An American Idol contestant has spoken out after viewers accused judge Katy Perry of "bullying" her during her audition.
Ever since the 38-year-old singer made her first appearance as a judge on the popular talent show back in 2018, she's been known to be a great mentor.
However, this month the 'Roar' singer has been getting some heat following her reaction to contestant Sara Beth Liebe, a hopeful karaoke singer who applied to the show in an effort to impress Perry, as well as fellow judges Luke Bryan and Lionel Richie, with her vocal talents.
However, rather than sailing through to Hollywood, the audition immediately got off to an awkward start when the mom-of-three revealed that she wasn't even sure if winning American idol was a dream of hers - a comment that clearly didn't sit well with Perry.
"Is this your dream? Is it now? If it’s not your dream then you might need to leave because there’s a lot of dreams behind you," Perry told the singer.
Nonetheless, the contestant started singing her own rendition of Amy Winehouse's 'You Know I'm No Good' before Perry, yet again, was left unimpressed, so asked her to sing another song.
"Come on, we need more. That’s not enough. Try [Elton John's] 'Bennie and the Jets,'" Perry said, alluding to Liebe's original song choice.
When Bryan asked, "What do you have to lose?" Perry responded with a seemingly snarky comment: "Nothing. It’s not her dream yet."
She added: "Show us what your voice can do. Take it to the limit. No looking back. Sing it like it’s your new dream."
The 25-year-old switched the tune out for Elton John's classic hoping it would impress the 'Last Friday Night' singer, but to no avail.
When giving her feedback, Perry did not sugarcoat anything that's for sure.
"Accidental American Idol," she said on the ABC show. "I feel like a comic strip character just came to life."
"Look, if it's not your dream, it's not gonna go far," the judge continued. "Because I also respect everyone that's walking through that door who will lay down their life for this golden ticket, you know?"
While Perry and Bryan ended up giving her a 'yes,' fans of the show were quick to slam Perry for the way she spoke to Liebe.
"I love that she powered through all the rudeness. She's a ray of sunshine, PROTECT HER AT ALL COST," defended one viewer.
"As a mother of 3 myself, when someone asks me what my dream is, it really takes time to answer because three dreams depend on me too," added another.
A third also slammed Perry as "rude" writing: "She has an incredible voice and is likable !!! That is the formula for success. She handled the rudeness dished out by Katie like a duck… it rolled right off her back and didn’t ruffle her feathers."
In the wake of the backlash, the contestant has now spoken out about her feelings about the entire ordeal in a video posted to TikTok.
“At the start of my audition, before I sang, I mentioned that I had three children and was a young mother and Katy Perry made a joke - that wasn’t super kind," the mom explained. "I don’t really have too much to say on my feelings about it because I feel like it’s probably pretty self-explanatory.
"I mean, it was embarrassing to have that on TV and it was hurtful and, you know, that’s that."
She continued: "But I did want to take this opportunity to just say that I think that women supporting and uplifting other women is so cool and I think that mum shaming is super lame. And I think that it’s hard enough to be a mum and it’s hard enough to be a woman."
She then gave some advice to other young moms out there.
"I see all of the young moms and just moms in general who have commented on all of the videos and posts and everything and I just wanted to say that I see you and I hear you and I am grateful for you and you’re worthy and keep loving your babies.
She concluded: "And I think that if you’re a good mama and you love your babies that’s all that really matters and other comments just don’t feel necessary and yeah that’s all I have to say on the matter."
With all this newfound support, something tells me that Sara Beth Liebe can achieve any dream she sets her heart to.
