You Up.”
Following his audition for judges Luke Bryan, Lionel Richie, and Katy Perry, Richie told Thompson he had a “real-life, storytelling, badass voice.”
“I wasn’t expecting that,” Thompson admitted.
Thompson, a 20-year-old construction worker from Louisa, Kentucky, was pushed to audition for the show by his friend, Arthur. During Thompson’s audition, the judges thanked his friend, Arthur for seeing something in him that he didn’t see in himself.
Thompson told Music Mayhem that even though he made it to the top 5 round in the competition, he’s still pretty hard on himself.
“Man, to be honest, I’m so hard on myself about my voice, and music in general,” he said. “So, I don’t think I’ve really had that moment just yet, where I looked and said, ‘Man, I can sing.’ Even though I know I’m in top 5, but I’m so… It’s kind of funny because I’m so hard on myself, vocally, that it’s kind of hard for me to believe, still. So there’s that.”
Thompson credits his father for getting him into music.
“How I got into music, more than anything, would just be because of my dad, and the upbringing I had with my dad being a musician, and being in a band,” he shared. “And the love for music I had because of him, growing up with him being in the band, and me constantly being around music all the time, and just hearing music, you know? So yeah, definitely because of my dad,” he continued.
In addition, Thompson confessed he didn’t think he would make the top 5 when he auditioned, saying his pal, Arthur signed him up to audition for Idol “almost as a joke.”
“I didn’t expect to get a golden ticket,” Thompson explained. “It just blows my mind that I made it this far.”
Marlowe, who also recently spoke with Music Mayhem, said he wanted to offer Thompson the same full circle moment he received from Luke Combs when he auditioned for season 15 of The Voice with Combs’ chart-topping song, “One Number Away.”
“I wanted to offer Noah the same kind of [experience] that Luke offered me, and I just told him to keep pursuing music and to keep writing and keep journeying on in this crazy business that we’re in,” Marlowe said.
Thompson performed as part of the top 7 Sunday night (May 8), earning a spot to perform in the next round of the competition as part of the top 5.
Thompson tested positive for COVID-19 prior to the Sunday night show, forcing him to perform from his hotel room.
Former American Idol champion Carrie Underwood is set to mentor this season’s top 5 contestants.
