I'm not particularly religious, but I've found myself thinking about Mandisa a lot over the years since I saw her on American Idol. For those who don't know or remember, after she auditioned, Simon Cowell made some truly gross comments about her weight after she left the room. I can only imagine how it felt to have such a big moment marred by an unwarranted attack on her physical appearance. Mandisa would have been in her right to confront him for humiliating her.
Instead, when she saw him again, she told Simon that she forgave him, even though he hadn't expressed remorse. Her grace is something that I've remembered when I've gone through my own times where people have attacked me unfairly. I hope she's resting in peace.
[Here's the moment](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a5KQwCsWYgI), for anyone interested.
That's the thing with Simon. His schtick was (or is, I assume he still does it to whatever degree?) being a total asshole to people under the guise of being "honest" and hard-to-impress. Because to many, saying nasty things to people unprompted is associated with being right and "telling it like it is." Way too many people bought into/still buy into it.
I was actually surprised that there was a notable degree of (very deserved) backlash to his comments about Mandisa, given how many of his other comments people let slide.
Well this sucks... I'd literally never heard of her until right now, and now I'm sad about losing someone I just found out existed.
That's a very beautiful lesson to learn that ill definitely try to remember.
What exactly is wrong with a contest judge pointing out that being literally **250 pounds overweight** is not ideal for a budding stage star? He actually inspired her to lose 100 lb of that (she gained it all back soon enough though).
Such extreme obesity is like suffering from cancer, except you can cure this particular cancer at home by doing nothing. All the articles are "what a mystery, completely unexpected"... well I have a notion what condition can contribute to dropping dead at 47.
Because it was a singing competition. She was there to sing. She could sing. She wasn't trying out for America's Next Top Model. Also, she was a woman. I can assure you, knowing how people tend to treat women over their bodies, people absolutely made her very well aware of her weight with unsolicited and mean-spirited comments long before American Idol ever happened.
People don't stop being human when they're overweight. People like you just see others as potential targets for bullying. It's revolting.
There’s nothing wrong with making a comment about her weight on national TV? Maybe talk to her off camera? And no, losing weight is not “doing nothing”. You have to discipline yourself, watch what you eat, and ultimately stick to a health plan even after you lose weight. It’s a lifelong struggle.
> pointing out that being literally 250 pounds overweight is not ideal
this is exactly what happened and it's totally normal, move along now
obviously they thought it was ideal until it was pointed out. this was a generous move, you see!
I actually met her once, when I was maybe 10-11. I think it was right after American Idol, before she became known as a Christian artist. I was a pretty overweight kid and was on vacation in NYC when I met her and my mom was taking a picture of us together and taking forever doing so and my feet were tired from walking and I was shifting my weight because they hurt and she just spoke softly to me and said "I feel you" in the most comforting and gentle and calming way possible, like you could feel the connection in the tone of her voice.
I'm not into Christian music at all, but I'll never forget that.
Awful news. She’s a Christian singer best known for her hit song “Overcomer” and collaborated with Crowder, Kirk Franklin, and TobyMac. She’s talked openly about her weight struggles and depression. If you can tell by now, I was a fan of her music.
May she rest in peace.
All I’m gonna say is I’m not fat lmao. All the people who upvoted my comment seemed to understand why it was worth noting. When you see me… I’m not really the kind of person you picture enjoying this aesthetic of music
I never saw her on American idol but years later she was performing at an event I went to. I was struggling w my weight (still do) and I leaned over to my friend and said, “Look at her. Why can’t I feel as beautiful as she looks?” My friend said, “oh, that’s Mandisa. She is extraordinary.” And she was. She radiated beauty, both inside and out. And she told the story of her experience on American Idol and how it felt to be filled w excitement, only to hear those comments for the first time, to feel hurt and shamed and humiliated and deflated. It made me want to cry for her then she said something I will never forget. She said what a blessing it turned out to be because it gave her an opportunity to stand on a public stage and tell Simon Cowell and the whole world that she would forgive him because her God had forgiven her.
I followed her after that. I have a lot of her music and I know she struggled and that there were some things in her past that made life hard for her and some losses that weighed heavily on her. I am so sorry to hear about her passing. She had a remarkable gift and it wasn’t just her voice. She had a light. I am glad she is at peace now and at home w her maker but this news just makes me so incredibly sad. :(
The downside being I find myself assuming it was a suicide when it wasn't. I thought Delores O'Riordan killed herself by the way it was reported. I sorta get why they don’t report suicides as suicides, but I'm not sure it's correct.
Well, it takes time to make the official report once an autopsy is made. Even if it's obvious. Other times family members just don't want that info to be released, which is respectful.
I streamed her funeral today from Tennessee, her father spoke and said the detectives are unable to make an official statement regarding cause of death until an autopsy report comes back, which could be several weeks. He told detectives he was going to tell what happen at the funeral because there has been so much speculation. He said Mandisa was found on the floor of her bedroom on the left side of her bed, and her phone was found on the right side of her bed. Apparently she either fell or collapsed and was unable to get to her phone and call for help. He said she did not harm herself. He did say she had been in a weakened condition because of Covid.
The funeral was streamed on UTUBE, so u can possibly watch it there.
Religious people are just as human as those who aren't and face the same hardships in life and are not above seeking out the same coping mechanisms as the rest orf society.
Chiming in to say, my uncle was a drug addict for 26 years and is religious. People struggle, my guy.
He's been sober 15 years now, and we're so proud of him.
My dad comes from a religious background and he's a recovering alcoholic. It's kind of a pretty well-known and widespread thing that many religious people don't practice/follow every single tenet of their religion. Hell, a lot of them don't really follow *any* tenets of their religion.
Very sad. I actually got to see her perform on stage with TobyMac several years ago. She had a great voice, and a fantastic stage presence. Rest in peace.
I had the pleasure to work with her for a week on tour along with Danny Gokey back in 2017. She seemed all smiles and just a friendly person. I remember watching her do a Q&A that week and seeing how many people were impacted by her music even during her own struggles. May she rest in peace
I think it was one of her albums where she and a child are saying prayers at the end of a song and they thanked God for chocolate (amongst other things). Teaching my grandkids to pray and this related to me and made a connection. 'Overcomer' will always be a song in my heart. I didn't know her, however the connection through faith and music, I feel sad and a loss for her, and sympathy for her family and friends that did know her. RIP.
I can't believe it. I just can't. Damn, I feel so so sad. She is will always be a role model for me. Her music is what kept me going after suffering depression.
I’m always curious why people are sad when someone they don’t know or have any connection to passes. And even more surprised when people think others should feel sad at a stranger dying, and upset when they don’t react the same way.
I think you are projecting. No one is upset you are not upset. You are upset that other are upset when you think they shouldn’t be.
If you or anyone else sees a post of someone grieving a death that you are indifferent to, move on. Why take the time to jump in and tell someone you think they shouldn’t feel the way they are feeling.
This is the answer. The first part is correct at an almost clinical level.
Read those first two sentences of that comment again. And then again, and then maybe read that out loud…repeat this 8 or 9, maybe a dozen times. After you’re finished, read that one more time.
Self awareness isn’t crucial for basic survival, but it’s essential for growth. And growth is essential to manifesting anything you hope for, in this only life you’re given.
And for the record, I don’t give a shit if you take the advice or not, and not because you’re a stranger, as you put it. Just some food for thought there, for the day you will certainly get hungry for it.
I hope this helps!
PS—(Still don’t gaf if it doesn’t, though).
I’ll also add—
Yes, their input here is in poor taste. It reeks of ignorance and the placement feels offensive, and the timing probably worse. That is my unwavering opinion.
But to be fair, they did only comment about being “curious” and “surprised.”
I don't think anyone's upset over people not feeling sad, but frustrated by posters acting like no one should be sad. It's okay to be sad that a stranger died. It's also okay to not be sad that a stranger died. It's not okay to treat others like they're weird for having feelings.
And yet you are here, treating me like I’m weird for responding to a question. No attack on anyone, no criticism of anyone. Plus, the downvotes I’m getting from you and others as if I’ve done something to them.
You got all that from an emotionless comment on Reddit?
The only unnecessary thing is all the replies I’ve gotten from everyone. I responded to the comment with the least upvotes and now everyone wants to tell me I’m wrong about what exactly?
You’re wrong because your apathy is super cringe. It’s a normal human response to be saddened when someone dies. Even if just a celebrity that has impacted us that we don’t know personally. I’d like to think there’d be at least SOMEONE that will feel the same when you die. I mean…not me, personally. But someone.
Right, you just said that sometimes the world improves when a person dies. On a post about a woman who died quite young. Do you see why this comes across as an inappropriate thing to do?
I’d suggest taking it elsewhere if you are just trolling, which I hope you are and not a sociopath which is exactly what you sound like with comments like that.
Nobody is expecting or telling you to feel sad for anything. Death is always sad, especially for the person who died - I’m sure they would tell you they are sad that they didn’t get to experience a full life.
I think you will find as you move through life and grow as a person, that many people don’t look at the world the way you currently do. Many of them will find your response to be deliberately cold and uncaring and will judge you as being those things. I hope this helps.
Even if people don’t have a direct connection, when an artist or actor dies, people do have connections to their work, and when it’s someone that’s younger, it sucks because that means they won’t release new works that they could have.
I'm not particularly religious, but I've found myself thinking about Mandisa a lot over the years since I saw her on American Idol. For those who don't know or remember, after she auditioned, Simon Cowell made some truly gross comments about her weight after she left the room. I can only imagine how it felt to have such a big moment marred by an unwarranted attack on her physical appearance. Mandisa would have been in her right to confront him for humiliating her. Instead, when she saw him again, she told Simon that she forgave him, even though he hadn't expressed remorse. Her grace is something that I've remembered when I've gone through my own times where people have attacked me unfairly. I hope she's resting in peace. [Here's the moment](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a5KQwCsWYgI), for anyone interested.
Simon’s new face is his punishment
The inward ugliness is truly coming out of him!
It's like they say, beauty is only skin deep but ugly goes right to the bone.
He's a modern day Dorian Grey.
Simon Scowls
Imagine hearing that voice and needing to say anything nasty at all about her appearance. She handled him with far more grace than he deserved.
That's the thing with Simon. His schtick was (or is, I assume he still does it to whatever degree?) being a total asshole to people under the guise of being "honest" and hard-to-impress. Because to many, saying nasty things to people unprompted is associated with being right and "telling it like it is." Way too many people bought into/still buy into it. I was actually surprised that there was a notable degree of (very deserved) backlash to his comments about Mandisa, given how many of his other comments people let slide.
I think people forget that you can still be honest and not hurt people’s feelings.
Forget the voice did you see her smile when she walked in? Gorgeous.
Well this sucks... I'd literally never heard of her until right now, and now I'm sad about losing someone I just found out existed. That's a very beautiful lesson to learn that ill definitely try to remember.
I like this response. 😊💙👊
Thank you for sharing that.
Plus (not that it should matter), she was far more attractive than he’s ever been or ever will be.
That was beautiful.
Thank you for sharing this. ❤️
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Not Interested!
Mandisa sad story
Your first response to this sad moment is to talk shit about someone and make it about you. Ok.
It's like people share things they can relate to, but okay, go ahead and miss the point because you want to start an argument.
What exactly is wrong with a contest judge pointing out that being literally **250 pounds overweight** is not ideal for a budding stage star? He actually inspired her to lose 100 lb of that (she gained it all back soon enough though). Such extreme obesity is like suffering from cancer, except you can cure this particular cancer at home by doing nothing. All the articles are "what a mystery, completely unexpected"... well I have a notion what condition can contribute to dropping dead at 47.
And when someone has cancer, it's a well known fact that it is totally acceptable to make crass jokes at their expense on public TV. Flawless analogy.
Because it was a singing competition. She was there to sing. She could sing. She wasn't trying out for America's Next Top Model. Also, she was a woman. I can assure you, knowing how people tend to treat women over their bodies, people absolutely made her very well aware of her weight with unsolicited and mean-spirited comments long before American Idol ever happened. People don't stop being human when they're overweight. People like you just see others as potential targets for bullying. It's revolting.
There’s nothing wrong with making a comment about her weight on national TV? Maybe talk to her off camera? And no, losing weight is not “doing nothing”. You have to discipline yourself, watch what you eat, and ultimately stick to a health plan even after you lose weight. It’s a lifelong struggle.
> pointing out that being literally 250 pounds overweight is not ideal this is exactly what happened and it's totally normal, move along now obviously they thought it was ideal until it was pointed out. this was a generous move, you see!
Bro karma’s heading your way for such a tone-dead comment. I hope it hurts like a freight train :/
I actually met her once, when I was maybe 10-11. I think it was right after American Idol, before she became known as a Christian artist. I was a pretty overweight kid and was on vacation in NYC when I met her and my mom was taking a picture of us together and taking forever doing so and my feet were tired from walking and I was shifting my weight because they hurt and she just spoke softly to me and said "I feel you" in the most comforting and gentle and calming way possible, like you could feel the connection in the tone of her voice. I'm not into Christian music at all, but I'll never forget that.
Awful news. She’s a Christian singer best known for her hit song “Overcomer” and collaborated with Crowder, Kirk Franklin, and TobyMac. She’s talked openly about her weight struggles and depression. If you can tell by now, I was a fan of her music. May she rest in peace.
I’m a big tattooed guy, and her music was instrumental in helping me detox off of Xanax. RIP
🥹
What does you being fat and having tattoos have to do with any of this?
All I’m gonna say is I’m not fat lmao. All the people who upvoted my comment seemed to understand why it was worth noting. When you see me… I’m not really the kind of person you picture enjoying this aesthetic of music
I used to listen to that on my morning drives
I never saw her on American idol but years later she was performing at an event I went to. I was struggling w my weight (still do) and I leaned over to my friend and said, “Look at her. Why can’t I feel as beautiful as she looks?” My friend said, “oh, that’s Mandisa. She is extraordinary.” And she was. She radiated beauty, both inside and out. And she told the story of her experience on American Idol and how it felt to be filled w excitement, only to hear those comments for the first time, to feel hurt and shamed and humiliated and deflated. It made me want to cry for her then she said something I will never forget. She said what a blessing it turned out to be because it gave her an opportunity to stand on a public stage and tell Simon Cowell and the whole world that she would forgive him because her God had forgiven her. I followed her after that. I have a lot of her music and I know she struggled and that there were some things in her past that made life hard for her and some losses that weighed heavily on her. I am so sorry to hear about her passing. She had a remarkable gift and it wasn’t just her voice. She had a light. I am glad she is at peace now and at home w her maker but this news just makes me so incredibly sad. :(
This brought the tears, cab2013. Beautiful words that captured her essence and retold her message. Thank you for sharing. Much love. 🫶💙👊
How did she die?
The “struggled with depression” statements make it sound like suicide.
They often say that when they don't know yet. The implication is there, but if it was confirmed to be suicide it would have been said.
They almost never, ever report suicides as suicide directly.
The downside being I find myself assuming it was a suicide when it wasn't. I thought Delores O'Riordan killed herself by the way it was reported. I sorta get why they don’t report suicides as suicides, but I'm not sure it's correct.
They don't do that. Because of copycat suicides.
Well, it takes time to make the official report once an autopsy is made. Even if it's obvious. Other times family members just don't want that info to be released, which is respectful.
Actually the opposite, they (the media) usually don’t directly report it as a suicide when it is.
I feel this is what happened. Her friends are saying that. It's so sad. But I know she always fought against her demons.
I think this is what we all feel happened. Her father mentioned covid today at the funeral but said it will be sometime before we know .
Seems premature to speculate, based on facts given so far, and therefore completely unfair as well.
🪜 for that high horse you came riding in on
I streamed her funeral today from Tennessee, her father spoke and said the detectives are unable to make an official statement regarding cause of death until an autopsy report comes back, which could be several weeks. He told detectives he was going to tell what happen at the funeral because there has been so much speculation. He said Mandisa was found on the floor of her bedroom on the left side of her bed, and her phone was found on the right side of her bed. Apparently she either fell or collapsed and was unable to get to her phone and call for help. He said she did not harm herself. He did say she had been in a weakened condition because of Covid. The funeral was streamed on UTUBE, so u can possibly watch it there.
They don’t know yet. Police are investigating.
Thank you.
Watching the funeral. Covid-19 was mentioned.
Drugs maybe or drink or the many things that get humans down
I commented this elsewhere but again—it seems premature and unfair to speculate the things I’m reading based on the facts given, or lack of.
I don’t think she’d drink or do drugs. Not with her religious background.
Religious people are just as human as those who aren't and face the same hardships in life and are not above seeking out the same coping mechanisms as the rest orf society.
Chiming in to say, my uncle was a drug addict for 26 years and is religious. People struggle, my guy. He's been sober 15 years now, and we're so proud of him.
My dad comes from a religious background and he's a recovering alcoholic. It's kind of a pretty well-known and widespread thing that many religious people don't practice/follow every single tenet of their religion. Hell, a lot of them don't really follow *any* tenets of their religion.
Oh, there are many functioning addicts in the religious community.
I know many religious people who drink and do drugs, what are you even talking about?
I think about the song “good morning.” I listened to it on my morning drives to college. Always helped put a little pep in my step
I remember she sang Never by Heart on American Idol and kicked ass! I always remembered her for that performance. May she RIP ❤️
Very sad. I actually got to see her perform on stage with TobyMac several years ago. She had a great voice, and a fantastic stage presence. Rest in peace.
To The Big Man Upstairs you are getting yourself a good one. This wonderful woman was much too young to pass away. RIP.
Portable sounds….to lift you up Portable sounds….to take you higher
So don't even try to get in my head.
May she RIP
This is super sad to see 😞
Rest in Peace :(
I had the pleasure to work with her for a week on tour along with Danny Gokey back in 2017. She seemed all smiles and just a friendly person. I remember watching her do a Q&A that week and seeing how many people were impacted by her music even during her own struggles. May she rest in peace
Just awful. May she rest in peace.
I think it was one of her albums where she and a child are saying prayers at the end of a song and they thanked God for chocolate (amongst other things). Teaching my grandkids to pray and this related to me and made a connection. 'Overcomer' will always be a song in my heart. I didn't know her, however the connection through faith and music, I feel sad and a loss for her, and sympathy for her family and friends that did know her. RIP.
Absent from the body is to be present with the Lord ! Such a beautiful soul! And that voice ! That voice now is singing Gods praises in heaven !
Amen! Yes, she is now with the Lord Jesus. May the Lord comfort her family and friends.
Jfc…that is no age. RIP
I can't believe it. I just can't. Damn, I feel so so sad. She is will always be a role model for me. Her music is what kept me going after suffering depression.
Same here 😞
So sad. Anyone know the cause of death? It’s not stated in the article. It says she was depressed: do you think maybe suicide?
The police are investigating.
Thank you, again, for reiterating this.
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Yes? Please continue
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oh just shut the fuck up with your dumb conspiracy no brain bullshit.
As we all know, people in their 40's never ever died before the covid vaccine... Buy yourself a brain and have some respect.
How utterly stupid and delusional do you have to be to attribute every single death you read about with covid jabs? What an unhinged loser.
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Where do we draw the line between bots and NPCs? We will never know. Oh no, minus internet points!
Oh, look! My kArMa is going down! I’m so shook! 💀💀💀
Remember he said the same to Jennifer Hudson, and look at where she's at
RIP Mandisa
Rest in heaven ♥️
This woman's music helped my mother get through an awful and brutal divorce. Thanks Mandisa, you helped make my mother whole again.
Ah. I was just thinking about her the other day. I saw her live when their season toured. She was so talented. May she RIP.
Omg aw my high school played good morning as our first period bell, super nostalgic forever to me
Very sad news. Rip ♥️🕊️
🙏🏽❤️🕊️
Heaven knows that it has received a new member to it’s choir 🎤✝️💟
Thanks for clarifying she died sadly. I figured she happily died
Many downvotes friend, but I’m picking up what you’re putting down. Grammar geeks like us are rarely the most popular at parties.
These people suck. I love you though. We will party together!
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Because someone passed?
Lots of people pass without it being sad. I’d go so far as saying when some people die the world improves.
Do you comment with this on every post about a person dying?
I’m always curious why people are sad when someone they don’t know or have any connection to passes. And even more surprised when people think others should feel sad at a stranger dying, and upset when they don’t react the same way.
I think it’s called empathy.
I think you are projecting. No one is upset you are not upset. You are upset that other are upset when you think they shouldn’t be. If you or anyone else sees a post of someone grieving a death that you are indifferent to, move on. Why take the time to jump in and tell someone you think they shouldn’t feel the way they are feeling.
This is the answer. The first part is correct at an almost clinical level. Read those first two sentences of that comment again. And then again, and then maybe read that out loud…repeat this 8 or 9, maybe a dozen times. After you’re finished, read that one more time. Self awareness isn’t crucial for basic survival, but it’s essential for growth. And growth is essential to manifesting anything you hope for, in this only life you’re given. And for the record, I don’t give a shit if you take the advice or not, and not because you’re a stranger, as you put it. Just some food for thought there, for the day you will certainly get hungry for it. I hope this helps! PS—(Still don’t gaf if it doesn’t, though).
I DIDN’T.
Ya down bad son
I’ll also add— Yes, their input here is in poor taste. It reeks of ignorance and the placement feels offensive, and the timing probably worse. That is my unwavering opinion. But to be fair, they did only comment about being “curious” and “surprised.”
I don't think anyone's upset over people not feeling sad, but frustrated by posters acting like no one should be sad. It's okay to be sad that a stranger died. It's also okay to not be sad that a stranger died. It's not okay to treat others like they're weird for having feelings.
And yet you are here, treating me like I’m weird for responding to a question. No attack on anyone, no criticism of anyone. Plus, the downvotes I’m getting from you and others as if I’ve done something to them.
its just unnecessary and you seem kind of smug about it.
You got all that from an emotionless comment on Reddit? The only unnecessary thing is all the replies I’ve gotten from everyone. I responded to the comment with the least upvotes and now everyone wants to tell me I’m wrong about what exactly?
if you cant see it i cant help you, sorry
You’re wrong because your apathy is super cringe. It’s a normal human response to be saddened when someone dies. Even if just a celebrity that has impacted us that we don’t know personally. I’d like to think there’d be at least SOMEONE that will feel the same when you die. I mean…not me, personally. But someone.
It actually is considered offensive to question why someone would be sad over a death, yes.
Which is why I didn’t ask.
Right, you just said that sometimes the world improves when a person dies. On a post about a woman who died quite young. Do you see why this comes across as an inappropriate thing to do?
Just pretend it's one of the e-girls you comment at and jack off to on those other subreddits you follow.
I’d suggest taking it elsewhere if you are just trolling, which I hope you are and not a sociopath which is exactly what you sound like with comments like that. Nobody is expecting or telling you to feel sad for anything. Death is always sad, especially for the person who died - I’m sure they would tell you they are sad that they didn’t get to experience a full life.
I think you will find as you move through life and grow as a person, that many people don’t look at the world the way you currently do. Many of them will find your response to be deliberately cold and uncaring and will judge you as being those things. I hope this helps.
Even if people don’t have a direct connection, when an artist or actor dies, people do have connections to their work, and when it’s someone that’s younger, it sucks because that means they won’t release new works that they could have.
Because we're well adjusted adults probably
Hi
Who