Carrie Underwood & Ryan Seacrest Talk Possibly Predicting ‘American Idol’ Winner
Finale
On Sunday, May 18, American Idol viewers will crown either John Foster, Breanna Nix, or Jamal Roberts as the show’s newest champion. At the semi-finals, judge and past Idol champion Carrie Underwood, who former judge Simon Cowell predicted would win Season 4, made a bold prediction of her own.
“I remember your audition coming in and I felt like I had this diamond in the rough standing right in front of me,” Underwood told Foster after he performed his second song (“The Rainbow Connection”) in the semi-finals.
Underwood playfully added that she had to do some convincing with her fellow judges, Luke Bryan and Lionel Richie, to move Foster through to Hollywood. “I love that you’re standing here right now, proving me right,” Underwood added. “And I’m going to tell you right now, if you ain’t real careful, you might just win this whole thing.”
TV Insider asked Underwood after the semi-finals broadcast if Cowell’s prediction has stayed with her over the years — especially as it turned out to be correct! “It was much earlier in the competition when he said that to me,” Underwood said. “But, yeah, I mean, to have [Simon] make a bold prediction like that? It was like, ‘Oh. This could be possible.’”
“I’m sure she plays that in the back of her head,” host Ryan Seacrest shared. “She was told by Simon, ‘You’re going to be the winner.’ I wonder if she’s got the same predictability factor?”
Underwood’s prediction for Foster may not have been early on the competition like Cowell’s was, but he still had to get through the semi-finals after she shared her belief. “I was thinking he has a really good chance of winning and I was right because now, he’s in the Top 3,” she says.
Underwood is the only current judge who has gone through the Idol process, so she knows what the finalists are probably thinking and feeling in this week leading up to the finale.
“They’re going to be in their hometowns, dealing with every person in the world that they’ve ever met,” she says. “They’re going to be there with a lot of people that they don’t know, too, all the while thinking about what they’re going to perform for the finale. There are group numbers and people showing up. There’s all that stuff to deal with along with the nerves and the stress.”
How can the finalists block out all the extraneous matters and focus on their performances? “I don’t know that you do,” Underwood shrugs. “This is kind of a taste of what the rest of their careers are going to be like. We call [American Idol] ‘Star Boot Camp’ because you learn a lot really fast. You learn how to sing live on TV, how to work with the cameras, how to appeal to the audience, how to deal with criticism, how to do press. You learn all this in a short amount of time, so you just do your best.”
Underwood speculating on a particular singer winning or not is fair game given her role as an Idol judge. Seacrest, however, isn’t put in the position of critiquing the crooners. “I think they’re all my favorites,” he says. “I stand next to them. I truly love them all.”
Seacrest, however, is calling out one winner for this season: Underwood, herself! “She really did a masterful job guiding the contestants and being the advocate that she needed to be for them,” he raves.
As the person who reads the name of show’s winning singer, Seacrest is privy to the identity of that individual for a few brief seconds (though it sometimes seems longer!) before everyone else learns it.
“I’ve done this 20-something times,” he says, “but I will tell you that every time we get to that last moment, I look down and when I actually see the winner, I feel the emotion before I say [the name]. And that will happen again on Sunday.”
American Idol, Season 23 Finale, Sunday, May 18, 8/7c, ABC
Hit All the High Notes
Get absolutely everything about American Idol in your inbox!
Conversation36 Comments
Please read the TV Insider Community Guidelines.
Comments are closed on this story.
-
O
Jamal will be the winner
26
-
G
Jamal
18
-
O
Carrie is not that good of singer, no personality period.
16
-
O
I agree with you Emma this is Charlene from Canada I wonder if Katy Perry wishes she would of stayed? I wish she was still the judge I thought Lionel Luke and Katy were a great team together
1
-
G
Totally Agree ...Huge Ego too!!!
1
-
-
B
Jamal it’s not even close
14
-
B
You are obviously a country music advocate and I am all cowboyed out,but I'm not knocking one contender over the other,you have your favorite others have theirs,give them all their props for what they have achieved.There is never any need for hating on anyone life is tough enough,God bless and good luck to them all.
17
-
-
O
John
12
-
G
👍
2
-
-
P
John he's a true country singer
11
-
O
I think America got it wrong when they kicked off Gabby. She is far and above a REAL star. No longer watching.
9
-
P
I think Breanna was win it during in season finale part of American idol tomorrow night we shall see
9
-
R
I HOPE CARRIE WILL NOT BE A JUDGE AGAIN!!!
8
-
O
Can we please say who your favorite is, without putting others down or making crude remarks. They are all winners. Have a Blessed day! What you put out, soon returns to ya.
7
-
G
Carrie Underwood is no Katy Perry. Did she make that Rapunzel outfit herself? And wtf was on her head the night before? A dead black rat? She was an absolute bore the whole season. She could barely spit out any constructive criticism and just fumbled over her words. Yawn. No razzmatazz whatsoever.
7
-
B
John is sucha natural performer with such a great personality and talent. He deserves to win.
6
-
G
Jamal will win
6
-
R
They knew when the season started. Better singers have been let go.
6
-
G
U got it!!!
5
-
O
John will win no matter what the vote is. Hes already a super star.
4
-
G
I think John or Jamal will win. All 3 are fabulous performers.
I hope Carrie doesnt judge next year. She doesnt have much for personality. Shes just not a good fit. Katy Perry brought soo much more to the show.
4
-
P
John down to earth love his voice
4
-
O
Jamal is the Best ! He is a very talented young man!
3
-
O
Carrie is perfect for the position with so much class and personality!! I think that people are too dang sensitive and get hurt over her speaking the truth to all contestants. She is a trillion times the upgrade from Perry and she learned so much walking through what they have all been through. Also, Lionel and Luke with Carrie complement each other. Keep letting your light shine Carrie! 💕
3
-
C
Slater and Thunderstorm should have been in finale with Jamal! America got it wrong!! So disappointing 😞
3
-
P
Be careful how you talk about a person, saying he’s creepy. Someone will say something about you that’s a lot worse and ruin your whole life. You will never be able to recover from it. The Bible says, you reap what you sow.😳
3
-
O
Jamal should win however they always do the opposite of what is right. Carrie should not return she’s not good for the show
2
-
G
So happy that Jamal won ... not that I didn't like the other two but John can't sing anything other than country, we really don't need another country singer ... Jamal is more well rounded with the variety of songs he sings ... congrats Jamal! I then would have chosen Breanna for runner up!
1
-
B
Gabby should have won but I hope it's Jamal!!
1
-
G
Carrie need to NOT BE A JUDGE AGAIN!! POINT BLANK PERIODT.....
1
-
B
I agree. She looks like she is not enjoying it at all
-
-
O
It's okay to state your opinion as long as you don't start calling people's children borderline psychotic...What isn't clear about that? Tasteful comments, read the guidelines above.
1
-
R
I am praying for Jamal Roberts to win. He is very talented and can sing anything. Breana would be a second. She has an amazing voice. All of the contestants have worked really hard and I'm proud of them.
1
-
P
Would you say that to Whitney or Brandy? I predict she will win a Grammy.
1
-
B
I wanted Gabby to win. Jamal should win. John will win.
1
-
B
Gabby was the only true talent this year.
Watchlist Easy access to only the shows you care about — all in one simple place
Alerts Only important notifications — when a show is returning, when it becomes available to stream, and more.
Special Offers Exclusive products we release related to your favorite shows and streaming services