The musical talent runs deep in Loretta Lynn's family.
Emmy Russell, the granddaughter of the country music legend, proved she's got what it takes to join the family business when she auditioned for season 22 of American Idol, which premiered Feb. 25.
The 24-year-old sang an original song titled "Skinny" about her experience with eating disorders, which earned her a golden ticket from judges Lionel Richie, Katy Perry and Luke Bryan, who were all shocked that soft spoke Emmy was Loretta Lynn's granddaughter.
"Your grandma is…what?!" Lionel asked, with Katy adding an, "Oh wow."
But it was Emmy's songwriting skills that truly impressed the judges, who compared her to the "Coal Miner's Daughter" singer.
"You are an A+ songwriter," Katy said after Emmy's performance. "So is your grandma. You got the gift."
While Emmy had initially played down the family relationship with the judges, her pretape featured the singer giving a tour of her grandmother's ranch in Hurricane Mills, Tennessee.
"She's one of the biggest country music singers of all time but to me she's just my grandma," Emmy said of the singer who passed away in October 2022 at the age of 90. "Growing up on the bus and all that was very normal to me."
And Emmy isn't the only singer in the family. Her mother Patsy Russell, who joined her backstage at the audition, is a member of the country music duo The Lynns along with her twin sister, Peggy Lynn.
"She just wanted to do this honestly," Patsy said of her daughter's decision to audition for American Idol. "I think that when you come from a musical family, the shadow is so big. 'How do I fill those shoes?' Well the deal is, you don't. You make your own shadow."
And Emmy knows how lucky she is, sharing her excitement with fans after her episode aired.
"Oh my gosh…Will you Join me on this adventure?!," she wrote on Instagram Feb. 25 alongside of a photo of her post-audition. "Very thankful at the moment. Excited to do this with y'all. Here we goooooooo!!!"
Emmy now joins an exclusive list of American Idol contestants. Keep reading to find out what some of your favorite Idols are up to now.