Claudia Conway is reshaping her narrative – using her own voice to navigate the turbulent waters of online infamy.
The first official presentation of “American Idol” by the troubled teenager from TikTok came with his own cheerleading team: his mother, former government spokesman Trump Kellyanne Conway.
Claudia seemed to have chosen the previous board of judges Katy Perry, Luke Bryan and Lionel Richie to silence all the “negativity that surrounded her” so that she could focus on her vocal potential – and what Is it over there he wanted to come out of his suddenly important existence.
The 16-year-old, with black hair, told viewers on Sunday that she feels it is the “most important thing in the world” to establish her own identity – through music. With her proud mother rooting for her, she then started singing a passionate version of Bishop Briggs’ “River” during her presentation at the Gender Challenge for Hollywood Week.
The trio of judges approved – and passed Claudia on to the next round, while her mother burned ham slowly like any other proud and crazy father in the audience.
The revealing performance of the New Jersey high school student came after reports that ABC was in “crisis mode” because of the high profile of the teenager TikTok taking the focus off other competitors. The rumors came after his initial appearance was labeled an “explorer” because he seemed to capitalize on his serious struggles with his mother Kellyanne, 54, who included a police investigation after a nude photo of his daughter was posted on social media in January.
However, the famous social media star managed to move on to the second round after a difficult test in February, in which she wore a tiny headband and chirped a wobbly version of Rihanna’s “Love on the Brain”. Judge Katy Perry promptly interrupted Conway’s first test, telling him to take off his shiny stiletto heels and try a different tune.
“You have to calm the storm around you,” Perry warned her at the time, “because if you sing like you want to read social media comments later, you will always be a TikTok star.”
Claudia continued to redeem herself with a version of Adele’s “When We Were Young”, bringing her proud dad – anti-Trump lawyer George Conway, 57 – to tears, while listening outside the courtroom. “She loves music,” he said, suffocating in February. “I’m happy to see you here doing this.”
But it was Mom who appeared as a daughter in Sunday’s episode, offering unsolicited singing tips (“that was kind of boring”) that Claudia politely refused with a series of rolling her eyes before her mother smothered her in post-celebratory hugs presentation.
Kellyanne – who reportedly has a multi-million dollar book contract in the works – even broke a few bars of Alicia Keys’ 2012 anthem, “Girl on Fire”, to cheer for her little girl.
