What Did Survivor 50 Contestants Really Think About the Celeb Cameos?

“They were telling us about her—Billie Eilish Boomerang Idol,” he recalled to E! News at the finale. “And they was asking me about it, and I was like, ‘Oh, I love him. He’s awesome.’ And they was like, ‘Q, it’s a lady.’”

As the season 46 sixth-place finisher explained, he thought they were talking about singer Billy Idol. 

“I’m like, 'OK, I don't know who Billie Eilish is then obviously. Enlighten me,’” he said. “They start to say some of the songs. I'm like, ‘Don't ring a bell.’”

“See, I’m from Mississippi,” he laughed. “We don't listen to that, but I was excited she was a part of it.”

However, he was much more interested in singer Zac Brown’s Survivor appearance, although he was bummed that he’d been eliminated before the country star showed up. (Q was the third person voted out.)

And while Emily and Q were on board with the celeb cameos, some fans of the show were a little less amused—a take that longtime Survivor host Jeff Probst didn’t understand. 

"It's fascinating to me that a couple of people, most of them either former players or people who will never play, criticize the show, and it gets momentum," the 64-year-old told Variety in an interview published May 13. "I tell anyone who wants to listen: If that's your goal, to somehow impact our point of view, it will fail. We trust what we’re doing."

He emphasized, "If you think we're going to re-edit because you thought there was too much Zac Brown, you've not been reading interviews with me."

For a look at all the contestants who got to appreciate the celeb cameos on season 50 of Survivor, keep reading.

—Reporting by Daryn Carp