Benson Boone was a contestant on American Idol in 2021 and made it to the top 24, but then dropped out of the show. Considering that he’s now a global pop superstar, it’s no surprise that Katy Perry — who was a judge on the show at the time and even predicted he’d win — thinks it was a good move for him to leave.
Appearing on The Scott Mills Breakfast Show on the U.K.’s BBC Radio 2, Benson said, “I actually think she is really glad that I left the show.”
He said he talked to her at an award show, noting, “She was, like, really happy for me. Also really worried about me.”
“I think she understands that when you’re starting to go through all of this, there’s just a lot of hate coming your way; a lot of people that want things from you,” he continued. “She was more just checking in on me. … She actually really is a lovely person.”
“She told me, she was like, ‘Leaving that show was, like, the best thing you ever did,'” Benson added. “I think she understands. Like, I didn’t even know if I wanted to do music at the time.”
Benson revealed he didn’t actually audition to be on Idol —his season took place during the COVID-19 pandemic and there weren’t any auditions. Instead, he said, the show reached out to him because they saw his videos online. He figured, “What have I got to lose?”
But Benson said after making the top 24, he wanted out.
“So I just got off the show and I was very fortunate to do so,” he added.
Benson, who had the #1 song in the world last year with “Beautiful Things,” has his second album, American Heart, coming out on Friday.
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