Behind every great man, there are great women. Such is the case of the latest American Idol winner Kris Allen, 24 years old this June, his wife, Katy O’Connell Allen, and his mom, Kimberly ‘Kim’ Allen.
Admitting during his appearance on The Ellen DeGeneres Show, set to air on May 26, that he was “shocked every week” during competition, he says it was his wife who kept him going.
“I’ve been singing for a long time I started playing guitar when I was 13 and I’m 23 now,” he tells the talk show host. “I did the music scene in Arkansas, which isn’t that big … and It didn’t work out and I almost gave up.”
But, he continues, “My wife has been the support. I seriously almost gave up a lot, and she was just like you have to keep going. She believed in me more than I believed in myself. She is just great.”
Of Simon Cowell’s declaration Allen “shouldn’t of played the wife card so early,” DeGeneres disagrees. She tells Allen, “I thought it was great and you seem like an adorable couple and I think it’s important for people to see that you have a wife and how supportive she was.”
It was an issue that never crossed Allen’s mind. “I care about her a lot so it didn’t bother me that she was brought up,” he says. “I think it bothered her more than it bothered me.”
“She is responsible for you getting this far,” DeGeneres prods. “I think you owe her something big.”
Allen’s idea: “Vacation, how about that?”
Kris Allen is a lucky guy, he’s surrounding with great women, that always give him support, advice and directive. Kris Allen’s mom, Kim Allen, has show as a proud mom that she had notice that Kris had a beautiful tone to his voice and has an extraordinary about his talent,
“It came after he went to Spain on a mission trip after his second semester of college. When Kris came home, he wasn’t well and he was in bed. He seemed to acquire a gift for writing music. We heard the songs, the messages in his music, and we realized he wasn’t just some kid who could sing, he truly has a gift”.
Kim says that Kris’ idea to join the audition American Idol was supported by all family, especially his brother, Daniel. And she and her husband never thought that Kris would make this far as a winner,
“Kris’s thought process was that amazing “American Idol” contestants still made it big, even if they didn’t win like Chris Daughtry and Jennifer Hudson. He thought, “If I could just get exposure.” We never focused on him winning. We wanted him to get to a point where someone would just notice him and then everything would be great. As he got further into it, we looked for the win. He’s a good-looking kid, he’s wholesome, with no skeletons in his closet. This is a good arena for him because he’s a positive influence on young kids. He’s an inspiration for anyone”.
And Kim Allen has tips for all moms whose children want to audition, “Support your kids and their dreams no matter what, and do it with a great amount of grace and love so they understand that no matter what the outcome, it doesn’t define them. You can’t put everything into one instance. During an initial interview, someone asked me, “How would you feel if he doesn’t get a golden ticket to Hollywood?” It should never be, “If I don’t get the golden ticket” then it’s all over. They have to be comfortable in their own skin, and they will be great no matter what”.
As a mom always defend her son, she said that she’s disagree with Simon’s statements about Kris’ confidence, “Maybe they perceive his humbleness as a lack of confidence, but it’s truly not”.
I think, Kris Allen also owe big to his mom, and should give her vacation also. Anyway, above all, congratulation for Kris.
