Play

Alyssa Raghunandan is just 15, but the teenager’s singing captivated judges on American Idol from almost the very first note.

Raghunandan, or Raghu as she prefers to be called, is an Indian-origin singer from Orlando, Florida. Her audition earlier in March (video above) for season 16 of the singing reality show American Idol impressed the three judges, Katy Perry, Lionel Richie and Luke Bryan, enormously.

Following Raghu’s performance of Ariana Grande’s Almost Is Never Enough, the judges unanimously declared that the teenager belonged to the top 10 of the show. They had trouble containing their excitement the moment she started singing and right after the performance, Perry told her, “I full-body felt what you were singing. I am a believer in you.” Perry continued to praise the singer on Twitter:

Raghu, of course, won the “ticket to Hollywood” and will be competing in the following rounds. Here is another of her performances on the show from just a couple of days ago. This time, she chose to sing Bette Midler’s Wind Beneath My Wings.

The singer was raised by her father Dennis Raghunandan, whom she calls her “best bud”, after her parents got divorced when she was very young. Raghu has been singing for years now, and she regularly posts music covers on her YouTube channel.