Season 21 of American Idol premiered on Sunday (Feb. 19), introducing the country to another host of hopefuls vying for the title. 18-year-old Colin Stough already set himself up as a frontrunner on the latest installment of the famed talent competition.
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The singer and horseback rider from Gattman, Mississippi, was urged to audition for the competition show by his mother, Nara. He shared a little bit of his backstory before jumping into the audition.
“[Our house is] probably 30 feet from my grandparents’ house and It’s been in the family for a long time,” Stough explained. “My aunt and uncle live [down the street and] our cousins live [just a few blocks away]. I feel connected to this place.
“My dad, he really ain’t never been there,” he continued. “He chose alcohol and drugs instead of me and mom. Man, that just killed the family, and this is where we had to go. … I used to have a real bad problem about just holding on to everything and that’s what horses teach me, just to let go of it.”
With his audition, Stough hoped to put his hometown on the map. On top of pursuing his own dreams, Stough would like to be an inspiration to other aspiring musicians in Gattman.
“It’s hard to find people that will give you the shirt off their back, and I know right here in this Gattman circle, any of ’em will do it for anybody,” Stough said. “This competition man, it could change my life. The main thing, the reason why I want to be in it is because ain’t really nothing coming from around here, and I want to change that.”
For his audition song, Stough chose Lynyrd Skynyrd’s “Simple Man.” The singer strummed on an acoustic guitar while singing the famed intro: Mama told me when I was young / ‘Come sit beside me, my only son / and listen closely to what I say / and if you do this it’ll help you / some sunny day’ / oh, yeah.
After his audition, judge Luke Bryan praised the singer. “That’s what American Idol is about, right there!”
Added Katy Perry: “Colin, you’ve got the magic in you… 100% and you got the stardust.”
Soon after, Bryan invited Stough’s mother – a long-time fan of the country star – into the audition room. The “Country On” singer then told Nara that Stough was “exactly what we hope and dream for at American Idol.”
Check out his audition below.
(ABC/Eric McCandless)
