The Holdernesses are just the latest reality TV winners from NC. Here’s a look back.
North Carolina — and the Triangle area in particular — has a long history of producing some of pop culture’s best reality TV stars.
Even when locals didn’t win, many of them still came very close and went on to enjoy success.
Here’s a look back at a few of the top stars from the Raleigh and Durham area and beyond.
2003: Raleigh native Clay Aiken was probably our first major reality star, coming in second place during Season 2 of “American Idol.” (He should have won!) Aiken’s career didn’t suffer from a second place finish, though. He went on to star on Broadway (and came in second on a season of “Celebrity Apprentice”) and ran for the U.S. House in NC’s 2nd Congressional District in 2014. Recently, Aiken announced he will once again seek public office, running in NC’s recently redrawn 6th Congressional District.
2003: That same year, Sandra Diaz-Twine of Fayetteville would make her first of five appearances on “Survivor” (four times as a contestant, once as a mentor). She has won twice and is considered one of the greatest “Survivor” players of all time.
2004: Fantasia Barrino of High Point became the first North Carolinian to win “American Idol” during Season 3 of the show. Fantasia went on to become a three-time Grammy-nominated, platinum-selling artist, and performed in “The Color Purple” and “After Midnight” on Broadway.
2006: Rocker Chris Daughtry of McLeansville finished fourth on Season 5 of “American Idol.” It was a big year for North Carolina on “Idol.” That same season, Kellie Pickler of Albemarle finished sixth and Bucky Covington of Rockingham finished eighth. Daughtry, now the lead singer of the band Daughtry, is one of the top earners in “Idol” history.
2009: In Season 8 of “American Idol,” Cary native Anoop Desai, living in Chapel Hill at the time of the show, finished in a tie for sixth place.
2011: Garner native Scotty McCreery was the winner of Season 10 of “American Idol.” He was 17 years old. McCreery has gone on to have a successful career as a country singer. He has released five studio albums, topped the Billboard country charts and even released a memoir. His 2017 single “Five More Minutes” was the basis for a 2021 Hallmark Christmas movie.
2011: Emily Maynard of Charlotte was picked as the winner of Season 15 of “The Bachelor,” getting a proposal from “Bachelor” star Brad Womack. The couple didn’t last. Maynard was selected in 2012 to be the star of “The Bachelorette,” and much of that season was filmed in Charlotte. The relationship from that series also did not work out.
2013: Brothers Bates and Anthony Battaglia of Raleigh won Season 22 of “The Amazing Race.” Bates was already a local celebrity as a former player for the Carolina Hurricanes. The brothers own two bars in Raleigh.
2014: Rock singer Caleb Johnson from Asheville won Season 13 of “American Idol.”
2017: Raleigh-based CrossFit star and author Christmas Abbott appeared on Season 19 of “Big Brother.” She broke her foot in Week 1, but still managed to make it all the way to the finale before coming up short. After some personal struggles, Abbott returned to compete on “Big Brother All Stars” in 2021 and placed fourth. In November 2021, Abbott announced her engagement to fellow “Big Brother All Stars” contestant Memphis Garrett.
2017: Hollister native Brooke Simpson was a standout on “The Voice” on NBC, and finished in third place. In 2021, Simpson appeared on “America’s Got Talent” and placed fourth in the finals.
2018: Jenna Cooper of Raleigh appeared on “The Bachelor,” and while she didn’t get far, she became a fan favorite and ended up on “Bachelor in Paradise” later that same year. She still lives in Raleigh with her daughter and got engaged to Karl Hudson in 2021.
2018: Sanford’s Britton Buchanan was the runner-up on Season 14 of “The Voice.” He released his debut album “Something You Can Break” in 2021.
2019: Caelynn Miller-Keyes, a former Miss North Carolina USA and runner up in the 2018 Miss USA pageant, appeared on Season 23 of “The Bachelor” (she went home in Week 8). Later that same year, she appeared on “Bachelor in Paradise.” She met Dean Unglert on that show and as of most current reports, the two are still dating.
2019: Raleigh’s favorite violinist, Tyler Butler-Figueroa, made it into the Top 10 in Season 14 of “America’s Got Talent.” That same season, the group Voices of Service, featuring Raleigh singer Sgt. Maj. Christal Sanders Rheams, made it to the Top 5 before being eliminated. In 2020, Tyler was picked to go on “America’s Got Talent: Champions,” and made it to the finals before finishing in third place. Tyler was 11 years old during his first “AGT” appearance and turned 12 before the “Champions” show.
2021: Raleigh native Matt James was selected to be ABC’s first Black star of “The Bachelor.” James proposed to Rachael Kirkconnell. James later called off the engagement, but the two got back together and are still dating.
Did we forget to mention your favorite NC reality star? Tell us in the form below.
This story was originally published March 3, 2022 at 5:30 PM with the headline "The Holdernesses are just the latest reality TV winners from NC. Here’s a look back.."
