American Idol 2025: Samantha Ray tribute to late sister moves Carrie Underwood to tears
American Idol 2025 auditions come to an end on Sunday (March 30) before Hollywood Week begins on Monday (March 31). Check out a preview of an emotional audition from Samantha Ray who brings judge Carrie Underwood to tears.
The 22 year old vocalist from Georgia has been singing since she was a little girl. She watched American Idol growing up with her sister, Taylor, who was her “music partner.” The sisters were both fans of Carrie.
A stay at home mom, Samantha sang “I Hope You Dance” by Lee Ann Womack for Carrie and her fellow judges Lionel Richie and Luke Bryan. Samantha’s clear, sweet, rangey tone won the panel over.
Samantha shares that she lost her sister to a drug overdose
After her performance, Samantha explained that she thought about her sister “a lot” during the song. “Earlier this year I lost her to a drug overdose,” Samantha explained. Taylor was only a year younger than Samantha. “It hurts a lot,” Samantha shared, “We were very close.” Taylor had two little boys, Samantha continued, “Knowing they don’t have their mom anymore is really heartbreaking. “I’m here for her.”
“You did a great job,” Luke remarked. Carrie needed a minute, “I’m teary eyed,” she said after a pause, before passing to Lionel. “From the first note I was trying to compose myself,” he said, “Because every once in awhile we run across some people who have the absolute trigger on emotions. You did it perfectly.”
“We didn’t know what you were thinking about,” said Carrie, “But we knew you were thinking about something, and that’s being a storyteller that pulls people in.” Carrie continued, “That was really special.”
“It’s nice to hear somebody sing a classic like that,” Luke added, “But you did it your own way. You don’t really overthink it. It felt very listenable.” And then Luke kicked off the yeses, followed by Carrie and Lionel.
American Idol airs on ABC Sunday March 30 at 8 pm ET/PT, streaming on Hulu+ next day.
