Ada Vox, 24, took American Idol by storm during the March 25 episode of the reality competition. The drag queen stood before the judges and wowed them with her performance of “House of the Rising Sun.” Lionel Richie, 68, Katy Perry, 33, and Luke Bryan, 41, didn’t waste any time giving Ada a golden ticket to Hollywood. If you watched American Idol before the ABC revival, you might recognize Ada’s voice. Here’s everything you need to know to get up to speed!
1. Ada has auditioned for American Idol before. Ada auditioned for American Idol in season 12 as Adam Sanders. Adam was eliminated during Hollywood Week, but he didn’t give up. When American Idol was revived by ABC, it meant a second chance for Adam. Adam auditioned as his drag queen alter-ego Ada Vox. Ada isn’t going to let anyone or anything hold her back from her dream. “I’m not here to play with anybody — I’m here to chase my dreams and make them come true,” she said after her performance.
2. Ada is one fierce drag queen! When Ada strutted in front of the judges with her sexy gold dress and voluminous wig, Katy was pretty much speechless. The judges will definitely remember her entrance! Ada, a San Antonio native, works at a seafood restaurant by day and is a drag queen by night.
3. After season 12, Adam received death threats. “After American Idol, I started getting messages on social media every day,” Adam revealed before debuting Ada on American Idol. “People attacked my weight, my sexuality, telling me that I was horrible, that I sucked, that I don’t deserve to be here, that I shouldn’t be who I am. And I let it get to me in a wrong way. It killed me inside. It killed me inside almost as much as people were telling me that I should kill myself… I was contemplating lots of things that I shouldn’t have.” But Adam has put the hate behind him and is ready to take on Idol as Ada.
4. There’s already a name for Ada’s fandom! Get your hashtags ready! Ada’s fans have been dubbed Voxies!
5. The singer had brain surgery at 8 years old. A cyst had developed against Adam’s brain stem. “When I was in the hospital, my mom would sing to me. And when she would sing to me, I had this sense of healing and a sense of happiness,” the singer told the San Antonio Current. That was the only time I would have relief from the pain that I was dealing with at the time. It was all around the same time American Idol [first] aired as well. So it all worked out that American Idol became a part of my dream.””