‘American Idol’ Fans Are Emotional As Katy Perry Breaks Down In Tears During Audition Rounds
March 4, 2023 by Marissa Matozzo
Katy Perry is touching American Idol viewers after showing one contestant support after he opened up about surviving a school shooting in a touching moment in last week’s episode. As the series is currently airing audition clips of contestants, the February 26th episode included the audition of Trey Louis, 21, a mattress salesman from Santa Fe, Texas.
The singer stunned the tearful Perry, 38, and fellow judges Luke Bryan, 46, and Lionel Richie, 73, with his soulful and moving rendition of Whiskey Myers’ 2016 song “Stone.” This served as a heartrending tribute to one of Louis’ best friends, Chris Stone, who was killed during a school shooting at his high school in 2018.
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After his powerful performance, Louis received a standing ovation from the three judges and received three ‘yeses’ and a golden ticket— securing his spot in the show’s next round. The young singer opened up about surviving the 2018 shooting at Santa Fe High School and its lasting and devastating effects. The tragedy left eight students and two teachers dead.
“A gunman walked into my school,” Louis said to the judges. “I was in art room one, and he shot up art room two before he made his way to art room one … lost a lot of friends.” Perry then began crying and covered her face with her hands as she listened to Louis.
“Our country has failed us,” she said, visibly moved by his story. The Grammy winner added, “This is not okay. You should be singing here because you love music, not because you had to go through that [expletive]. You didn’t have to lose friends. I hope that you remind people that we have to change, because, you know what? I’m scared too.”
In a recent interview, Louis spoke about his goal of “shining a brighter light” on his town with his audition. “It does mean I get to represent my friends that I lost,” he explained. “It’s an honor. It really is.”
After the episode aired, many fans on Twitter were touched not only by Louis’ musical talents and heartbreaking story, but Perry’s support of him, as well. One fan tweeted regarding gun control, “Love that [Perry]’s using her platform to raise awareness,” as another added, “This BROKE my heart. I felt it in my gut even after the show” while praising Louis’ performance.
Someone else chimed in, “Hearing this boy’s story and and seeing Katy cry is so heartbreaking” as others thanked Perry for sharing the clip of Louis’ audition with her 108.5 million Twitter followers. “So happy he’s going through to the next round” one other user wrote along with another noting, “rooting for him!” as many continue to show support for Louis on social media.