Despite blowing the American Idol judges away during her audition, it was revealed during Monday's (April 11) episode that Platinum Ticket-winner Kenedi Anderson had decided to withdraw from American Idol season 20.
After her performance at Disney's Aulani Resort in Hawaii, American Idol host Ryan Seacrest made the announcement that Kenedi would not be participating any longer.
He said: "You might have noticed that there was no voting information during Kenedi's performance just now. Since we taped these shows in Hawaii earlier, Kenedi has decided to withdraw from our show for personal reasons. We send her well wishes."
Since that episode aired, Kenedi has released a statement on Instagram further explaining the situation that led to her decision to pull out of the competition.
Although she did not specify what prompted her withdrawal, Kenedi wrote: "For personal reasons, I'm unable to continue on American Idol. This has been one of the hardest decisions I've ever had to make, but I know it's necessary.
"I'm so grateful to American Idol, the judges, the producers, the amazing contestants, and all the fans who have supported me. Thank you for giving me such an amazing opportunity to share my voice, chase my dreams, feel so much joy and happiness doing what I love, and make lifelong friends along the way."
Whatever those personal reasons are, it must have been an incredibly difficult decision to make, especially given how strong a start Kenedi had in the competition.
She made a huge impression on Katy Perry, Luke Bryan and Lionel Richie with her rendition of Lady Gaga's "Applause" during her first audition. Luke Bryan claimed Kenedi was "the biggest star we've ever seen" following her first performance, and Katy teased that she felt "threatened" and claimed that she "check every box".
This led to the judges getting Kenedi to bring her mother into the audition room so they could hand over one of season 20's three Platinum Tickets and enable her to skip the first round in Hollywood Week.
American Idol continues on ABC on Sunday, April 17 at 8 pm ET, and you can catch up with the latest episodes on Hulu.
