Six months after making it into the Top 5 on season 22 of “American Idol,” singer Emmy Russell has revealed she’s on another life-changing journey: becoming a mom.
On December 10, 2024, Russell shared her good news while appearing with her mom, Patsy, on an episode of the “Got It From My Momma” podcast. Russell told host Jennifer Vickery Smith and the live audience that she and her beau, Tyler Ward, are expecting a baby girl. Interestingly, her announcement comes weeks after her fellow season 22 finalist, country singer Triston Harper, shared his own baby news.
Emmy Russell Discovered She Was Expecting Right After ‘American Idol’ Ended
At the very beginning of the “Got It From My Momma” podcast, Smith encouraged Russell, who was frequently touted on “Idol” as the granddaughter of country icon Loretta Lynn, to share her happy news with the audience.
“Y’all, me and Tyler are expecting a baby girl,” Russell beamed, adding that she learned she was pregnant shortly after “Idol” ended.
“I’m so excited,” she said. “Right out of ‘American Idol’ — I didn’t know! So that’s kind of been the journey. I’m so looking forward to it.”
“This is the first time I’m actually, like, fully announcing that,” Russell added.
When Smith brought up that Patsy has a twin sister, Russell expressed relief that she’s not having twins like her famous grandmother did.
“Thank God,” she said. “Because I think it passes to the next generation! Hey, round two might be two of them.”
When Russell first shared her news on the podcast, Ward, who owns and runs the Nashville songwriting collaborative Song House, ran up on stage at the start of the podcast to hug Russell and rub her baby bump. In addition to Russell, his organization works with and promotes many up-and-coming singer-songwriters, including recent “Idol” contestants KAYKO, Wé Ani, AJII, and Roman Collins.
It’s not clear how long Ward, 40, and Russell, 25, have been together. But in June, they shared multiple posts from Washington DC, where he accompanied Russell for a special performance.
Russell is the second Top 5 finalist from season 22 preparing to become a first-time parent.
On November 6, 16-year-old Triston Harper shared on Facebook that he was engaged to his high school girlfriend. Two days later, his mother Hattie Lee Sullivan, who was often seen on “Idol” cheering on her son, revealed that the teen couple is also expecting their first child.
Sullivan posted a photo of Harper and Reed holding a positive pregnancy test and wrote, “Now Everybody has congratulated me on Triston and Paris getting married but to me that is old news but now I’m bout to be a ‘G Ma.’” She added the hashtags #TeamPink, #TeamBlue, and #BlessingsonBlessings.
On November 24, Harper posted a video of himself singing a new song he wrote addressing the situation.
“I am a husband now and a dad soon to be,” Harper sings. “I didn’t write it out that way, so you blame God, not me. I love my wife, she’s the love of my life, the reason I breathe. I thank God for her every night, I’m as happy as can be, but I’m scared what might be the death of me. I’m trying to be the man of her dreams, hope she don’t up and leave.”
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