Michael Rice delivered an emotional tribute to his late father during his American Idol audition with a cover of Kelly Clarkson‘s “Because Of You.”

The Life Story Of American Idol Contestant Michael Rice

Rice, who is a 26-year-old street performer, grew up in a small town called Hartlepool, England. “The place where I’m from, it’s very rough. There’s nothing really in Hartlepool. Not many people get out of the town. It’s a hard life. It’s a hard life,” he explained to the Idol judges before his audition. “So my mom had me when she was 17. She was like my best friend. We practically grew up together.”

Being raised by a single mother, the England native faced a rough upbringing as they didn’t have much, and his mother, Stephanie, worked a lot to support her family. “My mom’s literally done everything for me. There were times when it got really hard where we couldn’t afford the gas. My mom’s worked so hard to put a roof over our heads growing up.”

He then went on to detail that for the first portion of his life his father “wasn’t around” as he had a drug addiction. However, he rekindled a relationship with his father when he turned 17 years old, and then he unexpectedly died of a heart attack related to his drug addiction years later.

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“For the first 12/13 years. I didn’t really have a relationship with my dad as a little kid. It was hard just performing on the stage and looking for my dad. It was tough, but yeah, I wish he was there. When I was around 17, me and my dad rekindled. He said to me, he was very proud of me, and he’s very proud of me singing,” he continued. “And then suddenly he passed away of a heart attack related to the drugs. So that’s kind of the last memory I have of him, and it’s all stuck in my head.”

Auditioned For Idol With Kelly Clarkson’s “Because Of You”

He chose to audition with Kelly Clarkson’s “Because Of You” as the song remind him of his later father. “I think the song means so much to me. It just reminds me of my dad and I hope I do him proud,” Rice admitted to the judges before performing a cover of the Clarkson hit. “I do miss my dad so much. Actually, I wish he could see me now. And how far I’ve come.”

Joined by a pianist and donning a jean jacket over a white t-shirt and jeans, Michael Rice belted out the lyrics and allowed his raw emotions to shine within his performance of the track.

Brought Lionel Richie To Tears With His Emotional Performance

His performance of the Kelly Clarkson tune brought Lionel Richie to tears and earned a standing ovation from all three Idol judges, including Richie, Katy Perry and Luke Bryan. Following his performance, the judges were so moved that they exited the judging panel and went over and hugged the contestant.

“May we do something because I mean, Luke, Katy meet us around front. Now normally this would be something that I would do, but I have never in my experience… You gave it all to us,” Richie said, before each of the Idol judges hugged the contestant.

Richie went on to praise his stunning audition. “Now, let me tell you something. That was the most emotional, most giving… That cry you had and when you hit because of you, I couldn’t hold anything back. Congratulations, man. That was powerful,” Richie continued.

In a state of shock, Michael Rice admitted, “I can’t believe this is actually happening right now, It’s crazy,” as the American Idol judges made their way back to their seats.

“It is crazy, but it’s your dream and by the way you did well in your dream,” Richie added.

Luke Bryan then gushed over his vocal performance of the Clarkson tune, saying, “you acted like somebody who flew from a long way away to come here and prove to the world what you have. You absolutely sang your… ass off.”

Katy Perry later confessed, “We have a lot of people that come in here and tell us a lot of things that are really horrible and tragic, but rarely do they then follow it up with telling their story through a song that someone else wrote. Like they wrote it themselves. And that big old voice and that beautiful personality. I mean…”

Earned A Golden Ticket, Advanced To Hollywood

Ultimately, Michael Rice earned three ‘yes’ votes from Lionel Richie, Katy Perry and Luke Bryan and earned a golden ticket, advancing to Hollywood week.

“Your dream is continuing and more important, I’m going to say, we are going to say…” Richie began. “We want your dream to continue… You’re going to Hollywood,” the Idol judges said collectively.