This second season of American Idol on ABC is proving to be more talent-filled than the first.
One of the reasons why we think that is because of a soft-spoken Texan named Laci Kaye Booth. She won over the judges during her very first audition with her unique twist on Merle Haggard’s “Mama Tried.”
https://youtu.be/GGAtIDL40wI?t=74
They were reminded of her incredible voice during Hollywood Week when she performed Grace Potter’s “Stars.” While the judges don’t give critiques right after this particular round of the competition, they said all they needed to by giving her a standing ovation.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NwBjfpuaZpg
Booth has continued to be a standout this season with her confident performance of “Georgia On My Mind” when Idol took the competition to Disney Aulani.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=05aeg2rMmTg
After making it through to the Top 20, Booth chose an unconventional song for her voice, and on paper, it was definitely a gamble. But once you hear the first note, it makes so much sense.
Singing Cheap Trick’s “I Want You To Want Me,” Booth slowed the normally fast-paced rock song way down and showed off some parts of her voice that the judges had never seen before.
“I mean, when were you gonna show us that you could do all that singing?” Katy Perry asked her. “You just showed us a whole [other] level of confidence. You were an A-plus in my books, but you are just un-gradeable at this point, just really, really good.”
Luke Bryan admitted that when he found out what song she was singing, he was worried she would make it too cheesy, but after she hit just the first note, he knew they’d struck gold.
Cheap Trick first released “I Want You To Want Me” as a single in 1977 off their second album In Color. In didn’t chart at all in the US, but went number one in Japan, which led to their popularity and an eventual live album recorded at Nippon Budokan. Their live version is a bit more upbeat, which is what made it eventually popular in the United States.
What did y’all think of Laci Kaye Booth’s slowed-down version of the rock song? Let us know in the comments, and make sure you watch it below.