Singer Was 'Kanye'd' In Yonkers, But Gets Revenge On American Idol

YONKERS, NY — Living well is the best revenge and a Westchester singer has the "golden ticket" to prove it.

On Sunday night's episode of American Idol, 20-year-old Yonkers college student Amara Valerio auditioned for judges Lionel Richie, Katy Perry and Luke Bryan.

Valerio is a former Yonkers Junior Idol and Yonkers Idol contestant. If successful, Amara will be the first Yonkers Idol to make it on American Idol, according to the city of Yonkers.

But, it was a strange moment that went viral on social media that gave Valerio her first taste of international fame.

After Lionel Richie invited Valerio to tell the judges her story, she explained, "I got asked to sing the National Anthem at our school. I got super-excited, and then when I started to sing, this girl came up and pulled the mic, and was like 'This is my senior graduating class and I think I deserve to sing the National Anthem.'"

The judges then played a clip of the viral video of the incident which took place in 2019 at the Yonkers Montessori Academy.

"She just pulled a Kanye West!" Idol judge Katy Perry exclaimed.

"I got Kanye'd," Valerio agreed.

They were referring, of course, to the infamous incident at the 2009 MTV Video Music Awards when West interrupted Taylor Swift's acceptance speech for an award, insisting Beyonce should have won instead.

"And the next year, COVID started so I never got to sing at my high school graduation either," Valerio told the judges.

Perry told her to use that anger in her audition performance.

And with that, Valerio launched into "Bust Your Windows" by Jazmine Sullivan. While she sang, the judges kept trying to guess the name of the girl who interrupted her back in 2019. Afterwards, Valerio said that one of the names they mentioned that started with an "S" was correct, confirming the girl's name was Sarah.

SEE ALSO: The Story Behind A Westchester Teen's Tender American Idol Moment

Perry then turned to the camera and said "An eye for an eye makes the whole world blind, but Sarah, you're finished messing with our girl, Amara."

All three judges then yelled in unison, "You're going to Hollywood!"

"And ain't noone gonna interrupt you there!" Perry added.

After jumping for joy, Valerio said, "Revenge is the best success — I'm going to start listening to that one."

"Baby, you got the last laugh," Perry said. "Sorry, Sarah."

American Idol airs on Sundays at 8 p.m. on ABC. Previously aired episodes can be watched on Hulu or FuboTV.