Richard Jason Helton (born May 17, 1981;[1] named Rolando Alberto de Jesus Rivas, Jr., prior to adoption);[1] known professionally as R.J. Helton, was a contestant on Season 1 of American Idol.
Audition[]
R.J. auditioned in Atlanta. They sang "Never Can Say Goodbye" by The Jackson 5. All three judges voted "yes", sending them through to the next round.
Hollywood Round[]
R.J. was shown during the second part of Hollywood Week, in a group with Khaleef Chiles. Everyone in their group advanced. R.J. was later seen again, as they managed to progress into the Top 30 semifinals.
Top 30[]
R.J. was in Group 3, and sang "I'll Be There" by The Jackson 5. Although they did not place amongst the top three from their group, they were selected to compete in the Wild-Card Round.
Notably during the judges' critique, Simon complained that "two losers" (referring to Jim Verraros and A.J. Gil) advanced to the Top 10 unfairly via "sympathy vote", at the expense of more talented singers. Randy stood up angrily and bemoaned about Simon's inconsideration. All the while, R.J. remained on stage bewildered, before returning to the contestants' lounge.[2]
Wild-Card[]
On the Wild-Card show, R.J. sang "Lately" by Stevie Wonder. The judges decided to select them as the Wild-Card contestant, giving them the final slot in the Top 10.
Top 10[]
For Motown night, R.J. sang "I Can't Help Myself (Sugar Pie, Honey Bunch)" by The Four Tops. They received enough votes to be considered "safe" for that week.
Top 8[]
For 1960s night, R.J. sang "Under the Boardwalk" by The Drifters. They received enough votes to be considered "safe" for that week.
Top 7[]
For 1970s night, R.J. sang "Superstition" by Stevie Wonder. They received enough votes to be considered "safe" for that week.
Top 6[]
For Big Band night, R.J. sang "I Won't Dance" by Fred Astaire & Ginger Rogers. They landed in the Bottom 2 for that week, but soon declared "safe" as Christina Christian (who was absent from the results show, recuperating in the hospital from an illness) was eliminated instead.
Top 5[]
For Burt Bacharach night, R.J. sang "Arthur's Theme (Best That You Can Do)" by Christopher Cross. They received the lowest number of votes and were thus eliminated from the competition in fifth place.
After the Show[]
R.J. was signed to a Christian label, and released a Gospel album, titled Real Life (2004), which charted well demographically. Their single, "My Devotion", was nominated for a Dove Award—Christian music equivalent to the Grammys.[3] However, after they decided to come out as gay, they were dropped from their label.[3]
They later described how on the show, they were seeing their stand-in. After a cheek-kiss, executive producer Nigel Lythgoe encouraged them to play-up "the innocent church-boy angle" for the sake of post-show sales.[4] Lythgoe denies he stifled any contestants, but Helton says it deterred much of their self-assuredness.[4]
In recent years, R.J. has since expressed that they identify as non-binary and prefer the use of they/them pronouns.[4]
Trivia[]
- R.J. was born in Texas, before being relocated to Georgia with his adopted family as an infant.[1]
- R.J. became the first Wild-Card finalist—and as the sole choice in Season 1, the highest-ranking by default.[1]
| Season 1 |
| Finalists |
| ·Kelly Clarkson ·Justin Guarini ·Nikki McKibbin ·Tamyra Gray ·R.J. Helton ·Christina Christian ·Ryan Starr ·A.J. Gil ·Jim Verraros ·EJay Day |
| Semifinalists |
| ·Christopher Aaron ·Kelli Glover ·Alexis Lopez ·Angela Peel — ·Alexandra Bachelier ·Chris Badano ·Natalie Burge ·Khaleef Chiles ·Rodesia Eaves ·Brad Estrin ·Adriel Herrera ·Kristin Holt ·Jamar ·Jazmin Lowery ·Tanesha Ross ·Melanie Sanders ·Mark Scott ·Gil Sinuet ·Tenia Taylor ·Justinn Waddell – ·Delano Cagnolatti |
References[]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/R._J._Helton
- ↑ https://ew.com/recap/rj-triumphs-over-kelli-and-angela/
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 https://instinctmagazine.com/rj-helton-walked-a-path-few-are-brave-enough-to-do/
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 https://www.rollingstone.com/tv-movies/tv-movie-features/american-idol-lgbtq-contestants-1235027350/