Bella Emry; Disney/Eric McCandless
Tonight, viewers saw Bella Emry step completely outside of her comfort zone in hopes of leaving her day-to-day jobs behind and pursue music full time. The 22-year-old traveled from Bend, OR, to the American Idol audition room carrying big dreams, and a bit of nerves.
Bella currently works as a server in a restaurant and as an office admin at her parents’ concrete restoration business. Between the long hours and the limited opportunities to perform in her town, she knew she had to go beyond home in order to give her dreams a real chance at coming true.
“No shade to my parents, but I’d much rather be singing. I would love to make in my life,” she admitted as viewers got a glimpse into her life in Oregon.
When the time finally came for her to put her skills on display for the Idol judges, and all of America, Bella admits the uneasiness started to set in.
“I’ve been watching Idol since I was a little kid. Now I’m doing it. I am the most nervous I think I have ever been in my whole life. Singing is second nature to me, but I do not perform for people. So this could be life changing.”
It seems as though the nerves washed away as soon as she strummed the first note on her guitar and sang the lyrics to Morgan Wallen’s “I’m A Little Crazy.” Bella took the country tune and made it her own, slowing it down and delivering each line with a heavier weight that made the story feel intimate. Every breath felt deliberate, drawing the judges in and keeping the room silent as they hung on her every word.
A smile washed across Carrie Underwood’s face as she watched the aspiring artist in pure awe. When it was time to share her thoughts, the Idol judge jumped in first and made it clear she was impressed by the voice that just filled the room.
“That was great. I’m surprised to hear you say that you don’t perform…You seemed very comfortable just telling a story. Nobody was breathing when you were singing,” Underwood acknowledged. “Well done.”
Luke Bryan particularly called out how “raw and unpolished” she is as an artist, and also matched Underwood’s shock in just how much talent she held.
“I wasn’t expecting you to be able to really hold our attention like that. I mean, you didn’t hit a bad note. You held the guitar together really, really well, and you delivered that song in your own way,” she praised her.
From the moment she walked in the room until the moment she finished the tune, Lionel Richie
“Idol University has been waiting on you. You are scholarship material, my dear,” he added. “All I can say is, you’re going to hold that one time around. Let’s see some more. It’s a yes for me.”
Bella received a “yes” across the board and even when she was out of the audition room the judges couldn’t stop talking about how “great” she was.
“I’m sure it will get even harder, but I feel a little bit more like, I can do this. This is an actual possibility for me,” she said with excitement and hopefulness in her voice.
Tonight’s episode of American Idol marked the end of the Season 24 audition. The show will continue next Monday night (Feb. 23) when the golden ticket holders face off during Hollywood week, which will be held in Nashville, TN for the first time in the show’s history.
Tune in to see who will make it into the Top 30. New episodes air Monday nights at 8/7c on ABC and streams the next day on Hulu.
