“Music means everything to me,” proclaims 17-year-old Alex Miller during ABC’s preview trailer for the “American Idol” Season 19 premiere (watch above). This aspiring country singer and cattle rancher from Lancaster, Kentucky continues, “When I was young, my parents divorced and it was a way for me to cope with that and release a lot of that energy.” Find out whether Alex has what it takes to join the “Idol” winners list when the two-hour episode airs Sunday, February 14.
When Alex steps into the audition room and comes face to face with Luke Bryan, Katy Perry and Lionel Richie, he immediately endears himself to the superstar judges. “I am so happy to be here, I don’t know what to do,” says the visibly nervous high school student. He earns chuckles when he announces he’ll be singing an original song he wrote about an ex-girlfriend titled, get this, “I’m Over You, So Get Over Me.”
The panelists chat with him for a bit about his thick accent, and then Luke urges, “Please be able to sing.” Well, Luke certainly gets his wish as Alex delivers an animated and entertaining rendition of his original country tune.
Following the performance, Luke asks his new best friend if he’d ever like to perform at the Grand Ole Opry. Alex replies that he’d “die an go to heaven,” which prompts Luke to smile ear to ear. “I think I can make a call at some point,” he promises.
SEE ‘American Idol’ Winners List (Seasons 1 – 18)
Katy and Lionel encourage Luke to sing a duet with Alex and they quickly jump into action with a socially distanced, acoustic rendition of Merle Haggard‘s “Big City.” “I’m taking this boy home with me!” shouts Luke midway through the song.
Instead of giving Alex his golden ticket on the spot, the judges walk with him through the building to a private area where contestants can video chat with family members back home. “We wanted to share some news with the whole family,” Katy declares as Luke holds out the sparkling ticket to Hollywood Week.
