Nicolina Bozzo, one of two Canadian competitors remaining on American Idol, performed a Canadian classic on Sunday’s episode.
The 18-year-old singer from Toronto dedicated her version of Leonard Cohen’s “Hallelujah” to her grandmother, who was in the audience.
“That was so angelic. It was like watching an angel sing this beautiful song,” gushed Idol judge Katy Perry. "You know, backstage we had a fight over who does the best rendition – is it Leonard Cohen, is it Jeff Buckley? It might just be Nicolina now.
“It was really, really beautiful. You held on to it, you controlled it. It was amazing. What a tribute.”
Idol judges Luke Bryan and Lionel Richie were equally impressed, with the latter telling Bozzo she is “gifted beyond your years.”
Buckley, who died in 1997, covered Cohen’s 1984 song in 1994. Cohen died in 2016. Among the many artists who have put their spin on “Hallelujah” are Pentatonix, Alexandra Burke and Canada’s k.d. lang.
At the end of Sunday’s episode, Bozzo and Toronto-born Leah Marlene advanced to the Top 11 – the farthest any Canadian has made it in the show’s history.
Marlene, an Illinois resident whose father is Derry Grehan of Canadian rock band Honeymoon Suite, performed 1967’s “Happy Together” by The Turtles on Sunday.