American Idol Star Hannah Harper Opens the Door to Her Surprisingly Relatable Family Home With Three Kids

American Idol champ Hannah Harper, 25, just took fans home to Willow Springs, Missouri, revealing in a May 16 Instagram video the very table where she made her first Zoom audition for the show’s producers.

Fresh off winning American Idol, Hannah Harper went home, opened the front door, and immediately turned her living room into a tour set. It is very normal, very chaotic, and very her.

Back in Willow Springs, and already moving furniture with her feet

On Saturday, May 16, the 25-year-old posted an Instagram video from her place in Willow Springs, Missouri. First stop: a wood table where she says she did her very first Zoom audition with Idol producers. A few steps away is the couch where she wrote the song she auditioned with, during what she calls a really rough stretch of life. Her kids are playing on the floor, she casually boots a couple toys out of the way, and the house already feels lived in again within minutes.

Then she heads to the bedroom she has not actually slept in for two months thanks to the Idol grind, followed by a closet full of clothes she forgot she owned. The kitchen comes with a confession: she has not cooked in about six months. Not due to Idol, but because her husband, Devon Mendenhall, has been holding down the fort at home. She jokes that if you mess up one meal convincingly enough, you can retire from cooking. As if on cue, Devon walks through the frame and she blurts, half-laughing, that he did not hear that and she had no idea he was in the room.

Kids rooms, heirlooms, and the sentimental streak

Harper shows a wooden toy box passed down from her family, now stuffed to the brim, and her boys bedroom, which her sons have managed to reclaim in under an hour. There is also her childhood dollhouse, which she repainted for them and is now, in her words, full of their crap. On the bed: a quilt her grandmother made for both of her children. The house is basically a museum of personal history, which she loves, and she admits that once she settles in, she never wants to leave. Unfortunately, she has to.

Her caption keeps the homecoming theme going: after two months living out of a hotel, home has never felt better. Curveball detail she throws in: she decided to repaint every single room the week before leaving for LA, so coming back felt like walking into a stranger’s house. She is extra grateful to be back with her people. Also, she is ready to nerd out about decor; most of the furniture and art is secondhand or homemade, and those are the pieces she cares about most. Honestly, that tracks with everything in the video.

The win, the thanks, and what is next

Harper was crowned the American Idol season 24 winner during the live finale on May 12. Jordan McCullough finished runner-up, and Keyla Richardson took third. After the win, she thanked everyone who believed in her, prayed for her, and voted, saying the support pushed her dream farther than she ever imagined. She also credited her faith for the doors that opened and promised she will see everyone soon on the road, with tour dates on the way.

"For I know the plans I have for you" — this is the Lord's declaration — "plans for your well-being, not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope." — Jeremiah 29:11 (CSB)

Quick recap

• Where she filmed the IG video: her home in Willow Springs, Missouri, on Saturday, May 16
• Age: 25; Husband: Devon Mendenhall; Kids: two sons
• Fun details: first Idol Zoom audition happened at her dining table; she wrote an Idol song on her couch during a tough season; she has not slept in her own bed for two months; she has not cooked in six months because Devon has been, as she puts it, Mr. Mom
• House vibe: sentimental and thrifty — heirlooms everywhere, plus mostly secondhand or homemade furniture and decor
• Idol results: Winner of season 24 on May 12; Jordan McCullough runner-up; Keyla Richardson third place
• What is next: tour dates coming soon