Former American Idol contestant CJ Harris has died, his family said Monday. The 31-year-old musician, who made it to the top 6 of the singing competition on Season 13 in 2014, suffered an apparent heart attack Sunday night in Jasper, Alabama, a family member told TMZ. He reportedly was taken to a hospital via ambulance but did not survive.
Harris blew away American Idol judges Keith Urban, Jennifer Lopez and Harry Connick Jr. with his 2014 audition in Salt Lake City when he sang Allman Brothers Band’s song “Soulshine.” Urban told Harris, “You sing ’cause you have to sing, not ’cause you want to sing And I mean that in the deepest way. And that’s why it’s so believable and real.”
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He went on to perform versions of “Too Close,” “American Woman” and “Free Fallin,’” and was even chosen by the judges as a wild card in the semi-finals after not receiving enough fan votes to continue in the competition. After that, he made it all the way to the top 6 before he was eliminated, with Caleb Johnson going on to win the season.
After Idol, he performed with Darius Rucker, someone he said influenced his own style, at the Grand Ole Opry. He also performed for audiences on Idol‘s Season 13 tour.
Harris decided to audition for American Idol on a whim after he was turned away from The X Factor and The Voice. “I saw they were doing the bus tour, and they were going to be 30 minutes down the road from me,” he told The Hollywood Reporter in 2014. “I said, ‘You know what? I’m going to give it another chance. I’ve gotten so much better, my voice has matured and my playing has gotten so much better. I’m 23, before you know it I’ll be 33, and I want to give it another chance.’”
He also told the outlet that Idol changed his life financially. “I was just barely trying to get by,” he said. “I was doing everything I could to make it in the music industry, and then American Idol came along and changed my life.” He went on to praise Idol alums Adam Lambert and Taylor Hicks for advice they gave him and advised future Idol contestants to stick to their identities on the show.
