Levittown singer/songwriter gets golden ticket to Hollywood on American Idol

PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) -- Hollywood Week kicks off Sunday on American Idol, and we have three contestants from the Delaware Valley heading there with golden tickets in hand.

Kevin John, a singer/ songwriter from Levittown, Bucks County, is bringing his big energy to this next round of the competition.

His enthusiasm is infectious, and you can feel his soul in his music.

The Neshaminy High School graduate and Temple University alum now lives in Nashville, where he's making music and, as he says, "living the dream."

"I have an amazing band, I'm putting on shows, meeting amazing people and killing the game, if I say so myself," he laughs. "And now, I'm an American Idol contestant on Season 21," said John.

He says his decision to compete on the show started with a perfectly placed pop-up ad.

"I was scrolling mindlessly on my phone and this little ad pop popped up that said: 'Do you want to be the next American Idol?'," he recalled.

John says he scrolled right past it.

"A minute later, and I was like, 'I'm supposed to click on that link,'" he said.

So he did, and just in time.

"28 is the cutoff for to be on American Idol," he said. "I'm 28 years old, about to turn 29. This is the last possible chance for me to make this happen."

John auditioned for producers virtually.

"I had a shirt on like this, and I had pajama pants and slippers on underneath," he said. He says he sang for a few different rounds of producers.

"Then they said, 'Do you want to audition for Katy Perry, Luke Bryan and Lionel Richie?' I was like, 'Say less. Yes! I'm in! Let's go'," he said.

For that audition he chose the song "Suspicious Minds" by Elvis Presley, a song his father John always wanted to hear him sing.

"By the end, my eyes were closed and I was feeling the emotion," he said. "When I opened my eyes, Lionel Richie was giving me a standing ovation."

This isn't his first experience with the show. Kevin first auditioned for American Idol when he was 16.

"I stood in line overnight and finally got my chance to sing," he recalled. "I literally got maybe eight words out of a song, and I was cut. I was chopped. I was devastated."

This time, he got a "yes" from all three judges.

"I went up and I got to grab my golden ticket, and they said, 'Kevin John, you're going to Hollywood!' It's been absolute craziness!" he said.

You can follow his journey to Hollywood on American Idol Sunday at 8 p.m. on 6abc.