‘American Idol’ Contestant Calls Out Katy Perry’s ‘Mom-Shaming’ Joke as ‘Hurtful’

An American Idol contestant is calling out Katy Perry for a joke she made during her audition. During last Sunday night’s episode of the long-running musical competition series, Sara Beth Liebe auditioned for judges Perry, Luke Bryan, and Lionel Richie, singing Amy Winehouse’s “You Know I’m No Good.” A few days after the audition aired, Liebe took to social media to respond to Perry’s reaction to the fact that Liebe, 25, has three kids. When she revealed to the judges during her audition that she was a mom of three, Perry, 38, stood up and feigned shock, fanning herself and pretending to collapse on the judging table. “If Katy lays on the table, I think I’m going to pass out,” Liebe said. “Honey, you’ve been laying on the table too much,” Perry responded.

In a TikTok video, Liebe said she was hurt by Perry’s comments. “There was a joke that was made that’s gotten a lot of attention, and I’ve gotten a lot of people reaching out to me asking how I’m feeling,” Liebe said. “Katy Perry made a joke that wasn’t super kind.”

“It was embarrassing to have that on TV, and it was hurtful,” she continued.”I think that women supporting and uplifting other women is so cool and I think that mom-shaming is super lame and I think that it’s hard enough to be a mom and it’s hard enough to be a woman.”

“I see all of the young moms and just moms in general … keep loving your babies. Nobody deserves to feel crappy about that. If you’re a good mama and you love your babies, that’s all that really matters. Other comments just don’t feel necessary,” Liebe added.

Elsewhere during the audition, Perry, who is mom to her and Orlando Bloom’s 2-year-old daughter Daisy, asked Liebe how much she wanted to be a singer. “Is this your dream?” Perry asked Liebe after the contestant confessed that she doesn’t often sing in public, aside from in church or at a karaoke event. She then added, “If it’s not your dream, you might need to leave because there’s a lot of dreams behind you.” Liebe then explained she was “still processing” the experience of being away from her children to audition for American Idol, prompting Perry to reply, “Freak us out, Freaky Friday.” Liebe then went into the Winehouse classic, having previously explained that she wanted to sing Elton’s John’s “Bennie and the Jets,” but had some vocal issues that she felt kept her from being able to deliver her best rendition of the song.

As Liebe sang “You Know I’m No Good,” Perry began to berate her. “Come on, we need more,” she loudly proclaimed as Liebe sang. Afterward, Perry said, “That’s not enough,” and then demanded, “Try ‘Bennie and the Jets,’” because she didn’t believe Liebe had found “her dream yet.” She added, “Sing it like it’s your new dream.”

“More of that! Hold it out,” Perry said as Liebe sang the iconic tune. When she was done, Perry dubbed Liebe the “accidental American Idol,” adding, “I feel like a comic strip character just came to life.” Perry continued, “Look, if it’s not your dream, it’s not gonna go far because I also respect everyone that’s walking through that door who will lay down their life for this golden ticket [to Hollywood].” Ultimately, both Perry and Bryan voted to send Liebe to Hollywood, while Richie was the only one to vote against her. “Sara Beth, you’re in the dream now. Go get your golden ticket,” Perry told her. “Hurry before the dream ends!”

Following the audition, many people online expressed issues with Perry’s treatment of Liebe. “Boo to Katy Perry for mom shaming Sara Beth. Insinuating that she has been ‘laying on the table too much’ to have 3 kids by age 25. A young mother following a dream while raising her children should be raised up not put down,” one person said, as reported by The New York Post.

“Truly, [Katy Perry] has proven she doesn’t care about all women,” someone else said, while a third person added, “I really do not like how Katy Perry just treated Sara Beth on [American Idol]. I don’t watch this show at all and my tv was already on the channel but what I witnessed was not right. They let Katy Perry bully this woman on live national tv before she even started singing. So ugly.” The NY Post noted that it had reached out to Perry’s reps for comment but did not receive a response as of this writing.