‘American Idol’ judges break silence on Caleb Kennedy’s abrupt exit

“American Idol” judges have weighed in on the abrupt departure of contestant Caleb Kennedy — calling his exit “unfortunate” — after a controversial video from his past resurfaced last week.

After Sunday’s Season 19 semifinal episode, judge Lionel Richie told People magazine that the decision to remove him from the competition “had to be made and we move on,” while also recognizing the 16-year-old singer’s talent. “A lot of times, we think about it, we grow up and we make mistakes and we look at our life behind us many times and we say, ‘God, what was I thinking about when I did that?’ ” Richie said of the young singer, who left the program when a video surfaced depicting him next to someone wearing what appeared to be a Ku Klux Klan hood. “This was one of those situations where we kind of give him a big hug from the three of us.