WATCH: Nervous ‘Idol’ Contestant Lyric Mederios Divides Judges With Covers Of Kelsea Ballerini and Carrie Underwood
Lyric loves country music and auditioned for ‘Idol’ with covers of two country hits.
Lyric Mederios; Photo by ABC, American Idol
Lyric Mederios flew 10 hours to audition for American Idol, but did her time pay and efforts pay off?
Lyric, a resident of Honolulu, Hawaii, is the daughter of ‘80s singer Glenn Medeiros. She inherited her love of music from her dad, who had a global smash hit with the song, “Nothing’s Gonna Change My Love for You.”
A self-proclaimed country music lover, Lyric was a ball full of nerves before her audition.
Her mom, Tammy, admitted she was a “shy singer.”
“Lyric hasn’t even eaten, so she’s like nervous,” she explained to Ryan Seacrest.
Wearing a denim jumpsuit, Lyric entered the room with a smile as she told the judges, “Aloha! I have some leis for you. I’m from Hawaii.”
After putting a floral lei around the neck of each of the judges, Lyric chose to perform Kelsea Ballerini’s breakout hit, “Love Me Like You Mean It.”
Tough Lesson
She got a tough lesson from Katy Perry and Luke Bryan, who challenged her to do better.
“Girl, you flew ten hours to be cute and safe?” Perry shouted. “We know you got more than that!”
“I can sing another song for you if you’d like,” Lyric told Perry, to which she replied, “we need it ‘cause as of right now, you’re flying ten hours back.”
“How about some Carrie Underwood?” Lyric asked.
Joined by a pianist, Lyric then performed a cover of Underwood’s chart-topping hit, “Before He Cheats.”
“Come on, louder!” Katy Perry shouted.
A Challenge
“Look this is going to be very challenging for you. Have you ever made an ugly face in your life? Now get it,” Bryan said, encouraging her to stop trying to look so perfect.
Perry and Bryan persuaded Lyric to make an angry face and lean more into the performance.
Katy Perry then exited the judges’ panel and walked toward the contestant to show her how to get angry and more into her performance.
As she continued to sing “Before He Cheats,” Lyric pretended to fight with Perry and Richie shouted, “There you go!”
“One more time!” Perry said. “There it is, there it is.”
“Lyric, you are too pretty for an ugly business,” Luke Bryan joked.
Following her performance, Perry asked Lyric, “Did your daddy ever tell you that it was hard? Cause it’s hard.”
Lyric Mederios’ audition left the judges divided.
“I think the only way you’re going to understand what your potential is, is putting you in a room with some brawlers. So, I guess I have to say ‘yes.’” Richie explained.
Bryan said he believed she needs to cut her teeth in the honky tonks, while Richie replied, “You don’t want to throw her into this suit.”
Golden Ticket
“I don’t think she’s ready, I’m a ‘no,’” Bryan said, making his final decision before asking Perry, “What cha got Katy?”
With the decision on her shoulders, Perry stood up.
“I need you to come up here and slap me across the face as hard as you possibly can. I’m just kidding. I knew you wouldn’t do that, you’re too polite and too sweet or you’re just putting that on and I don’t think that’s exactly you. I have been ‘no’ pretty much this whole time, but there’s something inside of me that’s like ‘I got to give her a shot,’” Perry explained.
Despite a ‘no’ from Luke Bryan, Lyric Mederios earned a golden ticket to advance to Hollywood.
The season 21 premiere of American Idol aired on Sunday (Feb. 19) at 8/7c on ABC. The show is available to stream on HULU.
This season of Idol promises to be a memorable one as it’s a celebration of the show turning 21 (in both years and seasons). Idol judges Luke Bryan, Katy Perry, and Lionel Richie return to find the next singing sensation in New Orleans, Las Vegas, and Nashville.
American Idol airs on Sundays at 8/7c on ABC.
Lauren Jo Black, a University of Central Florida graduate, has immersed herself in the world of country music for over 15 years. In 2008, she co-founded CountryMusicIsLove, eventually selling it to a major record label in 2015. Following the rebranding of the website to Sounds Like Nashville, Black served as Editor-in-Chief for two and a half years. Currently, she assumes the role of Editor-in-Chief at Country Now and oversees Country Now’s content and digital footprint. Her extensive experience also encompasses her previous role as a Country Music Expert Writer for Answers.com and her work being featured on Forbes.com. She’s been spotlighted among Country Aircheck’s Women of Influence and received the 2012 Rising Star Award from the University of Central Florida. Black also spent time in front of the camera as host of Country Now Live, which brought live music directly to fans in 2021 when the majority of concerts were halted due to the pandemic. During this time, she hosted 24 weeks of live concerts via Country Now Live on Twitch with special guests such as Lady A, Dierks Bentley, Jordan Davis, Brett Young, and Jon Pardi. Over the course of her career, she has had the privilege of conducting interviews with some of the industry’s most prominent stars, including Reba McEntire, Blake Shelton, Luke Combs, Carrie Underwood, Luke Bryan, Miranda Lambert, Lainey Wilson, and many others. Lauren Jo Black is a longtime member of the Country Music Association and the Academy of Country Music.
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