NEWSJessica Simpson 'Was Dying' From Nerves While Performing Live for the First Time in 15 Years: 'I Felt Naked'
Jessica Simpson is making a return to the music industry.
Jessica Simpson was shaking in her boots while singing on the Sunday, May 18, episode of American Idol, as it marked her first live performance in 15 years!
After a duet with former contestant Josh King and a solo rendition of her new song "Blame Me," the bubbly blonde admitted she was "dying" while on stage.
Jessica Simpson Was a Bundle of Nerves While Singing on 'American Idol'
Jessica Simpson admitted she was extremely nervous when she sang on 'American Idol,' as it was her first live performance in 15 years.
"I can't even tell you how long it's been since I've been that nervous," the fashion designer, 44, confessed to reporter Terri Seymour. "Like, I had to put hairspray on my feet to stand still, like, not that it actually keeps me put, but, like, my feet were sweating. I'm like, my feet don't sweat."
"I just kept telling myself, ‘Do not cry. Do not cry. I know this is a big moment… do not cry,'" the mom-of-three spilled. "And then I see my dad, like, up in the corner and I'm like, ‘Ah, I'm going to cry. I'm going to cry. Do not cry. Just sing your songs. Just sing your songs.’"
The Singer's Performance Received Mixed Reviews
The pop star's performance received mixed reactions from viewers, with one person declaring on X, "Jessica Simpson was an absolute train wreck on American Idol tonight!!"
"She does not look or sound good. D--- Jessica Simpson #AmericanIdol," another fan wrote, while a third tweeted, "Now Jessica Simpson is struggling and fighting for her life singing her biggest hit 'these boots were made for walking' with a former contestant I do not remember."
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The star's 'American Idol' performance divided viewers.
Others enjoyed seeing her in the spotlight again, with one raving, "Love the comeback of Jessica Simpson. It's the first time since she paused her music career."
"I thought she was great, she looks fabulous & youthful (not 44) she is spunky has her own style & is fun," said another. "So glad to see her back with her music. She is still a rebel."
The vocalist noted the last time she performed live was when she belted out a Christmas song, so singing one of her new tunes was a much bigger deal.
"It is so much a part of my soul, and so to sing a song off of that, I felt naked, to be honest, like, it was very bare and raw and very vulnerable," she explained of music from her EP Nashville Canyon, Part 1.
Is Jessica Simpson's New Music Inspired by Her Divorce From Eric Johnson?
Some of Simpson's new music was inspired by her impending divorce from Eric Johnson.
Simpson's return to music came around the same time she split from husband Eric Johnson, 45.
The pair, who share three children together, announced in January that they were parting ways after a decade of marriage.
While the two haven't revealed what led to their breakup, fans thought she hinted at infidelity in her new track "Leave."
"What we had was magic / Now you made it tragic / Giving her what you gave to me / Now the well that you drank from’s empty," the former reality star sings in one verse, going on to mention how a man's “weakness” made her “lonely.”
"Did you do to her what you did to me?" she asks in another lyric. "Was she on her knees? / Oh, she’s everything but me."
