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Carrie Underwood shared an emotional full circle moment with a contestant on American Idol during the show’s season premiere on Monday evening (January 26).
Heather Wyatt introduced Idol hopeful Khloe Grace, 15, to judges Underwood, Luke Bryan and Lionel Richie. Wyatt explained that Grace wrote a heartfelt original song in memory of her late daughter, Aubreigh Wyatt, who took her life in 2023. She was 13. Grace shared that she’s also endured the pressure of social media bullying, and auditioned with the ballad in Aubreigh’s honor. The American Idol audition marked the first time Grace met Heather in person.
“You’ve been one of my biggest inspirations since I was 7 years old,” Grace told Underwood in an emotional moment shared by American Idol on Instagram.
“Well, now who’s the inspiration? It’s pretty incredible,” Underwood said. Watch that moment here, and watch Grace’s full audition below.
Underwood returned for her second consecutive year as a judge. She returned to Idol last season, two decades after her career-launching victory on the show’s fourth season in 2005. Underwood joins fellow judges Bryan and Richie, plus longtime host Ryan Seacrest. This year, American Idol brings its iconic Hollywood Week to Nashville for the first time. Contestants will have only one round to deliver “make-or-break performances” during Hollywood Week: Music City Takeover, making it “the biggest Hollywood Week cut in Idol history,” per ABC.
Watch Grace’s audition here:
If you or someone you know is considering suicide or is in emotional distress, please contact the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-TALK (8255), text "STRENGTH" to the Crisis Text Line at 741-741 or go to suicidepreventionlifeline.org.