Did Marjorie Taylor Greene audition for American Idol? Resurfaced clip sparks debate

Resurfaced footage has people believing the Georgia congresswoman auditioned for American Idol in 2002

Meredith Clark
New York
Monday 05 September 2022 18:41 BST
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A video circulating on social media has sparked speculation that Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene once auditioned for American Idol under a fake name.

The resurfaced clip from the first season of American Idol in 2002 has many social media users doing a double take. In the viral video, an energetic blonde woman from Alta Loma, California, named Stefanie Sugarman auditions for the popular singing competition. Now, many people seem to think the contestant bears a striking resemblance to the controversial Georgia representative.

The footage shows Sugarman – who said she was a marketing representative for cheese “selling provolone and mozzarella” – poorly singing a verse from “Knockin da Boots” by H-Town. Judges Simon Cowell, Paula Adbul, and Randy Jackson gave Sugarman a resounding no, but she didn’t accept defeat. The 23-year-old contestant returned to the audition room and put up a fight, telling the judges, “I was just curious if I did make it, if I’m coming to Hollywood because I think I have what it takes.”

The three judges tell Sugarman, “We said no,” to which she asks, “But why?”

Jackson explains to her that she’s “not a good singer at all,” but much to her surprise, she responds, “Oh, hell no.”

Since it was shared to Twitter and Reddit earlier this week, the video has received more than one million views and thousands of interactions from people jokingly accusing Marjoe Taylor Greene of auditioning for American Idol under the false name.

“Marjorie Taylor Greene’s try out for the first season of American Idol under a stage name lmao. What a loser,” tweeted user Far Left Kyle on Sunday (4 September).

“Too good not to share. You have no idea how much I wish it was her,” tweeted one user.

“please tell me this is real I can’t stop laughing omg this is amazing,” another person said.

“we just witnessed her villain origin i fear,” joked someone else.

One Twitter user wrote: “If this isn’t MTG then my apologies to the real Stephanie Sugarman, but either way, she sucks and it’s hilarious.”

And another person even posted a side-by-side image comparing the resemblance between Greene and the American Idol contestant.

Over on Reddit, many users were convinced that Marjorie Taylor Greene had similar facial expressions and mannerisms as Stephanie Sugarman, with one person writing: “If it’s not her then she has a twin. But my gawd…I’d be shocked if it was not her. Even the mannerisms are the same.”

“The cadence in her voice is the same,” someone else agreed.

Despite the two women looking strikingly similar, TMZ has confirmed that the real Stephanie Sugarman does in fact exist, according to Alta Loma public records. There is also a five-year age difference between Greene and Sugarman – the Georgia politician is 48 years old while Sugarman would be 43 years old today.

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