American Idol alum Triston Harper and his wife, Paris Reed, have welcomed their first baby.
“Everybody my Grand Baby has made her Grand Entrance …. weighing a solid 6lbs and 6 ounces,” Harper’s mother, Hattie Mae Sullivan, announced in a Facebook post on June 23. “Brenley Lichelle Harper Has now arrived on the scene and she ain’t here to play. She’s already in boss mode!!!!! Feed me, Change me, Cut that bright light out. Yes ma’am whatever you want G MA is gonna make it happen!!!!!”
Harper, 17, revealed his marriage to Reed with a November 2024 Facebook relationship update, writing, “Iv [sic] got big news harpies ❤️❤️😘.”
Two days later, Sullivan shared that the newlyweds were expecting their first child when she posted a selfie they had taken with a positive pregnancy test.
“Now Everybody has congratulated me on Triston and Paris getting married but to me that is old news but now I’m bout to be a ‘G Ma,’” Sullivan captioned the post, which Harper shared on his Facebook page as well.
American Idol fans met Harper during season 22 of the ABC reality competition series, which aired from February to May 2024. The Alabama native opened up about his difficult childhood on the show.
“By the age of 11 years old, my mom was with my stepdad. He was getting very abusive. We had to leave McIntosh, [Alabama], then everything, it went sideways, just like that,” he explained in a video package at the time. “The lowest part of my life was when me and my mom had [become] homeless and were sleeping on the sidewalk. I had just turned 12.”
Harper went on to express his gratitude for the opportunity to compete on the show, adding, “I never thought I’d be able to tell my story to American Idol, ever. It makes me happy just thinking about it.”
Judges Luke Bryan, Katy Perry and Lionel Richie were impressed by Harper’s audition but also offered him some constructive criticism due to his young age.
“Anything that you’re doing technically-wise singing is ‘cause you’re 15,” Bryan said. “If I could [have] an afternoon with you and just say, ‘Don’t do that anymore,’ just like, ‘Don’t do those two things,’ and, man, I mean, you’re just …”
Perry then chimed in to finish Bryan’s thought, telling Harper, “You’re a shotgun. Just watch where you’re aiming it.”
Harper made it all the way to the top five before being eliminated alongside Emmy Russell during a May 2024 episode. After his Idol exit, he released his debut single, “H.O.P.E.,” later that month. (Abi Carter ultimately won season 22.)
In the months leading up to the pair’s big announcement, Harper shared an Instagram tribute to Reed in celebration of National Girlfriends Day. “I love you so much @reedgirl.101❤️❤️❤️❤️,” he gushed in August 2024. “There may be a 1 in a million kind of girl, but your [sic] my 1 in a lifetime time kind of woman. I love you 25❤️😘.”
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