Elle King Reveals She Didn’t Find Out She’s Autistic Until After Joining ‘Nation’s Dumbest’ (Exclusive)

Elle King is getting candid about her recent autism diagnosis as she gears up to share her smarts in Fox’s new game show, Nation’s Dumbest.

“I love games. I love game shows. I’m extremely competitive, and I love puzzles and everything. I actually found out right after the show that I’m autistic, and so I was like, ‘Everything makes so much sense now.’ But I didn’t even know,” the singer, 37, exclusively told Us Weekly while promoting the program on Thursday, July 9.

Autism is defined by the Mayo Clinic as a condition related to brain development that affects how people see, socialize and communicate with others.

According to King, it wasn’t until after committing to the show, which pits celebrities against a series of outrageous challenges that celebrate hilarious mistakes and blunders, that she began to doubt herself.

“Right before the show, I was like, ‘Oh my gosh.’ [I was] starting to panic, ‘There is a scenario that you could be the nation’s dumbest,’” she recalled thinking.

King went to drastic measures to put her smarts to the test — and was shocked at the results.

“I did an IQ test, and it was rather high, and I didn’t even trust it, so I took another one, and I got the same score on a different website,” the Ex’s & Oh’s singer shared, revealing her score was 132. (The average IQ test score is 100, and biographers estimate Albert Einstein‘s IQ was likely 160.)

King revealed her diagnosis in May via a candid post captioned “good news is, im autistic.” Since then, she’s already made changes to her life, including who she surrounds herself with.

“I’ve had a lot of not my proudest moments, and so especially with my autism diagnosis, I am putting new kinds of safety barricades, and I just want to be around people that I feel safe around, and I just want to do things that bring me joy,” the Grammy nominee told Us.

While King admitted she’s still trying to figure things out, she’s ready to tackle whatever comes next.

“It’s so important to continue,” she said. “I’m still learning. I don’t understand it. I just don’t want to do things the way that I used to do it because, ultimately, at the end of the day, I truly enjoy being an artist, being a performer, and getting to do all these other things just as myself is really fun for me. I keep telling myself whatever this next chapter is, I really want to be present and enjoy it. That’s what I’m trying to do.”

King opened up about other health-related issues in 2024 on Bunnie XO’s “Dumb Blonde” podcast, revealing she was diagnosed with OCD and Tourette’s syndrome as a child.

The singer’s latest venture is appearing on Nation’s Dumbest alongside Dr. Drew Pinsky, Carmen Electra, Ice-T, Steve-O, Hilaria Baldwin, JoJo Siwa and more.

“Summer school is in session with the debut of Nation’s Dumbest, a new celebrity competition series that flips the traditional format on its head — because this is the only show where winning is the last thing anyone wants,” the official show synopsis reads. “Taking attendance as host is acclaimed comedian Jack Whitehall, who presides over the chaos as contestants relive the highs and humiliations of school life — from pop quizzes and report cards to recess and parent teacher conferences — all while trying to stay out of last place.”

The description concludes: “Each week, the ‘smartest’ celebrity graduates, narrowing the field until a high-stakes final exam determines who will be left standing with the distinction no one wants — the title of The Nation’s Dumbest.”

Nation’s Dumbest debuts on Fox Wednesday, July 15, at 9 p.m. ET and streams the next day on Hulu.