{"id":22708,"date":"2026-05-02T07:12:55","date_gmt":"2026-05-02T07:12:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/grow24.us\/?p=22708"},"modified":"2026-05-02T07:12:55","modified_gmt":"2026-05-02T07:12:55","slug":"kellie-pickler-returns-to-american-idol-stage-three-years-after-heartbreaking-family-tragedy-to-sing-with-the-top-5-contestants","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/grow24.us\/?p=22708","title":{"rendered":"Kellie Pickler returns to American Idol stage three years after heartbreaking family tragedy to sing with the Top 5 contestants"},"content":{"rendered":"

AMERICAN Idol finalist Kellie Pickler has been announced as one of the guest performers on the show\u2019s upcoming episode.<\/p>\n

The long-running singing competition series is entering the semifinals for Season 24 with its Top 5 contestants on Monday.<\/p>\n

<\/div>\n

\"Kellie<\/p>\n

It was revealed on Wednesday\u2019s installment of the show\u2019s official companion podcast that several former American Idol finalists are set to return to the stage for the special night, including Kellie.<\/p>\n

\u201cNext week, we will see your top five perform,\u201d host Danielle Fishel said on the podcast.<\/p>\n

<\/div>\n

\u201cWe are going to party like it\u2019s 2006 when some of the favorite top 10 finalists from that historic season will return to duet with this season\u2019s top five.\u201d<\/p>\n

Also taking the stage are Season 5 winner Taylor Hicks, and finalists Paris Bennett, Elliott Yamin, and Bucky Covington.<\/p>\n

Paula Abdul and Randy Jackson, who were the competition\u2019s original judges, will also appear in the episode.<\/p>\n

\"American<\/p>\n

Kellie, 39, finished in sixth place that season, which aired in 2006.<\/p>\n

She has since blossomed as a successful country artist, though she\u2019s taken a break from the limelight following her husband\u2019s sudden death in February 2023.<\/p>\n

Kellie\u2019s husband, Kyle Jacobs, took his own life at 49.<\/p>\n

\u201cOne of the most beautiful lessons my husband taught me was in a moment of a crisis, if you don\u2019t know what to do, \u2018do nothing, just be still.\u2019 I have chosen to heed his advice,\u201d the singer said in a statement about her husband\u2019s passing.<\/p>\n

\"Kyle<\/p>\n

\u201cThank you to my family, friends, and supporters, for the countless letters, calls, and messages that you have sent my way.\u201d<\/p>\n

Kellie continued, \u201cIt has truly touched my soul and it\u2019s helping me get through the darkest time in my life. As many of you have told me, you are all in my prayers.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Red High Heels singer returned to the stage for the first time after his death in April 2024.<\/p>\n

She performed at the Ryman Auditorium in Nashville as part of the Walkin\u2019 After Midnight tribute to the late Patsy Cline.<\/p>\n

\"Kellie<\/p>\n

\u201cHow we doin\u2019 tonight, y\u2019all? I\u2019d be lying if I didn\u2019t say I\u2019m incredibly nervous right now,\u201d Kellie could be heard telling the crowd via a TikTok shared by an audience member.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s been the first time I\u2019ve been up on stage in a while,\u201d she added.<\/p>\n

Kellie married her late husband in 2011, four years after meeting in a Nashville bar.<\/p>\n

\"American<\/p>\n

During a 2016 appearance on The Real, Kellie gushed over the songwriter and revealed they connected through their love of music.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe started writing songs the next day, and then we got hitched, well, that happened a few years later,\u201d the I Wonder singer said.<\/p>\n

Kyle was a country music artist, songwriter, guitarist, and pianist.<\/p>\n

He notably co-wrote the Garth Brooks hit More Than a Memory and worked with other big-name artists, including Tim McGraw, Darius Rucker, Kelly Clarkson, Jo Dee Messina, Trace Adkins, Scotty McCreery, and Clay Walker.<\/p>\n

American Idol airs on Mondays at 8:00 p.m. EST on ABC and is available to stream the next day on Hulu and Disney+.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

AMERICAN Idol finalist Kellie Pickler has been announced as one of the guest performers on the show\u2019s upcoming episode. The long-running singing competition series is entering the… <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":22709,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-22708","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/grow24.us\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22708","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/grow24.us\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/grow24.us\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/grow24.us\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/grow24.us\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=22708"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/grow24.us\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22708\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":22710,"href":"https:\/\/grow24.us\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22708\/revisions\/22710"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/grow24.us\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/22709"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/grow24.us\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=22708"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/grow24.us\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=22708"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/grow24.us\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=22708"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}