“American Idol” contestant Fritz Hager got a surprise after revealing he was inspired by former star of the show Phillip Phillips.
Fritz explained that he didn’t want to be a security guard forever, sitting in a dark room for 12 hours a day monitoring cameras.
He then said how he was a huge fan of Phillips, who won the show back in 2012: “I loved his sound, the way he played guitar. He inspired me to play guitar. I always wanted to be where he was.”
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Phillips then appeared on a screen before Fritz’s audition, telling him: “Good luck. Do what you do, have fun and let’s rock it,” with Fritz saying it was “mind-blowing” to him that he’d be performing on the same stage as Phillips.
The contestant belted out Lewis Capaldi’s “Before You Go”, with Katy Perry telling him: “The chorus was pretty good.”
She then admitted, “I was not in until the chorus. I need you to find who you are as an artist in the first verse. Keep us… locked in from the first note. You may have the ability to do that.
“I think you deserve a shot. It’s a yes.”
Bryan said he thought Fritz had a “little more growth” ahead of him, adding that singing a Capaldi track was a “tough one.”
“I wouldn’t know how to start singing a Lewis Capaldi song,” the country crooner said before issuing a no.
Despite Bryan’s no, Fritz went through to Hollywood, thanks to Richie.
See his reaction in the clip above.
