‘American Idol’: Loretta Lynn’s Granddaughter Emmy Russell Competes on Show
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Emmy Russell, the granddaughter of country music icon Loretta Lynn, is set to compete on this season of American Idol.
Fans learned the news on Sunday’s (February 18) Season 22 premiere, when a teaser reel for the upcoming episodes revealed a snippet of Russell’s audition.
“My grandma’s a country singer,” the aspiring singer says as she introduces herself to the judges, per Taste of Country.
“Your grandma is — what?!” judge Lionel Richie responds.
Viewers might already be familiar with Russell from her grandmother’s public memorial service, Coal Miner’s Daughter: A Celebration Of The Life & Music of Loretta Lynn, which aired on CMT in 2022. Russell performed a heartfelt rendition of “Lay Me Down” with Willie Nelson‘s son, Lukas Nelson, at the event at the Grand Ole Opry House in Nashville.
Russell reshared a clip of her performance on social media in October 2023, writing, “Memaw passed today last year. Gosh, I miss her but why would I wanna take away the freedom that she’s experiencing on the other side.. Here’s a clip of a special song I sang at her memorial with my friend.”
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The rising country singer previously made her debut in April 2023, performing a tribute to Lynn called “Memaw’s Guitar.”
Ahead of her debut, Russell wrote on Instagram, “It’s pretty cool to start your career by thanking the person, my grandma and honoring her by this being my first time alone with a guitar since her passing.”
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She added, “I use[d] to run from my family heritage and wanna make my own path. I feel a deep conviction to thank, accept, and celebrate her, cause she believed in me from the start before anyone did. Not ashamed anymore. She was never ashamed of me… I’m a granddaughter, and I’m Emmy… it’s all apart of me! This is the start of a beautiful journey. Couldn’t be more excited.”
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Russell is the daughter of Patsy Russell, the twin sister of Peggy Lynn, the two youngest of Loretta’s six children. Patsy and Peggy performed as the musical duo The Lynns.
Attending last year’s CMT Music Awards, where Russell was nominated for her duet with Lukas Nelson, she revealed the best advice her grandmother had ever given her.
“The most advice that she has given me throughout the years was to love God,” Russell told Fox News Digital. “She was such a lover of God and I think it was more of, ‘Listen to him and follow his voice.’”
Russell’s audition is expected to air on the Sunday, February 25, episode of American Idol at 8/7c on ABC.
American Idol, Sundays, 8/7c, ABC
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