Former Richmonder scores American Idol slot with awesome accordion-fueled audition

by | Jan 15, 2015 | POLITICS

All you RVA art/punk kids might have a reason to watch American Idol this season. Last night on the show, a blue-haired accordion-playing lady named Joey Cook passed the audition process with flying colors, and appears to be headed for this year’s top 24.

All you RVA art/punk kids might have a reason to watch American Idol this season. Last night on the show, a blue-haired accordion-playing lady named Joey Cook passed the audition process with flying colors, and appears to be headed for this year’s top 24. Cook auditioned for Idol in Richmond back in July, and advanced to the next round in Kansas City, which produced the segment of last night’s episode in which she appeared. Armed with an accordion, she wowed the judges with a version of “King Of Spain” by Tallest Man On Earth, after which Keith Urban described her as his “favorite voice of the whole day.”

People who’ve been attending DIY/underground shows around Richmond for a few years might be familiar with that voice; a former resident of defunct local artistic collective The People’s Art House Of Richmond, Joey Cook and her accordion played gigs around Richmond regularly a couple of years ago–she even toured with RVA/Harrisonburg indie rockers Mammoth Indigo back in the winter of 2014. These days, Cook divides her time between Woodbridge and New Orleans, but RVA is still in her heart, and her presence on American Idol might just make a normally unbearable TV show worth watching this year.

Check out Joey Cook’s audition below:

Marilyn Drew Necci

Marilyn Drew Necci

Former GayRVA editor-in-chief, RVA Magazine editor for print and web. Anxiety expert, proud trans woman, happily married.




more in politics

Richmonders Don’t Know How Many ICE Flights Are Happening

Protestors gathered on Saturday morning outside the Richmond International Airport to oppose and call attention to the airport's role in ICE detainee transfers and deportation flights. Immigration enforcement flights out of Richmond have increased sharply...

I Went to the Data Center Town Hall at Studio Two Three

On Monday night, close to 300 to people packed into Studio Two Three in Richmond for a town hall about data centers, moderated by Gray Montrose and co-hosted by Henrico Civic Action and Data Center Defiance.  I went to get a better sense of where Richmonders are from...

Salon de Résistance | Into the Wood Chipper

Join us for a special edition of Salon de Résistance on Thursday, August 27 at Black Iris with former senior USAID official and whistleblower Nicholas Enrich, author of the New York Times bestseller Into the Wood Chipper: A Whistleblower’s Account of How the Trump...

Opinion | It’s Time to Rethink Primaries

Editor's Note: The views expressed are those of the author. Lisa Vedernikova Khanna ran for Congress in Virginia's 1st Congressional District and previously served as Chief of Staff at the Democratic National Committee. This essay reflects her perspective and personal...

Far-Right “Remigration” Propaganda Targets Bhatti Campaign

Several campaign signs for Democratic congressional candidate Salaam Bhatti were vandalized over the weekend with professionally printed flyers telling him to "return to your homeland" in multiple languages. The flyers also featured the hashtag #Remigration, a term...

Virginia’s New Marijuana Law: Everything You Need to Know

After years of legislative battles, vetoes, compromise negotiations, and numerous articles, Virginia finally has a roadmap for legal recreational marijuana sales. The state budget signed into law earlier this week establishes a regulated cannabis marketplace beginning...