Doug Kiker, who gained fame as the “Singing Garbage Man” on season 18 of American Idol, has died. He was 32 years old.
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Kiker’s sister, Angela Evans, announced his passing Wednesday (March 12) in a Facebook post.
“he was sooo loved and will be missed by so many!” she wrote. “Your singing with the Angel’s now Bubba Please pray for our family as we go threw this very difficult time.”
Another sister, Donna Kiker Carrillos-Ramirez, also shared news of Kiker’s passing on Facebook. “Today I got the call that no one wants to get. We lost an amazing person today,” she wrote. “He had the biggest smile and knew how to make you laugh… My parents did an amazing job with him.”
The family did not provide further details about Kiker’s death, including the cause. His sister has established a GoFundMe page to help cover funeral costs.
Doug Kiker Brought Katy Perry to Tears on ‘American Idol’
An Alabama native, Doug Kiker had then-judge Katy Perry sobbing with his season 18 American Idol audition performance of Rascal Flatts’ “Bless the Broken Road.”
“I’m a garbage man. I work on the back of a garbage truck,” Kiker explained ahead of his audition. When Lionel Richie asked about his prior performing experience, he was honest: “I don’t have any.”
That was difficult to tell from his performance. “That was not garbage. It was greatness,” a tearful Perry said.
[RELATED: The Real Reason Katy Perry Left ‘American Idol’: Her Exit Explained]
Unanimously, the judges sent Kiker to Hollywood. “For a man who has no idea what his voice can do, for a man who has no idea what key he’s singing in, for a man who has no idea who the heck he can be, he’s here to do one thing: He’s trying to show his daughter that he’s somebody,” Richie said.
Kiker was eliminated in the Hollywood round.
The second episode of American Idol season 23 airs on Sunday at 8 p.m. ET/PT on ABC with Richie, Luke Bryan, and newcomer Carrie Underwood on the judge panel.
(Photo by Gabe Ginsberg/Getty Images)
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