Television April 04, 2023
Kaya Stewart, Rocker Dave Stewart's Daughter, Shockingly Quits ‘American Idol’ Before Duet
ABC Television
On Monday’s episode of “American Idol,” there was an unexpected exit!
Moments before contestant Fire Wilmore was set to perform, her duet partner Kaya Stewart quit the show.
Stewart told judges Katy Perry, Luke Bryan and Lionel Richie, “I have a little announcement to make. I got sick at the beginning of Hollywood Week and I have been trying to push myself and keep going. During this performance, I got to work with Fire and it was such a great experience.”
“She’s so talented and so incredible and we bonded so much, but I realized I wasn’t able to give 100 percent,” Kaya went on. “So, I’ve decided to not perform, but Fire is going to perform and I’m really grateful that I got to be here and thank you guys, but I’m not going to be performing.”
ABC Television
When Katy asked if she was leaving the competition, Kaya, the daughter of Eurythmics musician Dave Stewart, answered, “Yes. So me not performing today means I’m no longer going to be in the competition.”
A crying Kaya then walked offstage, leaving Fire on the verge of tears.
Fire begin crying after Katy asked how she felt. She said, “It’s been really stressful. It was a lot of stress on me to learn a different arrangement and then just come out here…”
Jayna Elise then volunteered to join Fire to sing Adam Lambert’s hit song “Whataya Want From Me.”
After the performance, Katy wiped tears from her face. She told Fire, “I’m proud of you. You’re growing little by little. You can’t control a lot, but you can control yourself. And you can control your future. Thank you for standing up here and continuing to try, thank you for swinging, thank you for not forfeiting, thank you for fighting.”
Katy then told Fire that she was moving on to the next round.
