Worship leader Warren Peay earned a ticket to Hollywood after he wowed American Idol Judges with his performance of the worship song “To The Table” by Christian music artist Zach Williams.
“What an incredible experience!” Peay said on Instagram on Sunday. “Tonight, I performed for the Idol judges and got the golden ticket to Hollywood! Praise God for this amazing opportunity, and a huge shoutout and thank you to everyone who has supported me in starting this journey. Be Blessed!”
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Peay, a 23-year-old appliance repair technician from Bamberg, South Carolina, and worship leader at Colston Branch Baptist Church, was immediately likened to country singer-songwriter Chris Stapleton.
“I thought you were Chris Stapleton’s brother,” pop singer Katy Perry told Peay after he walked into the audition room.
Peay replied, “I’ve been gettin’ a lot of that.”
As reported by ChurchLeaders.com, Peay played his acoustic guitar while he performed “To The Table.” A video of his performance also cut back to him playing the song with others on stage at his church. The worship leader sang the first two verses and the chorus of Williams’ song.
“His voice cuts through,” Luke Bryan said while Peay sang.
“Like an FM radio,” Lionel Richie remarked.
All three judges gave Peay a standing ovation following his performance.
Perry called Peay “a Christian Chris Stapleton” and said she immediately thought he looked the part and prayed he would sound it too.
“And you sound the freakin’ part,” she said.
The pop singer also encouraged Peay to express anger through his singing.
“Just because you love the Lord doesn’t mean you don’t get angry,” she said.
While Peay agreed and offered to sing another song, the judges declined and unanimously said he was going to Hollywood. Ritchie told Peay he thought he was “headin’ down the top 10 road.” The other judges agreed.
In another Instagram video, Peay is shown singing another one of Williams’ songs, “There Was Jesus,” with his worship team.
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“You’ve got a new fan in me from Alabama! I’m so proud of you for being authentic in the Lord! Never change! Excited for the road ahead! Have faith & fun!!” one new fan commented.
“Brother, we just watched your audition,” another fan said. “We were cheering from the moment you stepped out on the floor and just got more and more excited when you sang one of our favourite songs from our favourite artist! My husband and I are also worship leaders. I led the Zach version of Rattle last Sunday! We’ll be praying for you throughout this American Idol journey.”
Photo courtesy: ©Getty Images/FOTOKITA
Video courtesy: ©American Idol
Milton Quintanilla is a freelance writer and content creator. He is a contributing writer for Christian Headlines and the host of the For Your Soul Podcast, a podcast devoted to sound doctrine and biblical truth. He holds a Masters of Divinity from Alliance Theological Seminary.