When Sam Kelly-Cohen attended the auditions for the 22nd season of “American Idol” in February, he didn’t anticipate impressing superstar judges Katy Perry, Luke Bryan and Lionel Richie. In fact, auditioning wasn’t even in his plans.
Originally meant to be the piano support for his friend Abby Blake as she sang Pink’s “What About Us?” an unexpected request from the judges put him in the spotlight. He performed an original song that prompted them to swiftly deliver the coveted verdict, “You’re going to Hollywood!” Just like that, he became a contestant in the popular ABC series.
Hailing from Plantation, Kelly-Cohen, who goes by the artistic name KAYKO, says he’s been passionate about music his entire life.
“I was 3 years old when I started playing piano. I did a little classical, jazz, and even theater, but nothing really scratched my musical itch like writing and playing my own original music,” he says.
Wanting to take his music to the next level, he relocated to Nashville, Tenn., where his work includes songwriting and producing to playing live and everything in between. “I get a lot of joy finding how all the musical instruments work together to make something sound cohesive and full,” says Kelly-Cohen, 23.
Reflecting on his audition, he says, “I can’t describe how unplanned the experience was. I was stuffing my face with a Chipotle burrito and then 15 minutes later I’m singing for the judges. It was such a wild day. My adrenaline was pumping so I was just saying to myself ‘Be cool, be cool, be cool,’ and trying to calm my nerves.”
During the show’s “Hollywood Week,” which aired on March 31, he introduced himself as “the accident,” as Perry initially dubbed him, and performed an original about his impostor syndrome, survivor’s guilt and intrusive thoughts as a contestant. He successfully secured a spot in the competition’s Top 24 and moved to the next round, which aired on April 7 from Aulani, a Disney Resort and Spa in Oahu, Hawaii.
After receiving mentorship from former “American Idol” contestant and Grammy Award-winner Tori Kelly, he performed an original song about his mother, who passed away in 2019. The results of this round will be announced on April 14.
He says about the competition, “I think ‘American Idol’ will eat you alive if you don’t know who you are. I am definitely not the best singer in this competition, but I feel like my strength comes from my songwriting and spending the difficult hours looking inward and learning about who I am at my core.”
Regardless of the competition’s outcome, he won’t stop releasing his original music. “I’m a songwriter at heart and there’s nothing that could ever take me away from my love of music.” He also credits his South Florida roots for giving him a “wonderful and diverse perspective of the world. I feel like so much of who I am is because of where I came from,” he says.
Photo by Brittany Iriarte