‘American Idol’: Who Is Hannah Harper? Meet the Season 24 Contestant

American Idol Season 24 is about to enter the Ohana Round, which means there are just 30 contestants left in the competition. One of those artists is Hannah Harper, who went viral during her audition when she sang an original song called “String Cheese.”

Hannah wrote the song while dealing with postpartum depression following the birth of her youngest child, and the audition performance has been viewed more than 750,000 times.

Scroll down to learn more about Hannah ahead of the next round of American Idol competition.

Who is Hannah Harper?

Hannah is a stay-at-home mom and aspiring singer. Her passion for singing began in church, where she sang “bluegrass gospel music” on weekends from ages nine to 16, she told Music Mayhem. She performed in a family band called the Harper Family, and they traveled around to perform.

Because Hannah was raised “super conservative,” she didn’t have much access to mainstream music, but she said she was “drawn to” Dolly Parton from the little she knew of her. “I was a big Shania Twain fan, like early ’90s Shania,” she added. “That was the one tape that we had on on the regular that my mom let me listen to.”

She considered Twain to be a “huge influence,” along with artists from the “more wholesome side of ’90s country,” such as Jo Dee Messina.

Where is Hannah Harper from?

Hannah lives in Missouri, which is also where she grew up.

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Who Made the Top 30 on 'American Idol' Season 24?

Is Hannah Harper married?

Yes, Hannah is married to her husband, Devon Mendenhall. They’ve been married since April 2018. Devon refers to himself as a “fishing addict” in his Instagram bio.

How many kids does Hannah Harper have?

Hannah and Devon share three sons. They became parents for the first time in April 2019, one year after tying the knot. When Hannah auditioned for American Idol in the fall of 2025, her youngest son was one.

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A post shared by Hannah Harper (@hannahharper)

During her audition, Hannah opened up about her postpartum depression, which inspired her viral song “String Cheese.” As she explained it, “I was sitting on my couch wallowing. Everybody wants to touch you. I didn’t want to be touched. I was just having a pity party, praying that the Lord would calm my spirit. And my son kept coming up to me saying, ‘Mama open this. Open my cheese.’ And I finally opened his cheese and when I did that, God had put me in that place, and where I was in my house was the biggest ministry I could have, and being a mom.”

At that point, Hannah said she “quit throwing a pity party and realized that was exactly what I wanted. I kind of kicked the postpartum depression in the butt. I said, ‘I ain’t doing it.’ And I wrote this song called ‘String Cheese.'”

American Idol, Season 24, Mondays, 8/7c, ABC