Mandisa’s Dad Says Late ‘American Idol’ Contestant ‘Did Not Harm Herself’

Mandisa’s dad, John Hundley, opened up about the circumstances that may have led to the late American Idol contestant’s death.

“But here’s what I think happened,” he said during her celebration of life service on Saturday, April 27, per The Christian Post. “Mandisa fell down in her bedroom. They found her on the floor. If you look from the rear of her bed, she was laying on the left side. It’s clear that’s where she was laying, there was a couple of big rugs there and some clothes.”

He noted that Mandisa’s phone was on the “right side” of her bed and claimed “there was no way” she could’ve gotten around the bed to call for help.

“She did not harm herself,” he continued. “As she said, Mandisa loved the Lord and the Lord loved Mandisa. So there’s one thing you may not have known.”

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He added that Mandisa was “weak trying to get over” a battle with COVID, but “she was trying to press through.”

“We talked so much on Easter morning, but I thought she was going to this conference, and so I had not called her recently, but I’ve talked to her a lot,” he concluded. “May she rest in peace now.”

News broke on April 19 that Mandisa died at the age of 47 in Nashville. “We can confirm that yesterday Mandisa was found in her home deceased,” a rep for the singer said in a statement. “At this time we do not know the cause of death or any further details. We ask for your prayers for her family and close knit circle of friends during this incredibly difficult time.”

While her cause of death is still unconfirmed, local authorities believe there is “no indication” of “suspicious or criminal activity,” per a spokesperson for the Franklin Police Department.

In the wake of her death, American Idol paid tribute to the season 5 alum. Former contestants Melinda Doolittle, Colton Dixon and Danny Gokey made an appearance on the Monday, April 29, episode to sing “Shackles (Praise You)” by Mary Mary, which Mandisa performed when she made her Idol debut in 2006.

The musicians later spoke with host Ryan Seacrest about the gospel song, which Dixon said “sums up” Mandisa’s life. “I think she came in prasin’ and she left praisin’,” he added. “But our loss is heaven’s gain.”

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Mandisa was previously mourned by David Pierce, the Chief Media Officer for California radio station K-Love, who noted that she “struggled, and she was vulnerable enough to share that with us, which helped us talk about our own struggles.”

In 2017, Mandisa opened up about her ups and downs and shared that her pals were supportive of her during a dark time in her life.

“I came out of the movie theater, this was after years of me being in that dark place and ignoring everybody, and I noticed that my car had a bunch of sticky notes all over it,” she recalled on Good Morning America. “As I got closer to it I realized that those notes said things like, ‘We love you. Come back to us. We miss you.’ And then as I got closer to my car, a group of my friends, who I had shut out, they were there.”

She continued: “And they had been waiting at that movie theater as I sat there and watched two movies, not just one, they waited there for over four hours for me. And they pretty much had an intervention and they said, ‘We love you just as you are but we love you too much to leave you that way.’”

If you or someone you know is struggling or in crisis, help is available. Call or text 988 or chat at 988lifeline.org.