American Idol Contestant Jon Wayne Hatfield Announces Engagement, Readies New Music
The emerging artist dubbed this one of the “most important” days of his life.
Jon Wayne Hatfield, Amy Lynn; Photo Courtesy of Instagram
American Idol alum Jon Wayne Hatfield is officially engaged to his girlfriend, Amy Lynn.
The Nashville resident took to Instagram today, January 12, to share a few photos that effortlessly captured the magic of the moment he got down on one knee and popped the question. The couple was photographed in a winter wonderland setting as they appear to be in front of a snow-covered log cabin.
Hatfield’s feelings of love and joy were further expressed through his caption that read, “The 2 most important Days of your life are when you’re born and when you figure out why… Your My why 🤍”
Among all the congratulatory messages from fans and fellow artists in the comment section, his now fiancé wrote, “I love doing life with you, my forever🤍🥰💍”
Jon Wayne Hatfield’s Memorable “Idol” Audition
Hatfield appeared on Season 21 of the singing competition show, and started his journey off strong when he won over all three of the judges, Lionel Richie, Katy Perry and Luke Bryan, with his original song, “Tell Me Ray.”
At the start of his audition, Hatfield opened up about his home in Goshen, Ohio, and the love he has for his grandpa Ray who raised him. He went on to say that the song he was singing was inspired by their relationship which grew even stronger after his grandfather came out as gay.
The star-studded panel of judges welcomed not only Hatfield with open arms but also his grandpa, who accompanied him to the big moment. The hopeful artist went on to enchant the judges with his beautiful song about love and acceptance.
“Tell me Ray / why don’t you face your fears and hold back your tears / tell me Ray / tell me Ray / why did you wait so long to tell me what was wrong / tell me Ray / cause if I knew what was wrong / I could help you move on / you can’t do it all yourself / we’ve had plenty of time / so keep me in mind / so tell me Ray / we’re you too scared to move on or sad that she’s gone,” he sang.
After making it through auditions, Hatfield performed a duet of Jordan Davis’ hit “Buy Dirt,” with fellow contestant Preston Duffee, but was eliminated at the end of the week.
Maintaining Friendships With Fellow “Idol” Alums
While he may not have made it too far in the competition, it seems that the 22-year-old made some strong friendships during his time there. Through recent posts to social media, Hatfield has been seen hanging out with third place finalist Colin Stough as well as the season’s winner, Iam Tongi.
On December 13, 2023, he shared a photo of him and Stough holding solo cups alongside a caption that hinted something may be brewing between the emerging artists.
“Just one pic from such a freaking awesome weekend share some more with Y’all soon…,” he wrote.
A little over a month prior he got to share the stage with Tongi, where they got to showcase an unreleased song they wrote together.
New Music On The Way
Since his time on Idol came to an end, Hatfield has been busy writing and releasing songs like “Tell Me Ray,” as well as “Baby I Don’t,” “Holds Me Down” and “Autumn.” He has also seen a rise of success in his previous releases “What A Truck Is For” and “Strong Woman,” which have each been streamed more than 1,000,000 times each on Spotify. Additionally, his reflective coming-of-age anthem, “Growing Up Too Fast,” climbed to No. 58 on the Music Row Country Breakout chart in August of 2021.
Most recently, he’s been giving listeners a taste of a song he’s been keeping under wraps titled “Send Me An Angel.” The teasers find Hatfield showcasing a dangerously slow ballad that hones in on his baritone vocals accompanied by acoustic guitar plucks.
“Send me an angel I’m going through hell / I need a savior to save myself / Tried to find my way through the bottle / But this fu*king pill’s too hard to swallow / Between the neon lights and these bloodshot eyes / It’s killing me slowly,” he sings in the clip.
Fans are now eagerly awaiting to see what will come next from Hatfield.
Madeleine O’Connell graduated from North Central College with a bachelors degree in Journalism and Broadcast Communications before deciding to pursue her studies further at DePaul University. There, she earned her masters degree in Digital Communication & Media Arts. O’Connell served as a freelance writer for over two years while also interning with the Academy of Country Music, SiriusXM and Circle Media and assisting with Amazon Music’s Country Heat Weekly podcast. In addition to Country Now, she has been published in American Songwriter, Music Mayhem, and Holler.Country. Madeleine O’Connell is a member of the Country Music Association and the Academy of Country Music.
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