"Honored that they're my friends" — American Idol star Josh King shares an emotional message to his co-stars post elimination

American Idol season 23 star Josh King got eliminated from the race to the finish line in episode 16 on May 5, 2025. He lost the spot in the Top 7 to Mattie Pruitt, whom the judges saved. Although he was removed from the competition, Josh was pleased with the friendships with his co-stars. In an Instagram post shared on May 6, 2025, Josh thanked his co-stars, reminiscing about his time on the ABC show.

"I'll never forget the challenging, chaotic, yet fun experience. Everyone all the way back to Hollywood Week down to Top 7 deserved to be there. I'm proud of everyone, and I'm honored that they're my friends," he wrote.

The American Idol star then went on to express gratitude to the production team and all the crew members behind the scenes for their efforts and the work they put in to make the show successful and a comfortable experience for him and his co-stars.

Josh reminisced about all the fun he had and the games he played with the other contestants while on set, thanking them for the memories, while hoping to meet them soon "on the flip side."

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"Thank you for being my friends" — Josh King reflects on his friendships on American Idol

In the caption of his Instagram post, Josh clarified that the contestants who made it into the Top 7 deserved that spot. Despite failing to progress, he was happy to have left the competition with many memories and friends. He wrote that the show "saved" him, urging his fans to realize how much it meant to him to just be a part of it.

The American Idol season 23 evictee was grateful to his co-stars for believing in him even on days he did not believe in himself.

"Thank you for being my friends. You all made me feel like I was home. See you on the flip side," Josh commented.

The American Idol star also thanked production and the camera crew.

"The production and the crew were also freaking amazing to work with. We would not have American Idol without every single one of them behind the scenes holding the chaos together," he wrote.

Josh added that although the show was "intense at times," the crew behind the curtain managed everything effortlessly because they were "VERY good at what they do." He noted that from a contestant's perspective, it was "awesome" knowing the crew was behind them "every step of the way," something he could never "thank them enough" for.

Josh then went on to thank his fellow contestants, expressing gratitude for creating memories together and for spending the "challenging slog" of the last few days of Hollywood Week by helping him get through it.

"Thanks for the late nights playing Smash Bros, for letting me make the worst jokes known to mankind nearly 24/7 and suffering through the take out food diet with me," he added.

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American Idol alum Josh King sang Home by Michael Bublé in his last performance

24-year-old Josh presented the judges with his rendition of Home by Michael Bublé in the May 5 episode. His performance was appreciated by all the panelists, including Lionel Richie, who had picked the song for him.

"You embody that song. I mean, when I saw your name and I saw the song, I said, 'The two need to be together right away,' and the marriage was perfect," Richie said.

American Idol judge Carrie Underwood expressed a similar sentiment when she mentioned that Josh was in his "element" and had delivered a "really strong performance."

Luke Bryan echoed the consensus, saying the song choice was "perfect" for Josh, adding that he appreciated "all the style behind that one." Despite the positive reactions, Josh failed to secure enough votes from the American public and landed in the bottom two alongside Mattie. His journey ended when the judges saved Mattie over him.

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American Idol episodes can be streamed on Hulu.