‘American Idol’: Hannah & Jordan Reflect on Season 24 & Reveal Future Plans (VIDEO)

American Idol concluded with Hannah Harper winning Season 24 and Jordan McCullough coming in second place. Now, both singers are ready to take the momentum from the show into their music careers.

“[I have] a good collection of stuff that I’m ready for the world to hear, but also, I’ve only been writing for [about] two years,” Hannah tells TV Insider. “But a lot has happened in the last two years and I’m ready to share more.”

First up, though, the mom of three is going to “take at least until the end of the month just to breathe,” which will be followed by a summer of touring. “It’s almost every single weekend until September, we’re out there, and then we’re recording, as well,” she shares. “I’m going to try to keep the fire going as long as I can.”

For Jordan, he says he “never in a million years” expected to make it so far on the show. “What I keep hearing over the last few days is ‘ready or not, it’s here,’ and ‘or not’ is where I’m at,” he laughs. “I’m excited to see what the future holds. I’m excited to get in the studio and start making some music. People really want it. I really want it.”

The worship director says he’s also been doing some songwriting, adding, “I think this experience has brought out a lot of creativity in me, so I’m inspired by a lot. I’ve been writing stuff around the room while I’ve been in L.A. and making little voice notes, so I’m excited to put it all together.” He also jokes, “I’m definitely waiting on Hannah Harper to write me a song!”

Below (and in the video above!) the finalists reflect on their American Idol journeys and more.

How did this audition come about for you?

Hannah Harper: I knew of American Idol, I just had never watched it in the past because I didn’t grow up with live television. I had a couple thousand followers on TikTok. I was posting cleaning videos and one of them I sang in, and one of the recruiters from Idol saw it and messaged me, like, “Would you be willing to try out?” and I’m like, “You’re not real.” And it took her several weeks of messaging me back and forth before I ever was like, yeah, what do I have to lose? So that led to one thing and another. I did my Zoom auditions and now here we are.

Jordan McCullough: Very similar, honestly. I was posting clips online and I had a recruiter reach out. Honestly, it was a three-year process. They reached out and I kept saying no. I’m a big fan of American Idol, so I know the exposure you can get and the opportunities that go along with it. But I just didn’t really consider myself an artist yet and didn’t want to pursue it. So kind of the same mindset, I was like, what do I have to lose? They have much more to lose than I do. So here we are.

Disney/Eric McCandless

You previously tried out for The Voice and that didn’t work out…

Jordan: Yeah, I tried out for The Voice before and I didn’t get any chair turns…

Hannah: Which is bizarre.

Jordan: I kind of knew I didn’t want to set myself up again. It stings a little bit when you put yourself out there in a vulnerable state like that. But I was like, “Let’s see what happens this time.”

How did you decide on your audition songs? Hannah, that ended up working out for you – did they push you in that direction … to sing an original?

Hannah: No, they told me to prepare backup because the judges don’t love to hear originals. They want to hear something that they’re familiar with, that they’ve heard before. So I had a backup planned and never had to use it. I was really thankful.

Do you remember what the backup was?

Hannah: Yeah, it was a Jake Worthington song. Which I’m glad I didn’t sing because no one knew it. So it would be the same as singing an original. So I was glad I just went and sang my own song.

Jordan: I had to sing my backup song because I was going to sing “String Cheese” by Hannah Harper, but she went before I did, so she got it before me *laughs*. But I ended up singing “Goodness of God.” I mean, that’s what I sing almost every weekend at church, so let’s just try it since I can’t do Hannah’s song.

When you look back on the competition as a whole, what was the most memorable or turning point week for you?

Hannah: Disney Week was probably a turning week for me. I was more vulnerable on stage in terms of feeling the song and portraying the song more as an entertainer, rather than just the storytelling side of it. So I had a lot more confidence after that. It was just a fun night. It was really fun.

Jordan: I definitely agree, but I don’t want to keep saying all the same answers as you. I would say the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Night was a big week for me and turning point for America and myself, in terms of what they could see and gather from my artistry. I was surprised. Even looking back now, I don’t know who that was that night on that stage. He was moving around, spinning around, throwing glasses in the crowd. It was high energy and so much fun. It also taught me I can do that if I want to.

I feel like a good week for you, too, was the week when the contestants voted you as their favorite…

Hannah: Oh, the Ohana Round!

Did that give you a nice confidence boost?

Jordan: Oh my goodness, that song … I’ve been singing that since I was a little kid and to be so early in the season … I think that was our third time around each other and our first time ever hearing each other sing, so that was just mind-blowing to me. I think that’s what motivated me throughout the rest of the competition. I wanted to make sure they knew they didn’t make the wrong choice by giving me that honor of winning a platinum ticket that night. Like, all these people can really sing. They’re actually real, real good. So that was a good point for me, too.

What would you say was the most difficult week?

Hannah: [It was] ‘90s Week, for me. That was probably the hardest. It was the Judges Song Contest. I loved the song, but it was just a rough week. It’s the point in the competition where you’re ready to go home, and you’re still freshly there, and there’s still a long way to go, so I think mentally it was really challenging for us.

Jordan: I think for me, not surprising. Taylor Swift Week was very challenging for me. One, because we honor her artistry and who she is as a songwriter, but those songs are really hard to sing. It is no joke. Once you get in there and start practicing them, it’s like, OK, only she can sing them. It was a big challenge. One, to make sure I picked the right song, but also to make sure I did a good job and delivered it in a way people accepted it.

Disney/Eric McCandless

You had some sweet moments with the judges on stage with the judges after. What did they say to you in that moment after you won?

Hannah: Each week, we got the chance to mingle with them for just a few minutes before the press line. Carrie [Underwood] was really encouraging, just as a mom. She relates. She was just like, “Anything you need in the industry, I want to be available, help you with whatever you need.” That was really nice. I think just getting to chat with them after the show and hearing how genuine they are. They’re real people who just want to encourage us every step of the way. It was one of the highlights of the whole competition.

What kind of lessons are you going to take from the show in your careers moving forward?

Hannah: Going forward, as a person you just have to be confident in knowing your ability and you’re exactly where you need to be. I walked into the competition feeling small and towards the end I stood taller, not because of my ability necessarily, but knowing that there’s a crowd of people who want to hear what I have to say. That’s a great feeling. I think both of us stretched ourselves and grew vocally in a lot of different ways. And socially. I was a stay at home mom and homeschooled, so social interactions are not for me. So interviews and stuff, that was a stretch, but we walked away with a lot of knowledge.

Jordan: Absolutely, what she said. Just being sure of ourselves now. It’s a wild world where we’re putting ourselves up on the stage every single week for people to critique us. I don’t think anyone in this room would do that willingly and be vulnerable in that way. We put ourselves in that situation every single week. I’m just so sure now that we’re right where we need to be and doing it how we want to do it, and I’m grateful to American Idol for giving us an opportunity to not have to mold into something we weren’t, but giving us the opportunity to evolve into who we were always meant to be.