American Idol finalist Caleb Kennedy exits show following the surfacing of racist social media video

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CALEB KENNEDY American Idol

Caleb Kennedy announced on Instagram Wednesday (May. 12, 2021) that he is leaving American Idol immediately, after a controversial social media video from his past surfaced.

Kennedy appears in the Snapchat post seated beside someone wearing what appears to be a Ku Klux Klan hood. Kennedyโ€™s family said the video was recorded when he was 12-years-old.

Caleb Kennedy announced on his Instagram

โ€œHey yโ€™all, this is gonna be a bit of a surprise, but I am no longer gonna be on American Idol. There was a video that surfaced on the internet and it displayed actions that were not meant to be taken in that way. I was younger and did not think about the actions, but thatโ€™s not an excuse. I wanna say sorry to all my fans and everyone who I have let down. Iโ€™ll be taking a little time off social media to better myself, but saying that, I know this has hurt and disappointed a lot of people and made people lose respect for me. Iโ€™m so sorry! I pray that I can one day regain your trust in who I am and have your respect! Thank you for supporting me.โ€

Kennedyโ€™s mom, Anita Gay, spoke to South Carolinaโ€™s Spartanburg Herald-Journal, telling her local paper that the video was made when Kennedy was 12 years old and that he and his friends were imitating a horror movie, not the KKK.

โ€œI hate this has happened and how Caleb is being portrayed by people online,โ€ Guy told the paper. โ€œThis video was taken after Caleb had watched the movie The Strangers: Prey at Night and they were imitating those characters. It had nothing to do with the Ku Klux Klan, but I know thatโ€™s how it looks. Caleb doesnโ€™t have a racist bone in his body. He loves everyone and has friends of all races.โ€