{"id":29490,"date":"2026-06-22T22:55:11","date_gmt":"2026-06-22T22:55:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/grow24.us\/?p=29490"},"modified":"2026-06-22T22:55:11","modified_gmt":"2026-06-22T22:55:11","slug":"big-homecoming-moment-%f0%9f%8e%a4%f0%9f%94%a5-jordan-mccullough-has-off","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/grow24.us\/?p=29490","title":{"rendered":"BIG HOMECOMING MOMENT \ud83c\udfa4\ud83d\udd25 Jordan McCullough has off&#8230;"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"article-content text-[1.15rem] text-gray-700 font-sans\">\n<h2>BIG HOMECOMING MOMENT\u00a0<img decoding=\"async\" class=\"emoji\" role=\"img\" draggable=\"false\" src=\"https:\/\/s.w.org\/images\/core\/emoji\/17.0.2\/svg\/1f3a4.svg\" alt=\"\ud83c\udfa4\" \/><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"emoji\" role=\"img\" draggable=\"false\" src=\"https:\/\/s.w.org\/images\/core\/emoji\/17.0.2\/svg\/1f525.svg\" alt=\"\ud83d\udd25\" \/>\u00a0Jordan McCullough has officially returned to Murfreesboro after an impressive journey on American Idol Season 24, where he stood out among more than 100 contestants and pushed through multiple intense elimination rounds. His visit home came just ahead of the grand finale, marking what many are calling a major milestone in his Idol journey. As Jordan appeared in front of supporters, the crowd\u2019s loud reaction made it clear how much momentum and fan support he\u2019s built throughout the season. More details below\u00a0<img decoding=\"async\" class=\"emoji\" role=\"img\" draggable=\"false\" src=\"https:\/\/s.w.org\/images\/core\/emoji\/17.0.2\/svg\/1f447.svg\" alt=\"\ud83d\udc47\" \/><\/h2>\n<div class=\"injected-content injected-in-content injected-in-content-14\"><\/div>\n<div id=\"idlastshow\"><\/div>\n<h1 class=\"text-[color:--base-font-color] font-bold text-[28px] leading-[40px] xl:text-[32px] xl:leading-[44px] mt-0 mb-[0.4em] max-w-[16em]\">How Murfreesboro celebrates \u2018American Idol\u2019 singer Jordan McCullough<\/h1>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"standard-img w-full w-full h-auto\" src=\"https:\/\/s.yimg.com\/lo\/mysterio\/api\/84EF900153E1AAC2F491E0EA4AC70ED050FC275E11D39C753A27FC7B6036BE0D\/subgraphmysterio\/resizefill_w976_h651;quality_80;format_webp\/https:%2F%2Fmedia.zenfs.com%2Fen%2Faol_murfreesboro_daily_news_journal_891%2Fe3cc84fdc3ab9af25ff3d170e80e4f01\" alt=\"\" width=\"976\" height=\"651\" data-nimg=\"1\" \/><\/p>\n<p>How Murfreesboro celebrates \u2018American Idol\u2019 singer Jordan McCullough<\/p>\n<div class=\"injected-content injected-in-content injected-in-content-13\"><\/div>\n<p>The pouring rain could not stop hundreds of people from packing Murfreesboro\u2019s historic square on May 6, 2026, in support of their own hometown hero.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAmerican Idol\u201d finalist Jordan McCullough was busy all day making stops across the city as part of the show\u2019s homecoming taping, which leads up to the finale on May 11.<\/p>\n<p>McCullough was due to arrive at the square for a parade at 4 p.m. after visiting several of his former schools, including Oakland High School, his alma mater. A little before 4 p.m., dozens of people were already standing in downtown Murfreesboro, signs of support in their hands, as they waited for the parade to start.<\/p>\n<p>Murfreesboro resident Renee Grayzer sat among them, her mom, daughter and son nearby.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019ve been following him since the first episode,\u201d Grayzer said. \u201cAs soon as he hit the first note, I knew he was something special.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>McCullough was due to take the stage for a free public concert at 6 p.m. It was also delayed, but a city spokesman said 3,100 people attended the show.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAs soon as I learned he was from Murfreesboro, I told my mom we have to get behind him,\u201d Grayzer added.<\/p>\n<p>As parade time drew near, more people started to file in until a crowd of more than 1,000 people had assembled. Downtown businesses\u2019 windows were decorated with \u201cWelcome Home, Jordan\u201d and \u201cCongratulations, Jordan.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Despite an hour delay, and the cold rain, excitement for McCullough\u2019s arrival only grew as the crowd began to chant, \u201cJordan!\u201d The sounds of a band echoed in the distance. Soon the parade kicked off with the Siegel High School band and cheerleaders.<\/p>\n<p>A few cars followed, then the Oakland High School band and cheerleaders. Finally McCullough arrived holding a bouquet of flowers and riding in the back of a white convertible.<\/p>\n<p>The finalist was visibly emotional as he smiled and waved, calling out \u201cthank you\u201d and \u201cI love you\u201d to the crowd.<\/p>\n<p>It was a moment that local fan Sharon Ahlquist said she\u2019d never forget.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI think having an opportunity like this is once in a lifetime, and I had to come out to support,\u201d she said. \u201cHaving an \u2018American Idol\u2019 from Murfreesboro is special.\u201d<\/p>\n<div class=\"injected-content injected-in-content injected-in-content-2\"><\/div>\n<p>Fellow \u201cAmerican Idol\u201d fan Elaine Chandler agreed as she stood in the rain with her husband. Although she now lives in Nashville, she once lived in Murfreesboro, she said, adding that she has been a fan of the show since the beginning of its run and has missed, at most, only three seasons out of 24 total.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI love how he expresses his love for the Lord,\u201d Chandler said of McCullough. \u201cYou can just feel that he\u2019s in worship mode. He seems very genuine.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Despite being a huge fan, Chandler says she\u2019s usually not a big voter on the show. All that changed a few nights ago, right before the top three finalists were announced, she said.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAll 10 of my votes went to Jordan,\u201d she said with a laugh. \u201cI told my husband if he wins, we\u2019re going to Murfreesboro.\u201d<\/p>\n<div id=\"idlastshow2\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"code-block code-block-post-after\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"injected-content injected-after_post\"><ins class=\"982a9496\" data-key=\"90592b4e27f99d8e229f7b25c9d79594\"><\/ins><\/p>\n<div class=\"eyeo\" data-type=\"_mgwidget\" data-widget-id=\"1791849\" data-uid=\"09327\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>BIG HOMECOMING MOMENT\u00a0\u00a0Jordan McCullough has officially returned to Murfreesboro after an impressive journey on American Idol Season 24, where he stood out among more than 100 contestants&#8230; <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":29491,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-29490","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\/29490","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=29490"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/grow24.us\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/29490\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":29492,"href":"https:\/\/grow24.us\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/29490\/revisions\/29492"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/grow24.us\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/29491"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/grow24.us\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=29490"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/grow24.us\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=29490"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/grow24.us\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=29490"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}