American Idol airs Claudia Conway’s audition in full

Judge Katy Perry shared advice before Conway sang Adele’s ‘When We Were Young’

Claudia Conway’s American Idol audition has aired in full, showing Katy Perry jumping in to help the singer with her rendition of Adele’s “When We Were Young”.

The segment was broadcast as part of the season 19 premiere.

Conway had previously announced her participation on the show on TikTok, and a preview of her audition was released last week.

In the full clip, Conway is seen meeting face to face with judges Katy Perry, Lionel Richie, and Luke Bryan.

“Are you OK?” Perry asks, to which Conway replies: “No.”

“No?” Perry asks in return.

“No, but yes,” Conway says.

Perry then summarises: “Yes and no.”

Conway then introduces herself, telling the trio: “I’m Claudia Conway. I’m sixteen. My parents are high-profile political figures.”

She then mentions her mother Kellyanne Conway, a former White House counselor to Donald Trump, and her father George Conway, a lawyer and co-founder of The Lincoln Project.

Conway explains that her father has accompanied her to the audition, and he is seen backstage. Her mother appears via video link, having a brief exchange with Conway.

As part of her introduction segment, Conway narrates: “I had to move to Washington, DC when I was 12, and I hated it. When your mom’s working for the president of the United States, who you very much disagree with, it’s really hard.”

During her audition, Conway begins by singing Rihanna’s “Love on the Brain”, but is stopped by Perry, who tells her: “That song, you lost it,” then asks: “What other song do you have?”

Conway tells Perry she’s going to sing Adele’s “When We Were Young”.

Perry then shares these words of advice: “When you sing this next song, think about when you were young. And there’s a sadness there. It’s like you lost your youth because you weren’t able to experience it on your own, without all this noise.”

Conway starts singing again, this time earning the judges’ approval. Richie praises Conway’s ability to “take coaching”, as well as the quality of her voice.

Bryan gives Conway a “no”, but Richie and Perry both award her a “yes”, meaning Conway’s heading to the next stage of the competition in Hollywood.