The American Idol auditions rolled into Louisiana Thursday night with no big drama between judges Mariah Carey and Nicki Minaj. Instead, one contestant grabbed the spotlight - 19-year-old Burnell Taylor, a survivor of Hurricane Katrina who now lives in Baton Rouge, who floored the judges with a powerhouse performance of I'm Here from the Broadway production of The Color Purple.

“Burnell made me cry!” Carey exclaimed as she wiped her eyes following his performance, adding, “Every single word you sang