Singer Announces She’s Returning to ‘American Idol’ With Judges This Fall

When “American Idol” judges Luke Bryan, Katy Perry and Lionel Richie reunite in September to film initial auditions for season 21, a familiar face will walk through the door.

But this time, she’ll be showing up with two new titles: mom and wife.

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Fan Favorite Will Return for Season 21

In the fall of 2021, 23-year-old mom-to-be Haley Slaton, auditioned for the “American Idol” judges in Austin, Texas, singing the challenging song “The Climb” while being over five months pregnant.

“Just being a mom shouldn’t stop you from following your dreams,” she said before her audition. The Iowa singer went on to impress the judges and received a golden ticket to continue in the competition.

She was eight months pregnant when she arrived for the notoriously intense Hollywood auditions. She was paired with Sam Moss, who had just announced her own pregnancy, to sing “Dancing On My Own.”

While they worked on their song, Perry took time to consult with the duo, talking about their pregnancies and her experience becoming a mom. But when it came to delivering the decision after the pair’s on-stage performance, Perry announced Moss was going through but Slaton was not.

“Haley, you have a tone like no other,” Perry told her. “It is so full, it’s real, and it should really be investigated. I know you’re going to be a great mother, and I also know you’re never gonna give up on your dreams.”

She was right about that. On August 29, 2022, the singer revealed on Instagram that she’s not giving up and will try for better results during season 21. Now the mom of seven-month-old Jaelyn Amir Myles, the singer told 98.1 KHAK in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, that she’s completed virtual auditions and producers have invited her to Las Vegas to audition for the celebrity judges this September.

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Haley Met Her Husband During ‘American Idol’ Auditions

When she reunites with the judges, the fan favorite will have lots of news to share. Not only will they want to know all about baby Jaelyn, but they’ll likely be shocked to learn that Haley Slaton is now Haley Myles, thanks to a romance that blossomed behind the scenes of “Idol.”

On March 18, the Cedar Rapids Gazette reported that when Haley traveled to Austin, Texas to tryout in front of the judges, she met fellow contestant Jordan Myles, fell in love, and the two were married on Christmas Eve.

“We got married pretty quick,” she told the newspaper. “We just knew. We started right off the bat talking to each other, and it ended up being an everyday thing. I was already pregnant, and he stepped up to be a father, and I couldn’t thank him enough for that.”

Jordan, who went to Louisiana Tech for a year to play football, shared on Instagram in April that his audition never made it to TV. He did get a golden ticket to Hollywood, he wrote, but was eliminated during the “genre” round. Jordan then moved from Louisiana to Iowa, where the couple now resides in Cedar Rapids with baby Jaelyn. The couple periodically sings together on Hayley’s TikTok account.

“We’re very in love, we’re very happy that we met, and I feel like another reason why I was on the show was to meet him,” Haley told The Gazette. “That was a great experience — to meet someone that I finally could spend the rest of my life with.”

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