The judges on American Idol have gotten used to fighting back tears from watching heart-wrenching performances.
But it was emotion of a different kind on Thursday night that brought on the waterworks as a mom serving overseas surprised a heartbroken teenager at her audition.
Tristan McIntosh, 15, of Nashville, Tennessee, had spoken at length at how devastated she was that her mother Major Amy McIntosh was serving in the Middle East and unable to see her.
'It's just a really weird feeling that she's not here for something of this magnitude, something as big as this,' Tristan said. 'I just want to make my mom proud, I owe it to her.
'When I walk in the room I feel like my mom's gonna be there in spirit.'
Harry Connick Jr then read Tristan an email message from her mom.
'You've always called me your big hero - but today you're my big hero because you are doing something that you've dreamed about since you were 10 years old,' her mom wrote, leaving the teen in tears.
Telling her that 'my sister's in the military and I get what it's like to miss somebody,' Harry finally told the contestant: 'Well Tristan, she wouldn't miss it.'
At that Major McIntosh calmly walked out in a pink blouse, hugging her daughter who was too overwhelmed with tears to talk.
Outside, even the rest of her family seemed shocked to see her, including Tristan's dad Freddie McIntosh who asked: 'How did she get here?'
J-Lo's eyes were still watery, with a crew member running tissues over to them.
'Do you think I would miss this for the world?' Major McIntosh asked her daughter. 'Do you really think i would miss this?'
'There's no way I was going to miss this iconic moment in her life,' she added later.
But the teenager's performance had already brought tears for J Lo, who told her: 'I see in you something very, very special.
'I'm a really good friend of Alicia Keys, not only do you remind me of her because of how you look bit also because of your heart. Just beautiful and special.
'I think you made your mom so proud today.'
Keith Urban also was touched by the moment and wiped away a tear.
'You've got so many thing that are all coming together as an artist, and at 15 - you have so much talent, Tristan,' Keith told the teen talent.
'She might win,' J-Lo predicted to her fellow judgeslater. 'I said it first.'
Jennifer had another magical moment in auditions - this time getting to hold a singer's baby daughter, pulling cute faces at her throughout her mom's performance.
Single mom La'Porsha Renae, 22, from McComb, Mississippi, brought her seven-month daughter with her to the audition, calling her 'my driving force to even come out her and try.'
She then handed her daughter to Lopez, who managed to keep her happy throughout the performance and even giggling at her mom.
La'Porsha performed an amazing gospel version of Radiohead's Creep, and Harry called her 'an assassin with runs,' and insisting: 'You destroyed it.''She's going to give some people a run for their money - some vocal runs for their money,” Keith said after she left the room.
La'Porsha earlier revealed that she had 'endured a lot of physical abuse' in life, adding: 'The abuse got so bad that I had to actually take my daughter and move into a shelter for our safety.'
'If I couldn't sing about it, I don't think I would have survived it. If I couldn't find that song to describe what I was feeling at that moment, I wrote one.
'I'm so happy now because I got out, I survived. I thank God every day that I was.'
La'Porsha was not the only hopeful to bring along her 'baby' - with Maddie McAllister, 15, bringing along a chicken she called her 'State Fair baby.'
'My chicken's have the biggest breasts in Arkansas,' she said proudly, getting a confused look from Jen while Keith joked: 'Check please.'
Keith then confidently took hold of the chicken - while Harry grabbed an alarmed-looking Jennifer's hand and, holding it next to the chicken's leg, asked: 'Who's got the fly-er nails?'
But Maddie didn't get through, with Harry cutting her off as she sang Cowboy Casanova by Carrie Underwood and telling her: 'To me it's the kind of voice that's going to take a couple more years to come into its own.'
J-Lo also called her 'adorable,' but said: 'There's the beginnings of a really pretty voice there.'
While most contestants just want a shot at becoming the next American Idol, Daniel Farmer clearly had another target in mind - Jennifer Lopez.
'I can't wait to see the celebrity judges and seduce J-Lo,' the smooth-talking 24-year-old from Memphis, Tennessee, admitted. 'I love her. She's sexy.'
He continued that he 'can just envision it right now,' saying he imagined he would come on under the audition lights 'and just grind.'
'I'm just going to look into her eye,' he said, with a wink. 'And I am just going to sing to her. I have charisma. I have personality. And the voice.'
He continued inside the audition room, pointing to Jen and asking: 'Why are you so fine? She's so fine y'all. Let's go J-Lo.'
He added: 'I understand we have three judges but I just want to tell you I love you.'
'I love you too,' Jennifer replied with a smile, as Daniel winked at her and sang 'Girl it's only you,' the opening line of D'Angelo's How Does It Feel.
He kept up the flirting during the performance, grinding just for her and saying: 'You ready? C'mon baby!'
Jen clapped admiringly at the end, telling him: 'You're funny and you're sexy - all the confidence is there - that's very attractive, it's a very attractive quality. I'm being serious!'
He ran outside after getting a yes from all three judges - still clearly more excited at making his impression on Jennifer.
'She loved me!' he yelled once outside. 'J-Lo, you loved me!'
'He's a cutie,' the superstar said once he'd left.
Jennifer also called the next contestant, Billie Joe Armstrong lookalike Dalton Rapattoni, a 'cutie' - and this time Harry agreed, saying after Dalton left the room: 'That guy was pretty!'
They were all amazed at how the 19-year-old from Dallas, where he is a vocal coach at a music center called the School Of Rock, turned The Phantom Of The Opera into an emo-style acoustic alternative tune.
'You took this famous Andrew Lloyd Webber song and sang it like you wanted to sing it,' Harry said. 'I dug it, man!'
Jennifer also praised him for 'making something really unique and beautiful and special,' while Keith said: 'I'm looking for someone who's got an artistic contribution to make. And that's what you gave me right now.'
After all three gave a yes, Harry admitted: 'That's actually one of my favorite auditions ever.'
Kyrsti Jewel, meanwhile, got to bring her parents Julio and Josie Chavez into her audition, having convinced Ryan they were 'the biggest American Idol fans ever' - and the judges seemed more interested in her dad's enthusiastic support as they were by her take on Mama Knows Best byJessie J.Julio finally fell to his knees when they announced she was through to Hollywood, giving Ryan an excited hug, too.
'We waited 15 years, we're floating right now,' her dad said. 'This is the greatest moment of our whole lives other than when she was born.'
'That son of a gun is crazy emotional,' Harry said afterwards of the dad.
Olivia Rox, 16, also insisted she was a life-long fan of the show - especially of previous winner Kelly Clarkson - and once inside the audition room told the judges: 'You guys look real!'
Harry cut her off during her slow piano version of Bruno Mars's When I Was Your Man, telling her: 'You're an extraordinarily talented kid.'
'You're voice is really unique, extraordinary,' Keith told Olivia, whose mom sang in an alternative rock band and her dad is a saxophonist. 'Very talented.'
Julio finally fell to
his knees when they announced she was through to Hollywood, giving Ryan an
excited hug, too.
'We waited 15 years,
we're floating right now,' her dad said. 'This is the greatest moment of our
whole lives other than when she was born.'
'That son of a gun is
crazy emotional,' Harry said afterwards of the dad.
Final season: Harry
remarked that Kyrsti's father was 'crazy emotional'
Olivia Rox, 16, also
insisted she was a life-long fan of the show - especially of previous winner
Kelly Clarkson - and once inside the audition room told the judges: 'You guys
look real!'
Harry cut her off during
her slow piano version of Bruno Mars's When I Was Your Man, telling her:
'You're an extraordinarily talented kid.'
'You're voice is really
unique, extraordinary,' Keith told Olivia, whose mom sang in an alternative
rock band and her dad is a saxophonist. 'Very talented.'
On the piano: Olivia Rox
performed on the piano
Hollywood bound: The
judges were impresed and sent Olivia to Hollywood
As she left with her
invite to Hollywood, she praised J-Lo for the sparkles in her hair, with the
superstar telling her: 'I don't even know where the came from.'
'Came from my dressing room,
that's where,' Harry joked, turning to her and adding: 'Always stealing my damn
sparkles.'
Perhaps the biggest
surprise for the judges also ended up being one of their clear favorites.
When acoustic
guitar-toting Trent Harmon, 24, came in and told them about his family's
restaurant on a farm in Amory, Mississippi, they automatically assumed he would
sing country.
Surprise performance:
Trent Harmon surprised the judges with his soulful version of Allen Stone's
Unaware
But they could not hide
their shock when he started singing an astonishingly soulful version of Allen
Stone's Unaware, with J-Lo saying as he sang: 'C'mon! What the … I can't even!'
The judges were so
impressed and shocked that they just laughed when he finished - with Trent
seeming genuinely confused as to whether they liked him.
'Was it OK? I mean. I'm
not fishing for a compliment,' he asked, with Jennifer telling him: 'You don't
have to fish for them, I'm going to give them. I was so blown away.'
'Bar none, my favorite
audition since we've started,' Harry told him. 'You're just a natural talent
and the competition needs you as much as you need this competition.'
+13
Big compliment: Harry
told Trent that his audition was his favorite so far
Once Trent had left the
room, Harry turned to his fellow judges and said: 'OK, we can all exhale now.
We have a competition.'
However, he was so blown
away by another audition he simply got up and walked away in amazement, while
tears rolled down Keith's cheeks.
Melanie Tierce, 21, had
only sung a few lines of Andra Day's Rise Up when Harry said: 'I'm done. It's a
yes from me.'
He then walked away from
the judges' table, pausing to grab Melanie's hand and tell her again: 'It's a
yes from me.'
At the end, Keith wiped
away a tear as he gushed 'oh my God!' and stood and clapped.
'Unbelievably good. Your
voice is so good,' he told her.
Rising up: Melanie
Tierce blew away the judges immediately
'That was unbelievably
stunning,' Harry said from the sidelines. 'That is one of the best auditions
I've heard in three years as a judge. People will pay money to buy a ticket to
sit in an audition and watch that.'
'I got a ticket for
you,' Jen finally said, holding her pass to Hollywood.
Even before hearing her
sing, Harry had been impressed, telling her: 'You're eyes are crazy! So
beautiful. Your eyes are nuts.'
Keith then told the
ultimate dad joke when she said she got them from her mother, asking: 'Well how
does she see?'
+13
Eyes have it: Harry
complimented the singer on her eyes
While Harry walked away
from Melanie, he was so impressed with Brandyn Burnette, who sang his own song,
Lost, that he walked up and gently hugged him while he played piano.
Harry had actually
started outside the room, pretending to switch with Ryan, but then crept up
behind the singer as he played alone at the piano, finally spooking him and
giving him a gentle hug from behind.
'I literally for a split
second thought that was my mom,' Brandyn said, with Keith joking that she must
have 'really hairy arms.'
+13
Impressive performance:
Brandyn Burnette sang his own song Lost
Heartfelt hug: Harry
stepped aside and let Ryan Seacrest judge but gave the singe a hug
Harry insisted he would
never have 'jacked' him had he not thought he was so good, and Ryan's one shot
at judging was also full of praise.
'I felt the emotion, I
thought you sang beautifully, the tone was great,' the host said. 'I really
liked it - that was an easy one to judge for me.'
'I think you are the
only guy who had four “yes”es this season,' Keith told him.
Four judges: Ryan
delivered his postiive critique to Brandyn
A lot of contestants
stand out for their looks - but none more so than beauty queen Malie Delgado,
20, who was actually Miss Alaska, 2014.
After already admitting
she thinks Ryan Seacrest is 'really cute,' she then called J-Lo 'so beautiful'
and Harry 'a heartthrob in my house.'
After singing Chariot by
Gretchen Wilson - with a rap in the middle - Jen told her: 'Really really great
voice - super strong.'
+13
Rap skills: Malie
Delgado showed off her rapping skills during her audition
Harry warned there were
so many 'ridiculously talented, smart women' to go through she better be ready
for 'a dog fight.'
In fact there were so
many girls getting through, the show skipped over some of their auditions, with
only quick glimpses of Jessica Clark, 23, who sang a soul version of The
Beatles' Come Together, Ameet Kanon, 18, who was told 'beautiful, baby!' after
her performance of Mercy by by Duffy as well as Kayla Mickelsen, also 18.
'Let's just call it Girl
Idol,' Keith joked, with Harry adding: 'American Bridal.'
Hot ticket; Jennifer
held out a ticket to Hollywod for a singer
'It's time a girl won,'
J-Lo insisted. 'F*** the guys!'
One of the young
contestants - praised by Harry as being a Paul McCartney look-a-like - almost
certainly shouldn't have been there.
After they admired
Cameron Richard's deep Louisiana accent, the 15-year-old revealed that he had a
cleft palate when he was born.
'My doctor never thought
I would be able to speak, much less sing,' Cameron said. 'It's a miracle - it's
awesome.'
Cleft palate: Cameron
Richards overcame a cleft palate to compete on the show
'They did an amazing job
on you, man. I would never even have known that,' Harry told him after hearing
him speaking - with the judges then even more blown away by his performance.
'I really loved your
voice,' J-Lo told him after his acoustic performance of Ed Sheeran's Give Me
Love. 'And I loved your passion. Felt really good to me.'
'You look like a young
Paul McCartney when you sing,' Harry added. 'You really do.
Loved it: J-Lo loved
Cameron's passion
'More important than
that you have a wonderful gift. I really, really enjoyed that very much.'
One contestant,
meanwhile, was undoubtedly really sorry to get through to Hollywood - waitress
Brooke Sample, 28, from Tucson, Arizona, who repeatedly apologized for
everything.
She was seen repeatedly
flubbing her lines for a pre-recorded segment - saying 'sorry' each time - and
when she came into the audition room apologized for her surname, being a
waitress, and even her stunning performance of Cold Day In July by the Dixie
Chicks.
+13
Stunning performance:
Brooke Sample delivered a stunning performance and the apologized for it
'I think you owe
yourself a little confidence,' Harry told her, sounding slightly stern with
her. 'You have a fine last name, you should be proud that you're a waitress,
and I think you did a really great job.'
J-Lo, however, admitted
she 'kind of loves' her 'self-deprecating quality,' and added: 'You're voice is
very, very beautiful. I think America might love you as much as I do. I think
you're awesome.'
Brooke was then seen
talking about her excitement outside - once again saying: 'I'm so sorry, can we
re-do that?'
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