If only they’d known! Maren Morris, Luke Combs and Tori Kelly are among the stars who’ve been turned down by singing competition shows before their big breaks.
Morris shared a picture of her American Idol audition ticket from 2007 via Instagram in July 2022.
“I didn’t make it past the first-round cattle call,” the “Bones” songstress admitted in the caption. “I wasn’t really into sports growing up, but this feels like the equivalent of your mom saving your 10th place trophy. 😂🏆.”
The Grammy winner’s experience with rejection didn’t end there. During a March 2019 appearance on Watch What Happens Live With Andy Cohen, a caller asked the Texas native how she felt about not making it on American Idol and The Voice. Morris replied: “That’s not even it. I was rejected from, like, America’s Got Talent [too]. There were a ton that I didn’t make it to.”
Despite her reality TV setbacks, the “Middle” singer is happy with the way things turned out.
“People cover my songs for their auditions on those shows [now], so it’s like, not only is it really nice to have my song on a national television show — but [I also] get to collect the check and have some sweet revenge,” she joked.
Combs, for his part, recalled going through several rounds of auditions for The Voice producers during a June 2022 appearance on the “Full Send” podcast.
“I tell them I want to do a country song, and they are like, ‘Oh, well, you didn’t sing country before.’ I’m like, ‘So, I have to sing one kind of [music]? The show is just about being a singer.’ There’s got to be some sort of angle,” the “Going, Going, Gone” crooner explained.
He continued: “I got a letter back after the next audition — which, I made it through — and they told me, essentially, I was too boring to be on television. … I didn’t make it to the show. I still have the letter in storage that’s like, ‘You’re a great singer, but … .’ Essentially, it’s about ratings, right?”
While Combs’ rebuff wasn’t necessarily about talent, Kelly’s voice was deemed “almost annoying” by judge Simon Cowell during her 2010 audition for American Idol. The “Unbreakable Smile” artist received positive feedback from the other judges and progressed to Hollywood week but failed to earn a spot in the top 24.
The California native talked about the experience during a September 2019 appearance on The Kelly Clarkson Show.
Thank You!
You have successfully subscribed.
“I don’t regret anything and I think Simon is cool,” she said. “No hard feelings. I actually should thank him because it all happened for a reason.”
Scroll down to see all the stars who’ve been rejected by American Idol and The Voice:
ncG1vNJzZmivp6x7tr%2FMmp6aspmjsm%2BvzqZmnqakmr%2B1rcinpJ6mpGS9qq%2FTrqmeq1%2BowaK%2B0mauoaddrLKzsYyrnKOdk6mypXnBsmSapZWntqStzWagnaecYq6vsIytn55lpqS2pLGO