<a href="https://www.thenationalnews.com/travel/news/2022/03/19/katy-perry-named-godmother-of-norwegian-cruise-lines-newest-ship/" target="_blank">Katy Perry</a> became emotional during an <i>American Idol </i>audition after a singer shared a story about surviving a 2018 school shooting —<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Slhz5ZM2x94" target="_blank"> a video that has now gone viral</a> in a country where such shootings are common. Trey Louis sang <i>Stone</i> by Whiskey Myers in front of Perry, Georgia country star Luke Bryan and legendary singer-songwriter Lionel Richie. The mattress salesman received a standing ovation from the three, and then Bryan asked him why he was auditioning for <i>American Idol.</i> Mr Louis told the panel: "I'm from Santa Fe, Texas. In May of 2018, a gunman walked into my school. I was in Art Room One. "He shot up Art Room Two before he made his way to Art Room One. I lost a lot of friends. Eight students were killed, two teachers were killed." He said that Sante Fe has had a "bad rap" since 2018. Perry became teary and exclaimed, "Our country has [expletive] failed us!" "You should be singing here because you love music. Because you don't have to go through that. [Expletives] You don't have to lose eight friends. I hope that you remind people we have to change." Richie said, "We have tolerated this for so long … far too long … to become a norm." Research in 2022 found that firearms are the leading cause of death for children in the US. The three judges voted to send Louis to <a href="https://www.thenationalnews.com/arts-culture/film-tv/2023/02/28/dubai-resident-nutsa-buzaladze-sails-through-american-idol-audition-to-make-hollywood-cut/" target="_blank">Hollywood for the next round of auditions</a>.
