Laine Hardy is the Real Winner of ‘The Bachelorette’ Season 17
Jason Kempin/ Getty Images, Craig Sjodin/ABC Reading Time: 3 minutes
The Bachelorette star Katie Thurston ended up getting engaged to Blake Moynes during the show’s season finale on Tuesday. Love was in the air during the three-hour event. But, the real star of the season was honestly American Idol winner Laine Hardy. His song “Memorize You” basically became the official anthem of the show this year.
Laine Hardy’s ‘Memorize You’ Gets a Ton of Air Time on This Season of ‘The Bachelorette’
Katie and Blake had their one on one date earlier in the season. Laine surprised the couple by serenading them with “Memorize You.” His single is romantic, sultry, and perfectly fit the scene. They slow danced together and kissed as Laine strummed the guitar.
Later on, Blake showed up outside of Katie’s hotel room. He played “Memorize You” on a giant boombox that he held above his head. It was an ’80s movie moment that nobody was expecting. After getting engaged during the finale episode, Katie and Blake were reunited at the After The Final Rose Special. Blake explained how he has a hard time articulating his feelings into words. Instead, he wanted to show Katie how he feels about her.
One by one, members of the audience stood up holding stereos over their heads. “Memorize You” blared over the speakers. Rose petals fell down from the ceiling as the happy couple slow danced in front of the cameras. It was cinematic move magic happening on live television. They recreated their first date perfectly even though Laine wasn’t there in person this time.
Laine’s song still got a ton of air time this season. One Twitter user wrote that Laine is “the real winner” of this season of The Bachelorette. It has never really happened in the show’s history where one song or artist has gotten this much play on the show.
Laine reposted an Instagram story from one viewer who wrote that he is “really capitalizing” on this season of The Bachelorette. Even he seems to agree that the show is helping him gain more exposure. Was this a dig at American Idol?
Twitter Took Notice of Laine’s Song Being Played Multiple Times
The explanation behind the show’s love for Laine could just be that American Idol and The Bachelorette are both on ABC. The bizarre part about this is that American Idol has not really shown Laine as much support as The Bachelorette has over the course of the season.
Laine did make an appearance during Season 19 to chat with Ryan Seacrest. They did not invite him to perform “Memorize You” which felt very odd. It was the most awkward episode to date. Fans flooded the comments section on Laine’s Instagram to express how much of a let down it was that he didn’t perform.
“Laine I am disappointed in Idol for not having you preform your new single,” one fan wrote. “Their support for you isn’t what it should be.”
Laine did perform “Life is a Highway” virtually on the show in Season 18 but that does not compare to performing his own music live. “Memorize You” was released in May. The music video was released shortly after. We almost expected American Idol to bring back Laine to perform at the finale. That opportunity never came.
When the “Memorize You” music video came out, one of the commenters wrote that they “want to see him live on a large televised event to get maximize exposure.” Even though The Bachelorette has been dramatically declining in viewership, it had over 3 million viewers per episode this season. This is still great exposure for Laine on the network where he first found fame.
