As Jamal Roberts settles into being the latest winner of American Idol, he's dishing on how more than just his life has changed forever.
The soulful singer rose to the top during season 23 of the ABC series, and he was open about how he was spending time away from his daughters Harmoni, Lyrik and Gianna in order to participate on the show. But now that American Idol is over, how do Jamal's daughters feel about his success? As he shared with Us Weekly on May 28, it turns out things don't feel so different for his kids at the moment.
"All they know is 'Daddy win,'" he told the outlet. "That’s what they say. I was like, 'Yeah, daddy won, baby.' [They] don’t really get the concept of what was going on. They just knew I was gone [for] a long time. And that I [won]."
But that's not all Jamal said about how his kids reacted to his American Idol victory. Given how he wasn't able to be with his daughters throughout his time on the show, he made sure his first time back with them would be something they could do as a whole family.
"I took them to the house so we could spend time with each other," he added.
As fans know, Jamal's family life became a surprise topic during his time as a contestant on American Idol. His youngest daughter Gianna was born just before he made the Top 8, and he later introduced folks to her on Instagram on May 16. And despite the distance he had to endure with his children, he acknowledged how being on the show changed his family's lives forever.
"These girls are having the time of their life 😍😍," he captioned an Instagram photo of Harmoni and Lyrik on May 7. Thank you, World, and thank you, American Idol, for making my girls’ dream come true. I can’t even explain how making them smile makes me feel inside."
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As the entertainment and news associate editor for Good Housekeeping, Adrianna (she/her) writes about everything TV, movies, music and pop culture. She graduated from Yeshiva University with a B.A. in journalism and a minor in business management. She covers shows like The Rookie, 9-1-1 and Grey's Anatomy, though when she’s not watching the latest show on Netflix, she’s taking martial arts or drinking way too much coffee.
