Getting the axe on American Idol isn’t always the worst thing, it turns out. Josh Gad seems to be among the many Idol fans who didn’t agree with some of the judges’ recent eliminations.
On Sunday — as Katy Perry, Lionel Richie and Luke Bryan whittled down the field of contestants in the first of two nights of the Showstoppers round — a young musician named Murphy got cut from the competition.
Many fans took to Twitter to say it wasn’t fair, and argued that Murphy should already have a career. However, it seems Gad was motivated to actually do something about what he saw as an injustice and reached out to the singer on Twitter.
“Hey @Blindboy_music you were robbed on @AmericanIdol,” Gad tweeted on Monday, after the second night of Idol aired and the Top 24 was finalized. “I would love for you to honor us by writing a song for us on #CentralParkTV – DM me.”
Central Park, of course, is Gad’s animated sitcom on Apple TV+, which he co-created with Bob’s Burgers creator Loren Bouchard and executive producer Nora Smith.
For his part, Murphy seemed thrilled at the opportunity and quickly replied, “I’d be honored. 🙂 Dming you now.”
During his time on the show, Murphy became a fan favorite for his fun-loving personality and unique performances.
On Sunday, he came out and delivered an original tune titled “Am I Still Mine?” The performance came after he revealed that he’s got a degenerative eye condition that will more-than likely leave him blind by the time he’s in his 30s.
Despite the heartfelt original song and his undeniable talent (and the fact that it was his birthday), the aspiring musician still ended up getting the axe. This led to a flood of tweets defending his right to be in the competition and fans slamming the judges for their decision.
Murphy, meanwhile, took the bad news in stride and shared a message of positivity and optimism after getting kicked off.
“Thank you for everyone that showed faith in me. Though my journey is over on #AmericanIdol, I’ll still be singing,” he wrote on Instagram alongside a scenic shot of the sun setting on the skyline. “Tomorrow is a new day and the horizon looks very inviting. #Murphyonidol See you soon. :)”
