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A singer performed an explicit song on 'American Idol' and Lionel Richie's reaction said it all

After the performance, 'American Idol' judge Luke Bryan joked, "My wife will play me this song every evening."

The 'American Idol' show judges, Lionel Richie, Carrie Underwood, and Luke Bryan, had a jaw-dropping moment when a contestant, Sophie Powers, performed her original song called "Shut the F**ck up. Before returning as a judge on the show, Underwood once said, "I want to see somebody at the end of this thing dominating the airwaves and the charts. I want to see a huge artist come out of it," per Fox News. And Enter: Sophie Powers, who stepped up to the mic, kickstarting the audition on 17th March 2025. Her lyrics went something like, "I had a pet lizard named George/He was cool, but he made me really bored," she began her song. "So I gave him to my mom, and she loves him very much because animals are better than people. They tried to cancel me, cancel me, bother me, and stop bothering me. I don't even like my job."

After a second's pause, she continued, "Karens, shut the f--- up / Vegans, shut the f--- up / Babies, shut the f--- up / Everyone needs to shut the f--- up / Laundry, shut the f--- up / War, shut the f--- up / Dinosaurs, shut the f--- up / Everyone needs to shut the f--- up / Traffic, shut the f--- up / People, shut the f--- up / Groceries, shut the f--- up / Everyone needs to shut the f--- up." and said, "That's it!" The judges looked at her in disbelief throughout the performance.

Before the judges say anything, Powers confidentially asks Richie, "How do you feel, Lionel?" Lionel replied, "I'm mortified." While Bryan jokingly said, "My wife will play me this song every evening." And Carrie said, "You clearly got a thing going. You are interesting, you know, obviously, in...in the context of 'American Idol', I don't know where you would fit in here." Powers responded in a spat, "Neither do I; I'm literally Canadian, so." Giving her verdict Underwood said, "Its a no from American Idol." However, Powers, not satisfied, told the judges, "I just want to hear it from Luke." Without a second thought, Bryan also said, No." He pointed towards Richie, who also said, "It's a no for me, yeah."

Power's performance not only stunned the judges but also the fans, who flocked to the YouTube section. One critically said, "She had like 10 songs that probably would have gotten her a spot, and yet she chose violence. Love it." Another added, "We may forget who won this season of American Idol, but we will always remember this girl." While some praised the girl. One Twitter user said, "I thought American Idol was supposed to be a family show?!?!? Why on earth would you air this?!?!? Better be careful, Disney, or you’ll drive this show right into the ground like you did with." Another user wrote, "It should have been a yes."

The 20-year-old Canadian responded to her critics with a befitting reply during an interview. Per Express, she said, "“For the lovers, you guys are real ones,” Sophie said. “For the haters, I don’t blame you — I would, too.” She also admitted that she never watched American Idol much, except for “compilation of the worst auditions ever.” Powers further added, "“I’m familiar with it to the point where I respect it and was super honored that I even got the chance to do it.”