He’s gone from homeless to Hollywood.
An aspiring singer who slept in shelters and subway cars in New York got the break of a lifetime when he impressed the judges on “American Idol” and won a rare chance to compete in California.
“Hollywood” Anderson Footman, 22, blew away the superstar panel of Jennifer Lopez, Harry Connick Jr. and Adam Lambert by singing an original song in his initial audition in New York.
Going with his own tune rather than a popular standard was seen as a huge risk — but it paid off big-time for a man who seemed to have nothing to lose.
“Me singing my own music is totally different than me singing someone else’s song,” he told The Post. “You get to hear me express myself.”
All three judges were stunned by the Florida native’s chops, and moved by his song, “My Best Friend,” which was about a college friend with whom he “fell madly in love.”
Footman and J.Lo shared a moment, tearing up as he got his “golden ticket” to Hollywood. “I want to record that song tomorrow,” Lopez told him.
The young singer grew up in the Orlando area, and spent a semester at Nyack College, where he met the inspiration for his song. He moved to the Big Apple in May 2012, but found himself without a place to stay.
He moved to Covenant House and met Norm Lotz, vice president of development at the shelter. Lotz, who is an amateur musician, knew Footman had an “unusual talent” as soon as he met him.
“He just had a very strong tenor voice and more than that, he just had soul and heart,” he said.
As a mentor, Lotz not only taught Footman how to play guitar, he helped raise funds to get him his very own instrument.
The Hollywood portion of the competition will begin airing on Wednesday. Footman is still far from winning the show, but he says his life is already better because of it.
He no longer lives in the shelter, and currently splits his time between two friends’ apartments.
But he’s also more hopeful that some of his biggest dreams — meeting Kanye West, singing for the Obamas, and being on “Ellen” — come true.
More importantly, he’s hoping to be an inspiration to others.
“Anyone can go from homeless to Hollywood, homeless to New York City, homeless to Fiji. Go where you want in life,” he said.
