American Idol is doing a sneak peek of Season 8 on ABC (Season 23 overall) following the Oscars on Sunday night to preview the new season as former American Idol winner Carrie Underwood joins Lionel Richie and Luke Bryan at the judges’ table.
The auditions were held in New York, Los Angeles, and Nashville, and in Music City, there was an audition that especially stood out and Parade has your first look at Idol hopeful Slater Nalley’s emotional audition.
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In a surprising move, when Slater was called into the audition room, it wasn’t he who entered first, but rather Mrs. Davis, his high school English teacher.
“I am so grateful to be here,” she told the judges. “I have a special student of mine, Slater Nalley, and he wrote a song for my son [Carter Davis, 1999-2016], who was killed eight years ago. Slater had heard the story about my son. I had written a poem and the second year that I taught him I asked, ‘Would you mind looking at the poem? I would love to see what your thoughts are and how you turn a poem into a song.’ And so, two weeks later, he did, and that’s the song he’s going to sing today.”
Slater Nalley, Mrs. DavisDisney/Eric McCandless
Enter: 17-year-old Slater Nalley from Atlanta, GA.
“You have had the coolest introduction ever,” Luke told him. “It seems like you guys have a very special bond and that’s amazing.”
Related: Watch Life-Changing American Idol Auditions Selected by Luke, Lionel, Carrie and Ryan (Exclusive)
“Yes, sir. I’m very grateful for her and glad I could offer such a small notion, but I’m glad it helped so much,” Slater told Luke.
The song that Slater wrote in honor of Carter is called “Traces of You.”
“It is 100 percent the most deep thing I have ever written,” he said. “I didn’t know Carter before this happened and when Miss Davis told us, I just felt this presence come into my life essentially and I knew I needed to do something. I went home and I started working away on little notebook pages. Eventually, it turned into a song. She was happy with how it turned out. I am happy to be able to be here and play it and at least put a little joy in a dark place.”
Then Mrs. Davis, who was standing by the piano said, “Slater to not have known Carter, to write this song, it captured Carter. It captured that person I wish was still in my life. Our faith carries us, and it felt that there was light and hope in the middle of it, too.”
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Slater began to sing and all three judges–Carrie, Lionel and Luke–had tears in their eyes.
“Even though this was about your son, every single person who hears that can fill in a memory with somebody that’s in them,” Carrie said to Mrs. Davis. Then to Slater, she added, “I couldn’t imagine you doing that any better.”
“That one line, ‘Your life was like a river running home,’ got the blues man,” Lionel pointed out. “That’s the one.”
Related: Everything to Know About the Superstar Mentors for American Idol This Season
And Luke added, “You just stick to walking on stage and singing with your heart and the rest will take care of itself.”
Then Lionel announced, “Sometimes we don’t have to vote.”
All three said in unison, “You’re going to Hollywood.”
American Idol will premiere at 8 p.m. ET/PT on March 9 on ABC, but first, a special preview episode will air following the live telecast of The Oscars on Sunday, March 2.
Next, Here’s All the Info on American Idol 2025, Including the Judges, Host, How to Audition and a New Trailer Featuring Carrie Underwood
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