Luke Bryan Says Katy Perry Kiss on ‘American Idol’ Had ‘Unfortunate’ Reaction

Luke Bryan is speaking out about the now-famous kiss between fellow American Idol judge Katy Perry, and 19-year-old contestant, Benjamin Glaze.

The kiss made headlines after Glaze, who told Perry he had never been kissed, later said that it made him “uncomfortable immediately,” with some Idol fans quickly criticizing Perry for the brief kiss.

“It’s unfortunate that stuff like that turns into a story that big,” Bryan told Entertainment Tonight. “I watched an actual interview where Ben, the kid that was involved, said that he was cool with everything.”

“I gotta back Katy on that,” Bryan continued. “She’s in there working hard and making fun TV.”

The “Most People Are Good” singer added that he, along with Perry and judge Lionel Richie, do their best, but they are also fallible just like anybody else.

“We are going to get it right sometimes and get it wrong sometimes,” said Bryan. “We’re in there critiquing people. I may say something one day that everybody’s not going to like. That’s just what you signed up for.

“At the end of the day,” said Bryan, “me and Lionel and Katy and [host] Ryan [Seacrest], our hearts are in the right place.”

Bryan previously admitted that being a judge on Idol was a challenging role for him.

“It’s a little out of my comfort zone to just pick people apart, but you have to, it’s what you signed up for,” he told Good Morning America. “I remember our first day on set, we were actually in New York City, and when somebody doesn’t need to make it through, there’s no way around, you’ve got to say no.I’m like, ‘Oh God, I gotta tell ’em no…,’ but then when you learn after 14-hour days of filming, you’re like, ‘No! It’s time to get the next person in!’”

Bryan might be determining who goes through to the next round on American Idol, but he acknowledged he wouldn’t have done very well as a contestant.

“I would have been the aw shucks, gullible country boy that could sing a little bit,” Bryan said. “But I would have had to lean on my charming personality, my wit. I wouldn’t have known who I was as an artist.”

American Idol airs on Sunday nights at 8:00 PM ET on ABC.

Photo Credit: Instagram/LukeBryan