Justin Guarini: American Idol was 'Damaging'

By
OWN

Justin Guarini, famous for being the runner up in the first season of American Idol, and infamous for the critically panned film From Justin To Kelly, is featured in an upcoming episode of Oprah: Where Are They Now? During the interview, Justin talks about how the singing competition changed his life, but not always for the better.


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"American Idol did wonders for my career, but it was also extremely damaging for my life," says Justin, in a clip from the upcoming episode. "It was a time where I dealt with horrible depression, and the realization that I was not living the dream that I thought I was living."

Justin goes on to talk about the failure of the movie he shot with Kelly Clarkson, even calling it "abysmal," and lamenting the weak sales of his self-titled album.

It seems that Justin attributes his post-Idol frustration to a lack of identity. "I didn't quite know who I was as an artist, and there were plenty of people around me tell me what it is that I should sing, how it is that I should dress and behave. It ended up completely backfiring."

The revealing episode will air Sunday, August 11, at 10pm ET on OWN.