KATY Perry has mocked singer Colin Stough's country accent in front of the entire American Idol live audience amid backlash over her recent rude behavior.
The competition show judge has faced major backlash from fans in recent weeks regarding her on-screen comments.
Now Katy, 38, has mocked contestant Colin Stough over his Southern accent in an awkward moment caught on camera.
During Sunday's episode of Idol, the Mississippi native took the stage to sing a ballad with his guitar.
He told the judges: "My name is Colin Stough, I'm from Gatlin, Mississippi."
But Katy quickly interrupted as she shot back: "I'm sorry, what is it?" with a condescending look on her face.
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"Colin Stough," he repeated, though the pop star was still unclear as she replied: "I still can't..."
The singer then stated his name extra slowly, saying: "Colin....Stough....."
"I've been working on my Hollywood voice," he joked, leaving the judges in a fit of laughter.
Katy's comment came amid a string of backlash regarding her treatment of American Idol contestants.
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END OF THE ROAD
Also on Sunday, viewers were left shocked after Sara Beth Lieb revealed that she was quitting the show.
Sara revealed her confidence struggles and also shared with viewers that she was feeling homesick.
After meeting with former American Idol competitor Clay Aiken to get some tips ahead of her Hollywood Week performance, the California native took the stage.
She performed Roxanne by The Police, hitting every note and wowing the judges, including Katy.
Before they could give any feedback on her singing, Sara revealed: "This opportunity is really rad but this is actually gonna be my last performance because my heart is at home.
"So I’m gonna get home to my babies. They kinda need me. Thank you.”
Sara then rushed off the stage before the judges, all three visibly baffled, could respond.
Backstage, she said: “It went a lot better than I thought it would but I’m gonna head home to get back to my babies.”
The judges and producers were able to convince her to come back on stage, and Katy made an impassioned plea for her to stay.
The pop singer said: “Sara Beth. I know life is scary. I also know that it’s easier to walk away than to be rejected.
"But then I also know that you lose out on your fullest potential and I know that you love your family for your kids."
She went on: "I know that as a mother but remember self-love is just as big as motherly love. Don’t leave the competition.”
After hearing her plea, Sara headed backstage again where she told a producer: “I feel like I’m not gonna win the show anyway so I might as well leave.”
Sara took the stage one more time, with Katy pleading: “Do not give up.”
Backstage, she revealed: “I still kinda want to go home. I’m sure that when I get home I’ll regret it. I’ll probably go, 'Damn, Sara. You should have done it.'”
Ultimately, she did leave the show.
MEAN MOMMY
Earlier this season, Katy took serious heat for how she treated Sara.
Shortly after, Sara spoke out and accused the singer of "mom-shaming her," among other things.
During an early episode of American Idol, Sara was seen auditioning for the show.
Judges struggled to believe she was really 25 as Luke Bryan told her: "You look 16."
Katy chimed in: "15."
Sara replied: "I have three kids, so that's like–."
At that moment, Katy jumped out of her seat and turned around, placing her hands on the table near Luke and fanning herself.
"Are you OK, Katy?" he asked.
"Nope," the 38-year-old shook her head before returning to her seat.
"If Katy lays on the table, I think I'm gonna pass out," Sara Beth chuckled.
"Three kids?" Lionel Richie asked.
"Honey, you've been laying on the table too much," Katy snapped.
This comment from Katy offended Sara Beth.
Luke laughed and the contestant seemed OK with it at the time but later spoke up about it on her Tiktok page.
Sara Beth took a break from her usual cover song videos and videos with her kids to talk about how she felt about Katy's comments.
"At the start of my audition, before I sang, I mentioned that I had three children. That I was a young mom," she said.
"And Katy Perry 'made a joke,'" Sara Beth continued, putting the last three words in quotes, "that wasn't super kind."
"I don't really have too much to say on my feelings about it because I feel like it's probably pretty self-explanatory."
She continued: "I mean it was embarrassing to have that on TV and it was hurtful and you know, that's that.
"But, I did want to take this opportunity to just say 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," Sara Beth said.
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The contestant ended: "I don't think there's really any more to it. If you love your babies and you're a good momma then that's all that really matters, and other comments just don't feel necessary."
Katy is mom to two-year-old Daisy Dove with her partner, Orlando Bloom.
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