Pregnancy upended Texas teen mom’s life, then song about son gets her on American Idol

Cate Gartner’s world turned upside down when she found out she was pregnant. This was three years ago. She was only 19.

“It was super, super hard but immediately I knew, okay, I have this connection with this baby and it’s gonna be fine. Like everything’s gonna work out how it’s supposed to,” Gartner told the Star Telegram.

And she was right.

The young woman from Aledo, now 22, was catapulted to the American Idol stage earlier this year, riding the sweet notes of a song she wrote, ”The Place That I Call Home,” inspired by the birth of her son, Cooper.

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Although Gartner missed making the final 24, the memories from her journey will stay with her forever, she said. From all the auditions across the country, 143 contestants got golden tickets to Hollywood. From there, 56 were chosen for the showstopper round. After that, only 24 contestants get to move on.

It has been an incredible, pinch-me ride for the country singer who relishes penning songs about her life. This was her moment.

“I was like, You know what? Yes. Let’s do it. It was just really crazy, like once in a lifetime,” Gartner said

A life of song in North Texas when music is your muse

Music has always been present in Gartner’s life for as long as she can remember. In elementary school, she’d giddily jump on stage to belt out tunes. During her pregnancy, music was her muse.

Three months into her pregnancy, Gartner went to her guitar lessons. Her mentor and teacher told her they could write a song. She wrote the song she sang to her son when he was born. It struck the right chords. It was the tune she sang at her Los Angeles audition for American Idol.

It was something she never thought she could do. But the tune blew up on social media, especially on Tik Tok. An American Idol talent scout tracked her down. A direct message on Instagram was convincing enough for Gartner to take it seriously. Next thing she knew, she was on a plane to Southern California.

OMG ‘I can’t believe you just said that to me!’

As the country singer entered the room with legends, Luke Bryan, Katy Perry, and Lionel Richie, Gartner was star-struck.

“I was like, Okay, this is what is happening. Well, stay calm. Don’t freak out,” Gartner said.

She sang her original song, “and only messed up once,” and then stood in awe as the judges gave her a standing ovation.

Richie complimented her songwriting and called her a natural talent. Perry agreed with Richie and said she was locked in with Gartner the whole time. Bryan described Gartner’s voice as “Allison Krauss innocence,” telling her she connects with the audience well.

Gartner, freaking out, responds, “Oh My God, I can’t believe you just said that to me!”

Conjuring the special bond between mother and child: “Katie told me that she ‘loved the song and like, it made [me] think of [my] daughter.’ That’s great. That was the goal,” Gartner said.

Gartner received a unanimous “yes” from the judges in L.A. She had her ticket for the Hollywood phase of the competition where she belted out, “In Case You Didn’t Know,” by Brett Young. Moving on to the showstoppers segment, Gartner sang, “If You Go Down (I’m Going Down Too),” by Kelsea Ballerini.

What’s next for the American Idol from Aledo?

American Idol’s top 24 only has two other contestants from Texas, Jack Bunton from Dallas and Odell Bunton Jr. from Austin.

Gartner’s priority now is being a mother to Cooper. She recently got her real estate license and now anticipates her first forays into a hot market.

Of course, music will always be present.

“I think with music, my goal is just to write songs that people can connect to and understand,” Gartnersaid. “The goal with that is to show other teen moms that you can do anything. It doesn’t matter that you had a baby young, you can still follow your dreams.”