San Francisco Woman Competes In 'American Idol' Finals; 1st Openly Gay Contestant
SAN FRANCISCO (KCBS) – A 20-year-old San Francisco woman is performing Wednesday night in the finals of Season 13 of American Idol.
MK Nobilette is a graduate of the Ruth Asawa San Francisco School of the Arts, and is the first performer in the history of American Idol to acknowledge she is openly gay while performing on the show.
While the show has had gay contestants in the past – Clay Aiken and Adam Lambert for example – they came out after their season had aired on television.
Last year, Nobilette auditioned at AT&T Park in San Francisco and now, she is in Los Angeles, one of the ten American Idol finalists.
Throughout this season, she has consistently talked about being gay and how she was raised by two moms, who preferred that she clean up for the initial interview.
"Well, she certainly didn't get dolled up, despite her mother's advice," said Mindy Spatt, one of her moms. "I think she was just speaking really honestly about feeling like, looking around and there she is in her thrift store sweatshirt that I told her not to wear. And looking at the other girls, and feeling like, well I'm obviously very different from them. Am I going to stand out and is this why?"
Known for wearing a backwards hat during her performances, Nobilette said she originally auditioned because her aunt persuaded her to try out, and her family was supportive and wanted her to go for it.
Her performance is scheduled for Wednesday night, with results coming during Thursday night's show.