Kyle Davis

Lexington —
Not even rock legend Steven Tyler could stop Kyle Davis from singing.
The then 15-year-old Lexington native recently auditioned for the 2012 season of American Idol. After several rounds of auditions and months of waiting, Davis finally got to sing in front of judges Tyler, Jennifer Lopez and Randy Jackson.
“I don’t usually get nervous, but this was just so long and I had been waiting for it all this time,” said Davis, now 16 and a sophomore at Lexington High School.
Davis had been dreaming about singing on American Idol since watching the first season of the show 10 years ago — a video clip of Davis singing in front of the TV as a 6-year-old and then auditioning as a 15-year-old was featured in the opening montage of the first episode of the 11th season.
“Everyone started posting to my Facebook wall,” said his mother Minnie, who sent in the home video. “That was a huge surprise when he was on … We had no idea.”
Davis, who released his first CD of original compositions at age 9, said he got more serious about auditioning around age 10.
“Watching the first [few] seasons, I thought, ‘Whoa, that would be really good to do. Maybe I could go really far,’” he said.

Going for it
Davis got his chance this summer. In mid-July, he and his mother flew out to Pittsburgh, the nearest audition site, where he joined thousands of other hopefuls.
“With thousands of people … almost everybody has to go home,” his mother said.
Arriving at Heinz Field at 5 a.m., Davis waited until 10 p.m. for just 15 seconds to sing. Impressing the producers, he made it to the next round, along with just 200 others.
A few days later, Davis returned for more auditions, this time in an air-conditioned convention center. After waiting for 10 hours, he made it through two more rounds of auditions, but not without some criticism.
“They told me I looked angry and I would have to fix that,” Davis said, with a laugh. “I want input all the time. If someone has something bad to say, I want to hear it.”
“He can take it,” his mother added.
Davis was informed he would have to return in September for the final audition with the celebrity judges. Davis, who takes classes at The Real School of Music in Burlington, spent much of the next three months in constant preparation.
American Idol
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Video

Kyle Davis sings his American Idol audition song
On the audition day, after waiting for 12 hours, Davis walked in to face the judges, but walked out without a ticket to Hollywood.
After Davis finished his rendition of “Mama Knows Best” by Jessie J, the judges seemed skeptical. Tyler suggested perhaps the soulful song was too mature for the young Lexingtonian. Jackson noted the difficulty of the song and said he didn’t think Davis pulled it off. Lopez told Davis he wasn’t quite ready, and to give it another year.
Determined to change the judges’ minds, Davis erupted into Adele’s “Someone Like You.”
“[Producers] told us earlier they just want to see that you really want this. So I just started singing another song,” he said. “I didn’t know what to do. I was panicking because they were saying no.”
But the outcome was the same: It was time for Davis to go home.
With his mother waiting outside the audition doors, Davis slumped off the set, too upset to speak to producers.
“I didn’t want to give them anything,” he said.
But he couldn’t resist when one production assistant asked the question: “Aren’t you angry?”
“Yep. I’m really angry,” he replied. “I’m angry at myself.”
The audition never aired.
Despite his disappointment, Davis said it was all worth it and the process has not deterred him from wanting to pursue a career in music. He is actively seeking gigs in the Lexington area and collaborating with friends on other musical projects. - Samantha Allen