The Bay Area is making a strong impression so far in Season 18 of “American Idol.”
During Sunday night’s audition episode on ABC, viewers were introduced to Demi Rae, a 26-year-old singer from San Jose who overcame her insecurity and lack of confidence to impress the judges and make it to Hollywood.
Rae’s strong voice shined through on a cover of “Mad at You” by Noah Cyrus and she immediately had Katy Perry, Lionel Richie and Luke Bryan singing her praises.
“You have such a great voice and it’s not typical,” Perry told Rae, who attended Central High School in Morgan Hill.
She joins Grace Leer of Danville and Francisco Martin, a student at College of San Mateo, in making it to the Hollywood round.
Rae arrived with one of those emotional — and uplifting — back stories that have become a trademark of “Idol.” Inspired by her father Bryan, who was a dance instructor, she began singing at a tender age. But her dad was often absent in her life — doing time in jail, apparently for transgressions related to substance abuse.
“I wanted him to be around,” Rae recalled. “I wanted him to love me.”
When Rae was 15, her father “got clean and turned his life around.” But that didn’t mean Rae had a smooth path from there on out. Comparing herself to popular female singers, including Perry, she didn’t see herself matching up in terms of beauty and body size. She constantly felt “really insecure” and anxious because she didn’t possess the conventional looks.
Commendably, Perry delivered some words of encouragement.
“There’ a million girls watching television and going, ‘Oh my god, I’m just like her.’ And you’re going to be that one,” she said.
Bryan, meanwhile promised that they would “get behind you and encourage you every step of the way.” And Richie was excited about Rae’s potential.
“If this is how you sing scared to death and with no confidence, I can’t imagine what you’re going to be when you realize, ‘Oh my god, I’ve got this,’” he said.
There was one other charming highlight to Rae’s “Idol” story. She arrived at her audition with a booklet she created at the age of 9 called “The Future.” In it, she wrote about having a career as a singer and “When I get old enough, I will strive for my goal, and I will go on American Idol.”
Consider it a mission accomplished.
