17-Year-Old Father & ‘American Idol’ Hopeful Gets Second Chance With Justin Moore Song—and Nails It

One American Idol hopeful is keeping the dream alive. 17-year-old Dawson Slade earned his ticket to Hollywood after judges appeared initially on the fence.

The Alabama native has pursued his dream of singing for years now. Taking to social media, he’s uploaded covers of country songs by Parker McCollum, Ronnie Dunn, Morgan Evans, and others. However, Slade hasn’t quit his day job. He has an infant son to provide for. However, he wants to show his son to always pursue one’s dreams.

“My son is by far the best thing that’s ever happened in my life,” Slade said. “This is the dream. I got a lot of nerves going on right now, but I told myself, just got to remember why you’re doing this and who you’re doing it for and not just yourself.”

However, Slade’s performance of Lee Ann Womack’s “I Hope You Dance” left the judges feeling slightly icy. While Luke Bryan said Slade had “good guitar playing,” Slade’s voice didn’t strike the judges as star potential.

“It’s a little linear — it’s just starts here and stays there. It’s a little calm and safe,” Bryan continued.

“You’ve got a great voice, a great tamber, a great kind of country thing to you. You’re just not giving it the attack,” Katy Perry said.

It appeared the executioner’s axe was going to fall on Slade’s dreams. Slade’s performance earned an immediate no from one judge. “Dawson. I think that truthfully, as much as I want to celebrate, I think you need to really, you got to put more time in. It’s going to be a no for me,” Lionel Richie said.

‘American Idol’ Hopeful Gets Second Chance

However, Bryan and Perry appeared to be much more indecisive. While Slade had talent, they didn’t know if he had stage presence and a voice that could carry. “I’m hearing tons of songwriter vibes right now. I’m not really hearing screaming artist vibes yet,” Bryan told him. 

Bryan agreed to let Slade try again with another song to test his voice more. The singer performed the Justin Moore tune “Somebody Else Will.” That song seemed to have done the trick with both Bryan and Perry casting their votes in Slade’s favor.

“I just didn’t know you had that. You have those levels. You need to use those levels,” Perry said. “It’s a yes from me.”  

An ecstatic Slade shared on social media, “HOLLYWOOD BOUND!! So thankful to be a part [of] such a special season of @americanidol and having my baby boy and mom tag along! See y’all in Hollywood!”