'American Idol' Winner Just Sam Back To Singing In Subways For Money

Former "American Idol" winner Samantha "Just Sam" Diaz is back performing in New York City subways. Last month, the 24-year-old began sharing videos to her Instagram singing in subway stations and opened up about her journey since winning the hit competition series. "Back in 2021, I was super embarrassed to be going back to the trains. I didn't want people to know that I legit needed the money & I didn't want people to know that it wasn't optional. I was disappointed in myself for allowing myself to fall so low after winning Idol, but then I had to take it easy on me and remember that I started my journey with Idol at 20 years old. Not even knowing anything about Hollywood or the music industry. Since then, I have learned so much and I've been able to take my experiences and share them with other artists in hopes that they don't experience the same things that I did when it comes to making it in this life," she explained. "Just Sam" won Season 18 of the singing competition in 2020.