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Who is Mary Jo Young? TikToker wins golden ticket in 'American Idol', sings in front of her mom for first time

Mary Jo left a lasting impact on all the judges with her rendition of 'You Broke Me First' by Tate McRae

Mary Jo was one of the singers who appeared on Sunday (February 26) night's episode of 'American Idol'. She auditioned with Tate McRae's song 'You Broke Me First' and her rendition left a lasting impact on the judges who awarded her the coveted golden ticket at the end of her audition. 

Mary Jo had started posted her music on TikTok and Twitter this year. However, the 'Idol' audition was the first time she was performing for an audience. She said the last time she did perform for people was in fourth grade but she didn't clear that audition. 

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Who is Mary Jo Young?

Mary Jo is a 19-year-old real estate sales executive from Cleveland, Ohio. She came from a musical family but the young singer admitted to have never sung in front of them, not even her mother, Elizabeth, who accompanied her to the auditions. Upon learning the same, the judges gave Elizabeth an opportunity to listen to her daughter live for the very first time. Mary Jo did an encore and her mother was overwhelmed with emotion listening to her in person. All this while she was doing so via TikTok, which she had installed to listen to her daughter sing. But she said watching her do it live was a completely different experience.

"I am in love with the idea of watching you grow on the show. It s a yes from me," Lionel Richie said to Mary Jo after her audition and Luke Bryan went as far as saying that she'd be one of the Top 10 on the show for sure. The audiences watching from home too shared the same sentiments as the judges about Mary Jo. 

"Mary Jo has a really beautiful voice and I loved that moment between her and her mother #AmericanIdol," wrote a fan. "Mary Jo is going to Hollywood!!! I think she’s going to win it all because she had a great voice in the auditions. #AmericanIdol" wrote another on Twitter. "Due to boredom, turned off the #GoldenGlobes and moved onto #AmericanIdol and when Mary Jo sang to her mom - holy shit I am in a puddle of mama tears! #goldenticket #hollywood this is my kind of show!" another fan wrote. "'Top 10, I think. It’s a yes from me' @LukeBryanOnline about Mary Jo’s talent/audition, and I totally agree! #AmericanIdol" read another tweet. 

You can keep up with Mary Jo Young on Instagram, her handle is @maryjo.young. You can also access her videos on TikTok on the same handle @maryjo.young. Catch up with her music on Spotify and YouTube. 

Catch new episodes of 'American Idol' Sundays at 8 pm ET on ABC.