'American Idol's Jamal Roberts Reveals What Song He Wants to 'Bring Out of the Hat' This Season (Exclusive)

Yahoo

06-05-2025

The fact that Jamal Roberts bestowed both of his daughters with musical names – Harmoni, 6, and Lyrik, 3 – is a definite testament to his devotion to music. In fact, he joked with Parade that he had to argue with their mamas to make it happen.
'I always said, even before I had kids, that I was going to name my kids after music,' the 27-year-old PE teacher from Meridian, MS, said. 'If I had another girl, she would be Melody. And then I had thought about Symphony, all these beautiful names. I love my daughters. They are my world, my life. They're the reason I'm here and working so hard to keep smiles on those little faces.'
Jamal has been singing since he was 2 years old, so he has been pretty much locked into music since he was a toddler. It was his grandparents who inspired him, urging him to Sunday morning services and encouraging him to always do his best.
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As a result, he grew up singing Michael Jackson and The Temptations' songs. And when he gets a chance, he plans to bring one of their songs to the Idol stage. That opportunity may come tonight, when the Top 8 perform songs selected by Luke Bryan, Lionel Richie or Carrie Underwood in the 'Judge's Song Contest.'
'I do think I'm going to try to do a Temptations song,' Jamal told Parade at the Hulu Get Real event. 'I'm going to try to bring it out of the hat. I've seen so many comments and so many fans and viewers and friends that were like, 'You should get up there and do a Temptations song.' I'm going to try to get up there and give it a try.'
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As mentioned, Jamal is a PE Teacher, not a music teacher. And during this run on American Idol, he's been receiving lots of messages and videos from his students back home, which makes him feel that he's doing something right, that all these young kids are looking up to him.
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'I never wanted to move out of Meridian, actually,' he says when asked why he didn't relocate somewhere where it would be easier to launch his music career. 'I'm not a fan of traffic; Meridian doesn't have traffic. You don't have to wait hours to eat. Things like that that just became normal for me. When you go out of town, things are different. But growing up, I had a good experience in Meridian. Now, it's not like it used to be. It's changed, but I believe it can get back, and I believe I can help it get that way.'
Idol may just be his ticket to accomplish that, especially if he makes it to the Top 5 and beyond. And if his performance of Tom Odell's "Heal" – the most watched video of the Top 10 – is any indication, he's on his way. And helping him to achieve his goals, in addition to the advice he gets each week from Luke, Lionel and Carrie, is the expertise he receives from the behind-the-scenes vocal coaches.
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'I have the best coaches in the world literally,' he says. 'They help me push myself to my full potential, and the judges are just so supportive. I do believe if there ever came a time where they had to critique me, they will, but right now they're telling me I'm in my own lane and just keep exploding on the stage basically.'
American Idol airs Sunday and Monday nights at 8 p.m. ET/PT on ABC. Streams next day on Hulu.
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