Remember Pop Idol star Rik Waller? Here’s what the heavyweight crooner is up to now
Before The X Factor was a thing, Rik shot to fame on Pop Idol but he has left his singing career far behind him
BEFORE The X Factor there was Pop Idol – and there was Rik Waller.
The singer from Kent won fame on the first series of the talent show in 2001, at the age of 20.
A bout of laryngitis saw him exit the show early and he was replaced by Darius Danesh.
But he went on have a top ten hit with his cover of I Will Always Love You.
He resurfaced on Celebrity Fit Club in 2002, but was booted off the show when he was caught binge eating, and his career took a nosedive after that.
He later revealed he gave up singing because he fell in love with a PAGAN who banned him from performing.
In 2007 he said: “I’ve got two people to think about now and talent doesn’t always pay the bills.”
Sadly, he ended up penniless.
He said: “The most demoralising thing I’ve ever had to do was queue up at the jobcentre and have people look at me saying, ‘What a failure’.
“When you’ve lost the ability to do the job you’ve always done, it’s an incredible stab in the back to find people are actually laughing at you.”
But in 2013, Rik turned his life around and became an exam invigilator.
He now works full time overseeing secondary school exams for Piper Assessment, in Sittingbourne, Kent
RELATED STORIES
Oh, and he grew his hair long and died it blue and then purple for good measure.
He also changed his name to Richard and launched a karaoke business with his dad, Kris.
The relationship with the pagan didn’t last, sadly, and Rik/Richard is now single.
