Ryan Seacrest makes bombshell confession about 'depressed' love life on 'American Idol': 'I've never...'
Ryan Seacrest has been the most beloved TV host for a reason. Seacrest has long been walking with the contestants through their 'American Idol' journey and is not immune to the emotions they bring on stage via their performances. One such performance, which moved the judges and Seacrest alike, was when artist Thunderstorm Artis dedicated one of his original songs, 'Out of the Blue,' to his wife on last Sunday's episode, May 11. Seacrest, who is going through a recent breakup, said, "Well done," before adding, “It is a beautiful song with beautiful lyrics. I just printed them out backstage. ‘Your green eyes are soft like the summer, and your touch can put out the embers of my burning heart from that grey December.’ I’ve never been more depressed to be single than right now in this moment.”
The entertainment mogul, who was dating Aubrey Paige Petcosky, broke up in 2024. In a recent interview, a source close to the former couple told People, "After three beautiful years together, Ryan and Aubrey have mutually decided to part ways." It added, "They plan to stay in each other’s lives as good friends and support one another’s endeavors."
The 50-year-old who has never been married recently admitted that his "biggest fear" in life is "relationships" to a 'Wheel of Fortune' contestant, Jill McDaniel, during one of their conversations, as reported by Yahoo. However, back in 2017, Seacrest had opened up on his thoughts on marriage. While co-hosting 'Live with Kelly and Ryan,' he said, "I love the idea (of getting married). I know you’re going to ask me of marriage because my parents have been married for 47 years, and so I have this thing … I figure the longer I wait, the older I’ll be, the closer to death I am, so I can get it in and not screw it up.” Yet again, things didn't work out as he wanted.
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This wasn't his first breakup. According to Parade, Seacrest has been in a relationship many times before with high-profile names such as Sara Jean Underwood, Julianne Hough, Shayna Taylor, Hilary Cruz, and Renee Hall. While Artis made Seacrest depressed, it certainly had the opposite reaction on the judges. We were also thoroughly impressed by Artis' performance. Lionel Richie said, “You are about to turn your thunderstorm into a tornado. It is clear to me that if you’re writing those lyrics and you’re writing those melodies, you have what we call a career. … The sky’s the limit for you, my friend.”
“We’re so comfortable with what you are as a songwriter. You’re just checking all those boxes so that we can just sit back and enjoy the thunderstorm show,” Luke Bryan added. While Carrie Underwood commented, "You are an artist. You’ve brought some amazing songs to us already throughout your time with us.” Despite earning praise from the judges, Artis was eliminated from the top 5 along with another contestant, Slater Nally, while John Foster, Breanna Nix, and Jamal Roberts went to the live finale. Eventually, out of the three, 'American Idol' crowned their season 23 winner on Sunday, the 18th, as Jamal Roberts.