Baylee Littrell Reveals He Suffered From Stage Fright on ‘American Idol’

“American Idol” season 23 contestant Baylee Littrell is opening up about the surprising bout of stage fright he experienced while competing on the show.

Littrell is no stranger to the spotlight, between his own musical performances and growing up the son of Backstreet Boys member Brian Littrell. But when the time came for him to perform on “Idol,” he was uncharacteristically nervous. And he suspects that’s why he didn’t make it into the top 14 on the show.

“I was mad at myself for my previous vocal performances because I got nervous and I got shaky,” Littrell shared with Pop Blitz. “And I was like man this is not you. You don’t do this.” According to the singer, the stakes were so high and so was the pressure to shine.

“The fear was something I’d never experienced before, stage fright,” Littrell revealed. “So, it was weird. That’s why I was super mad at myself in the end because I thought man if you weren’t so afraid I think you could have gone on longer.”

Littrell Is Thriving Since ‘Idol’ but the Pressure Is On

Over the course of the summer, Littrell has made some big strides in his career. He released his single “Hey Jesus” in June, and is getting ready to embark on a three-city tour at the end of August. He also plans to release new music very soon.

“The goal is to get an album out this year and launch a tour to support next spring. I would love that,” Littrell said. He’s even working on music that will incorporate different genres such as R&B, folk, and pop. “I’d love to try and create a different type of music movement where we’re bring singer-songwriter full band era back to music,” he shared.

But now that “Idol” is behind him, it doesn’t mean the pressure is off. He is, after all, the son of pop music royalty. “The pressure is definitely from the outside world and not from family,” he explained. “That’s sometimes hard to swallow.”

Littrell Has Gotten Advice From Musical Heavy-Hitters

While Littrell has the support of his dad and the other Backstreet Boys (AJ McLean has praised his songwriting skills), he has also found inspiration from other artists he admires.

Littrell told Pop Blitz that he’s gotten helpful advice from music greats such as Randy Travis, Keith Urban, and more recently, Post Malone. The latter interaction was energizing for the singer.

“I went home and wrote a couple of songs after that,” he said. “It helped me push forward and believe in what I was doing.” And Littrell is happy to pay it forward when it comes to fledgling musicians seeking guidance from him. “If you ever have that day in the sun, set them up for success and set them up to be kind to people,” the musician shared.