(Oregon Right to Life) — American Idol winner Abi Carter told interviewers this month that her passion for singing seemingly began even before she was born.
Carter made the remarks during an interview on Live with Kelly and Mark that was posted to social media May 21.
The 21-year-old star staggered judges during her audition with her straight-from-the-heart rendition of Billie Eilish’s “What Was I Made For,” progressing to become the overall American Idol Season 22 winner. She told hosts Kelly Ripa and Mark Consuelos that she had apparently been singing even while she was in her mother’s womb.
“I’d never heard of this before this segment, but you actually were humming in utero,” Ripa said, prompting the discussion. “I did not know that babies could do that.”
“Fun fact,” Carter said, laughing. “I didn’t either. So, when my mom was pregnant with me, she went in for an ultrasound and, you know, the doctor was listening – he was listening for a heartbeat. And he kind of like, he takes off his headphones, he kind of throws them down, and he’s like, ‘Andrea, you need to listen to this. I don’t even know what I’m hearing. It sounds like whale sounds. She’s singing in your stomach.’”
“My mom was shocked,” Carter said. “She was like, ‘you’re lying!’ But she listened to it, she heard it.”
“I looked it up recently,” she added. “Apparently it’s a thing, and sometimes babies will sing in their moms’ stomachs.”
Carter suggested that, since her mother is also a singer, “I was always listening to her sing, probably from the womb!”
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The Daily Citizen, the news arm of Focus on the Family, raised some doubt about what Abi’s mother’s doctor heard.
The outlet pointed out that “vocalizing requires air,” something that’s “not present in utero.” However, The Daily Citizen noted that vocal cord development begins at 13 weeks gestation, and pro-life organization Live Action referenced contemporary research indicating that babies in the womb may begin hearing and reacting to music between 16–20 weeks gestation.
While the jury is out on what precisely Carter’s doctor may have heard, what is absolutely clear is that Abi, like all unborn human beings, was already a unique, valuable individual worthy of protection from the very moment of fertilization.
Scientific research continues to reaffirm that the unborn are living humans who are continually growing and developing the physical and mental characteristics that they’ll continue to cultivate after birth.
Oregon Right to Life believes in the sanctity of all human life from the moment of conception to natural death. Abortion ends the life of a genetically distinct, growing human being. We oppose abortion at any point of gestation. Read this and all of our position statements here.
