American Idol’s brutal first live results show season 20 cuts for ‘Top Singer of the Season’

Monday was the first real live demonstration of the results American Idol Season 20, in which 10 semi-finalists from the top 20 contestants advanced to the top 14 based on audience voting on Sunday, after which the other 10 competed in real time for four locations selected by the jury. Sunday Competitive Episode It was so strong that judge Luke Bryan said it felt like “final night,” so of course it was inevitable to weed out some worthy contenders on Monday.

However, it was still surprising that among the singers the judges finally decided to send home was Jacob Moran, who was declared by Katy Perry “one of the most incredibly talented people here” (having sang her own song!) and even ‘Best Female Diva of the Season’, and Sage, who Lionel Richie once called the ‘total package’ and said she performed better on Monday than during the first 20 tour on Sunday.

As for the ten safe singers, they all performed songs for the Victory Ring, one of the best of which was Ava’s perhaps quarrelsome”‘Cuz I love youChristian Guardino is clearly inspired by the postmodern music box.crawling“The Dazzling Original, Leah Marilyn”Willing to the wellNicolina Bozzo’s power-belterused to be mineFlora Emerson’s Thinkinglove in the dark‘ and the jubilant ‘golden’ of Fritz Hager. That triumphant ensemble was rounded off by Lady K, and perhaps not surprisingly, three Country level contestants: Huntergirl, Dan Marshall, Noah Thompson. But then it was time for the other ten to sing Survivalin the form of a brutal and sometimes bizarre live TV broadcast that reminded me of a rival show the soundInstant save for . Most of the at-risk runners handled the pressure well, but not one.

former the sound Finalist Allegra Miles viewed her rejection as a pro — even when host Ryan Seacrest frankly and awkwardly told her, “America didn’t fall in love with you” — channeling all her frustration and pain into her emotional original song, “Tainted.” Katie noted that disappointment actually worked on the cover of Steeldrivers “weird Canadian” Cameron Whitcombe, telling him, “I just frustrated you a little, slowed you down, and focused on you….you look a little better disappointed!” (I suspect Cameron’s brother Sheldon, who optimism got a huge tattoo American Idol logo on the back When Cameron finished 24th, he was probably more disappointed than Cameron was.) And Jay Copeland, just called “Jay” now, turned Imagine Dragons’ “Believer” into a compelling fight song Luke noted, “who – which Performance is the reason we awarded you the Platinum Ticket.”

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But Jacob and Sage seem to have the most fighting of them all. Apparently Sage was saddened to learn that she hadn’t been voted up, but then immediately put her face in play to bring out the stunning Allen Stone’s Brown-Eyed Lover, after which Lionel exclaimed, “who – which Is the way you get out after bad news, okay? I mean, when I say you totally took charge, it’s like, “Who said no? Who said no? I don’t get it. But the thing was, your attitude was very positive and very direct. You owned the stage, you put your foot forward, you fired us.”

Jacob who appeared in Idol Before, she covered Katie’s Olympic anthem “Rise” with impeccable voice control despite resisting her tears, and Katie was so shocked and amazed that she told him, “This song is retired now. There are some notes I’ve never heard before in that song!”. …technically, I think you’re one of the most incredibly talented people here. I see you come out with these shoes, all the art, all that. I think you’re taking shape. And you will.

Ellie Rowe, the sweet little girl with a light, soft voice, was put in the fearsome and unenviable position of having to follow the influential Jacob with her gorgeous cover of Kodaline’s “All I Want”, and while she did well, it was clear that the judges had already made a decision to send her to her home. In one of the evening’s many awkward moments, Lionel seemed to have temporarily forgotten that Monday’s liquidations would be decided by the referees, not By viewers, he told Ellie, “This is the best performance I’ve seen, but you have to understand, this is about a solid time right now. And so, I’ve done the best ever, but at the same time, it’s Enough? America will tell us! ” oops.

It was also clear that the judges would not bid for Katerra Love, even though Locke told her, “Getting this news and going to give a performance like that, it was great.” Locke’s “criticism” of Katerra’s confident cover of Chaka Khan’s song “Through the Fire” was even more of a kisser, adding vaguely, “Thank you for making this decision for us to come together and see who we’re going to send….I’m still forgetting how impactful these were. Tonight is on our hearts as judges.”

As for the one contestant who didn’t rise to the challenge, Cadence Baker, who has struggled with nerve and confidence all season. It didn’t help – on Monday bone An embarrassing exchange – Ryan faked it at first by saying, “Last night, Katie called you a fighter. But will the fight continue? He-she will! Rhythm then smiled with a big smile of relief and excitement, before Ryan added, “Because the time has come. keep Fighting … for a place in the top ten, to choose the referees! The smile and the color left Rhythm’s face as she processed this new rudely communicated information, and she was horrified/audible as she took the stage to cover a really tough Whitney Houston song. (no Awesome, Ryan!)

The two remaining contestants in the bottom ten are country singer Mike Parker, who is presumably defeated by HunterGirl, Noah, and Dan, even though he’s been basically heralded as the new Jimmy Allen for weeks. “Honestly, I’m so shocked you’re not in our top 10,” Luke told Mike, and the live studio audience also sounded shocked, booed, and gasped when Ryan announced the news. But Mike had his own “Bed on Fire” cover for Teddy Swims and lived up to the hype. Finally, there was rocker Tristen Gressett, whose risky cover of The Weeknd seemed to backfire on Sunday, but was straight back into the game by choosing Lenny Kravitz’s “Are You Gonna Go My Way” as Monday’s survival song. “You are a rock star. … You do not belong to any other position. This is your path. And I think you know that now,” Katie assured him.

Based on Monday’s offers And Overall track record, my four picks would have been Tristin, Mike, Allegra, Sage. Well, three out of four isn’t bad. The judges went with Allegra (not surprising, considering that Luke had described Sunday’s performance of “Free Fallin” as “one of the most magical I’ve ever seen sitting in this chair”), followed by Mike and Tristin. But they also saved Jay, probably because they didn’t want to sound a fool for giving him that platinum ticket in the first place (especially one of this season’s other platinum contestant had already done so. kill itself). So, that unfortunately means we said goodbye to Sage, along with Cameron, Katerra, Cadens, Ellie… and Jacob. I suspect Jacob’s decision wasn’t unanimous, and Katie wasn’t elated.

But eliminations are going to get tougher from here, as it’s a very strong top 14. I don’t think it’s the strongest Start, as the stewards insisted – they say that every season! – But really any of these talented kids have the potential to win this thing. Tune in next Sunday as they are directed by Season 16 contestant-turned-country star Gabby Barrett – who will show them that even if they don’t win, they can have a very bright future anyway.

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