‘American Idol’ Winner Announces Pregnancy

Samantha “Just Sam” Diaz is going to be a mom!

The American Idol Season 18 winner, 26, announced on July 16 that they were pregnant, sharing a photo of positive pregnancy tests alongside a sonogram and a mirror selfie of their growing baby bump.

“To have made it past viability week after years of trying is truly a blessing!!! Thank you Jesus for this gift,” Sam wrote in the caption. “I was told at just 20 years old that I may not be able to carry children of my own or that I may have to try IVF in order to have a successful pregnancy/birth.”

The singer continued that they had been “trying on and off” for the past couple of years to become pregnant and “was really starting to lose hope.”

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“These past few months have been scary having to be in and out of the hospital, but being past viability week is such a great feeling and does bring a little relief to me,” they continued. “I’m so happy to be on this journey and I have been wanting this for so long and wasn’t sure this was even possible for me so I’m beyond grateful and beyond excited to be on this journey and path to MOTHERHOOD!!!!!”

A week later, Sam shared on Instagram that they were having a baby boy, posting another shot of their growing belly that they captioned simply with the shocked face emoji.

Just Sam took home the win during American Idol Season 18 back in 2020, with the COVID-19 pandemic forcing the Harlem-born musician’s crowning to occur remotely for the first time ever.

Since their win, Sam released singles “Africando” and “Change,” after parting ways with Hollywood Records, but in 2023 announced that they had returned to busking in the New York City subways to make a living.

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“If I ever went back to the trains, I didn’t expect it to be something that I had to do. I felt like it would be something that I did for fun, you know, relive an old moment or memory, you know?” they told The Washington Post at the time. “But I literally could not afford to pay my rent. I couldn’t afford to eat.”

“I didn’t tell my grandmother what was going on at the label. I was embarrassed. She found out when the world did — that’s something that not many people know. I didn’t want to worry her,” Sam continued. “But I was embarrassed, truly, because I never really thought — I never saw anyone on a show like that who won, like, go back to their old life.”

In late 2023, Just Sam signed a deal with the CrowdMGMT management company, telling The Post, “Everybody’s waiting to see that big blowup moment again like Idol. I think it’s going to be something greater than Idol — no shade, I love them. But I think that wasn’t the end.”