For late country music legend Loretta Lynn’s grandkid, the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree. Her granddaughter, Emmy Russell, stole the hearts of “American Idol” judges Luke Bryan, Katy Perry, and Lionel Richie on a recent episode. When talking about her childhood in Nashville, Tennessee, the country music capital — Russell revealed she would go on the road with her grandmother and sing.
When the judges asked who her grandmother was, they were stunned to hear Loretta Lynn’s name. Richie said as Perry’s eyes widened, “What?!?! Your grandmother is Loretta Lynn?!” “I think there’s a reason why I think I am a little timid, and I think it is ’cause I want to own my voice, and I wanna own it,” she said. “That’s why I wanna challenge myself and come out here and really step in and be like, ‘Okay, come on Emmy.’”
Viewers at home got intel on Russell’s life during her interview, showing the home she grew up in and photos of her singing on stage with her grandmother. However, once she sat down to begin her audition, singing an original song, ‘Skinny’ from the grand piano, Russell proved to the judges that she was paving her own lane. Perry told her, “Emmy, you’re an A+ songwriter. So was your grandma, you got the gift. I don’t think you need to compare yourself to what grandma was. You’re totally different; you shouldn’t give yourself all that pressure. I think you came in like a mouse.”
Richie told the young contestant that she had “promise.” He added before reminding her that she has her own shoes to fill and not her grandmother’s, “And I like your promise. Each one of us is trying to battle something that we’re trying to overcome. In your case, you have big shoes. Now, if I can just get you to put those shoes back in the closet, that’s not your size.” Her mother, singer Patsy Lynn of The Lynns, was at the audition supporting her daughter from the other side of the door.
When asked why she thinks her daughter was nervous about auditioning, she opened up about the shadow that is cast over you when having a grandmother like Loretta Lynn. She explained, “She just wanted to do this honestly [and say] ‘this is who I am, and this is what I do, and this is my heart. I think that when you come from a musical family, the shadow is so big. How do I fill those shoes? Well, the deal is, you don’t. You make your own shadow.”
The Lynns were a country music duo that involved Patsy and her twin sister, Peggy. However, even though Russell was quiet, she had the judges intrigued, with all three saying a strong “yes,” earning her a ticket straight to Hollywood. Russell isn’t the first celebrity offspring or relative to audition for the competition. Jordin Sparks, Jane Carrey, Claudia Conway and Grace Franklin are also among those with famous relatives who tried their luck in front of the judges.