To say the least, it's gutsy when a singing competition contestant covers a song by one of the show's judges or coaches. Sixteen-year-old Hailey Mia not only went there by singing Katy Perry's "Rise." The New Jersey teen did so in Perry's hometown of Santa Barbara, Calif.
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As Mia showed off her mighty voice and impeccable range, Perry was shown checking the goosebumps on her arms. By the song's end, Perry and fellow judges Luke Bryan and Lionel Richie were giving Mia a standing ovation.
"That was inspiring," Perry said. "I wrote it and sang it, so to be re-inspired by someone else singing... Full body chills even in places where I've been Botoxed. I felt myself feeling again."
Bryan lauded Mia as someone with a shot at going deep into Season 22.
"Definitely potential for top ten," he said. "When I sit next to Katy and I see chill bumps from the shoulder to the bottom of the legs while she's listening to her song, that's pretty incredible."
Richie said "I'm actually going to ditto that," setting up three "yeses" from the judges and earning Mia a golden ticket to Hollywood.
Perry co-wrote 2016's "Rise" with Savan Kotecha and the song's two producers, Max Martin and Ali Payami. It was prominently featured by NBC during the 2016 Summer Olympics. An electronic pop song with a triumphant vibe, the standalone single performed well across the globe. Most notably, it was a No. 1 dance hit in the U.S.
The audition took place at Santa Barbara, Calif.'s Music Academy of the West, where Perry took singing lessons.
Mia's among the auditioners with one last shot —for the time being, at least— to impress Perry with one of her songs. The pop star's expected to exit "Idol" after the current season.
