'American Idol' contestant performs 'angelic' vocal rendition of 'Hallelujah'
Nicolina Bozzo stunned "American Idol" judges with her powerful performance of “Hallelujah” on season 20 of “American Idol.”
The 18-year-old Canadian singer has been wowing viewers all season with her powerful vocals. But on Sunday, Bozzo reached new heights after singing a song with deep emotional meaning to her.
Bozzo dedicated her performance of Leonard Cohen’s track “Hallelujah” to her grandmother who battled cancer.
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In a video recap that played before her performance, the singer revealed she sang "Hallelujah" to her grandmother as she underwent chemotherapy.
“My nana is the strongest person I've ever met,” she said. “When everything happened I thought I was going to lose my best friend and I didn't know what was going to happen, so it was definitely one of the hardest moments of my life.”
American Idol judge Katy Perry replied, “That was so angelic. It was like watching an angel sing this beautiful song. … It was really, really beautiful. You held on to it, you controlled it. It was amazing. What a tribute.”
Idol judges Luke Bryan and Lionel Richie were equally impressed, with the latter telling Bozzo she is “gifted beyond your years.”
For Bozzo, singing and her family go hand-in-hand, as she credited music for helping her through her parents' messy divorce years earlier.
“I think music is super powerful. It changed my life, really,” she said in an earlier episode of the singing competition. “Growing up, my family was super close. We did everything together. But about five years ago, my parents split up and got a divorce. After separating and being kind of not the same as it was, everything kind of went downhill with my family.”
She added, “It was something that I loved that I just lost and a lot of emotions came with that. Through singing, I’ve learned how to use those emotions for the better and not let them get me down.”
Bozzo’s mother left her and her sisters with their dad. Now, they live with the singer's grandparents.
“When I sing, I feel like it’s what I’m meant to be doing and after all the struggles we went through, I want to show my sister's dreams come true,” Bozzo maintained.
Bozzo quickly became a fan favorite, and her audition of Sara Bareilles’ “She Used To Be Mine” has nearly 2 million views on YouTube. Following Bozzo's performance, Bareilles took to Instagram to repost the video, impressed with the rendition.
Jeannie Ortega Law is a reporter for The Christian Post. Reach her at: [email protected] She's also the author of the book, What Is Happening to Me? How to Defeat Your Unseen Enemy Follow her on Twitter: @jlawcp Facebook: JeannieOMusic
