“American Idol” season 24 winner Hannah Harper is currently on her “String Cheese Tour,” and what makes the experience even more special is having her family by her side. Joining her on her small-town tour are her husband, Devon Mendenhall, and their three young sons.
However, following Harper’s months-long tour required major sacrifice from Mendenhall. After spending 8 years in law enforcement in Missouri, he made the difficult decision to leave his full-time policing career behind so that he could support his wife’s growing music career.
Hannah Harper Details Her Husband Putting His ‘Badge Up’ to Support Her Music Dreams
In an interview with Fox News, Hannah Harper shared how her husband, Devon Mendenhall, left his 8-year policing career to support her music dreams and follow her on tour as her tour manager.
“It has definitely strengthened our marriage in ways that I didn’t even know those muscles worked if that makes sense,” she began.
“My husband was in law enforcement for eight years and put his badge up just so that I could pursue this,” she said. “And he was doing insurance there for a little while. We were going to try to just do, like, a work-on-the-road kind of thing. And then music just got too busy. And he was like, ‘You know what? I think I want to be tour manager.’ And I was like, ‘That’s perfect. I think you should do that.'”
She continued, “But more than anything, I feel honored that he was willing to step down from his position. A lot of men wouldn’t do that. I think their pride would get in the way, and that man would bend over backwards for anything that I asked him to do.”
Even before Harper won “American Idol,” she had planned to go on her “String Cheese Tour.” The tour began in early June and will run through November, hitting smaller venues across the Midwest and Southern states.
“This was in the works prior to coming to ‘Idol,’ but it’s mainly smaller, intimate settings, theaters, festivals, and stuff like that. I’m excited about that, so if people want to see me down the road, I’d love to hug their necks,” she previously told USA Today.
Harper Shares the Biggest Challenge of Going on Tour With Her Husband
In her interview with Fox News, Harper also admitted there has been one downside of life on the road, even with her entire family by her side.
“I think the biggest challenge now is because we’re both working is, ‘OK, when are off hours?’ You know, like when normal people go home, they’re done working for the day, but our work is at home. And, so, it’s hard for us to be able to turn it off. But it’s so much fun for both of us to be building this together.” She shared.
According to American Music Magazine, Harper met her husband at a small church in Missouri, where she was working as a worship leader after her family’s band took a break from touring. She and Mendenhall married in 2018, when she was 18 years old, and the couple later welcomed three sons.
God bless you and your family. It’s wonderful that your husband is supporting you in your music. Take care. Maybe you can make it to Louisiana, I’d love to go hear you sing. 🥰💐