Lydia Simonds, Henry County native, has taken her love of music from McDonough Square to performing on American Idol.

  Simonds has always had a connection to music through her involvement with her church. She can remember her father walking around the house singing worship songs.

  “No one in my family sings professionally or plays music. I got my passion from him,” said Simonds. “I want to encourage people and music is a part of that.”

  Simonds learned how to play piano at age 8 and taught herself to play guitar at age 15. To date, she has never received a formal vocal lesson.

  “I taught myself how to sing,” said Simonds. “God has given me an ear for music.”

  Music had always been an interest of hers, but it became more of an influence following the death of her mother in January of 2016.

  “When I lost my mom after seeing her suffer from multiple sclerosis, it pushed my music and songwriting. When she died, I wrote two really deep, personal songs. I used music as a journal,” said Simonds. “I want to encourage people that have been through something similar and make people not feel alone.”

  In January of 2019, she began her pursuit of music full-time as a singer-songwriter. Simonds describes her music style as having “country roots with a gospel tone.” She released her first EP called “Lately” in July of 2019.

  Simonds has performed locally at Queen Bee Coffee Company, Mellow Mushroom and Macon St. Tacos, as well as in Hogansville, Conyers and Covington.

  “The whole year, every one of my bills had been paid through singing. I did not know that was possible,” said Simonds. “God has been so gracious. It’s been so fun.”

  About halfway through her first year of pursuing music, Simonds decided to audition for American Idol after wondering how far she could make it on the show.

  “I wanted to do American Idol. The age cutoff for the show is 28 and I’m 26,” said Simonds. “I wanted to say that I at least auditioned.”

  She went through two rounds of auditions in Macon, Georgia and then in Nashville, Tennessee before advancing to audition in front of judges Lionel Richie, Katy Perry and Luke Bryan in Savannah, Georgia in September of 2019.

  For the judges, Simonds performed an original song called “One More Time” and “From This Valley” by the Civil Wars.

  Following her audition, Bryan cast the first vote by saying that he enjoyed her “mountainy tone” and gave her a yes. Perry then gave Simonds a no, stating that she did not think she was “quite ready.” Richie said that he could hear her “storytelling tone” but mentioned that she needed to “connect more,” before also voting yes. She received the needed votes to move on to the next round in Hollywood.

  “Katy handed the ticket to me and I started to cry a little bit. It was everything I watched as a kid on television. It was overwhelming,” said Simonds. “The judges all genuinely want the best for each person there.”

  Simonds is grateful for her experience as a singer-songwriter and believes it helped her prepare for her performances on American Idol.

  “Singing at gigs and then on American Idol has helped me know the audience and feel where the audience is,” said Simonds. “I’m very thankful that I’ve curated my style and my voice at these gigs because I’m not just jumping from singing in my room to a stage on television.”

  Although she was eliminated from American Idol after the first round of cuts in Hollywood, Simonds is extremely thankful for her time on the show.

  “It’s been so fun. I love everything about American Idol. I felt supported by all of them, even from the very first audition,” said Simonds.

  She understands how singer-songwriters can become disillusioned by one’s image while pursuing a career in music and states that she has remained true to herself by knowing her own style and sound.

  “I’m a big advocate of finding your own sound/tone. Make sure you figure out your style, audition for things, take new opportunities to curate your sound, and try to be you,” said Simonds.

  She is unsure if she will continue to pursue music on mainstream television productions, but has not completely ruled it out.

  Simonds music can be streamed on iTunes, Apple Music, Spotify, Amazon, Google Play or YouTube. To view upcoming tour dates, visit www.lydiasimondsmusic.com.