‘American Idol’ Winner Expecting 1st Child: ‘Been Wanting This For So Long’

Season 18 “American Idol” winner Samantha Diaz, known to many fans as “Just Sam,” will soon have a new title: mom.

On July 17, 2025, the powerhouse singer, who’s been through many ups and downs since winning the show at the height of the COVID pandemic in 2020, shared a surprise pregnancy post on Instagram with photos of a sonogram printout, a positive pregnancy test, and showing off a growing baby bump.

Diaz, 26, captioned the post, “To have made it past viability week after years of trying to conceive is truly a blessing!!! Thank you Jesus for this gift.”

Samantha ‘Just Sam’ Diaz Was ‘Starting to Lose Hope’ About Getting Pregnant

Diaz has experienced many unspecified health challenges since “American Idol,” including spending much of December 2024 in and out of the hospital. But in the July 15 pregnancy post, the singer celebrated being physically able to carry a child.

“I was told at just 20 years old that I may not be able to carry children of my own or that I may have to try IVF in order to have a successful pregnancy/birth,” Diaz wrote. “The past couple of years , I have been trying on and off and let me tell you .. I was really starting to lose hope.”

Diaz continued, “These past few months have been scary having to be in and out of the hospital, but being past viability week is such a great feeling and does bring a little relief to me. I’m so happy to be on this journey and I have been wanting this for so long and wasn’t sure this was even possible for me so I’m beyond grateful and beyond excited to be on this journey and path to MOTHERHOOD!!!!!”

“Viability week,” according to the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, can refer to the time when doctors expect a pregnancy will “continue developing normally” or when living outside the womb is survivable for a newborn, typically after at least 24 weeks of gestation.

Fans flooded Diaz with loving comments, including one who wrote, “I have followed you for so long and soft and sweet energy has always just flowed through the screen. You are going to be an amazing mother! Congrats!”

Another commented, “Congratulations, I can hear you now singing to your beautiful bundle of joy ❤️”

Diaz replied, “Yes thank you ! I will every single day 😂😂🙌🏾🙌🏾”

Fans Convince Samantha ‘Just Sam’ Diaz to Start Online Baby Registry

Several fans also encouraged Diaz to start an Amazon baby registry so that they could send gifts. The mom-to-be expressed gratitude and created an online wish list that includes a range of items, from diapers to a stroller, which the site will send directly to the New York-based singer.

The arrival of a baby will mark a big change for Diaz, who was discovered singing for money to make ends meet in the New York subway system. In 2020, competing from a hotel room while contestants and judges filmed in quarantine, Diaz didn’t have any music industry mentors available to lean on following the finale.

The singer eventually backed out of the record deal that came with the “Idol” win, unaware of the financial ramifications of leaving the contract, Diaz told TMZ in 2023. Back in Harlem and trying make ends meet, Diaz eventually returned to busking in the New York subway system to make money.

Diaz, who returned to perform on “American Idol” in 2024, was the first openly LGBTQ+ and non-binary “American Idol” winner, according to a 2023 profile by the Washington Post. Though the mom-to-be didn’t mention a romantic partner in the July 15 pregnancy announcement, the Amazon registry lists “Samantha D & Heather C” as the parents. It also says their baby is due on August 31.