This week Idol fans were treated to two different types of episodes. On Sunday night, we saw Idol‘s audition tour wrap up. Then on Monday, the 169 contestants who earned themselves tickets to Hollywood began the grueling process of proving themselves worthy of a spot in the Top 24. Both nights had some great moments, so we’ll start by reviewing the highlights of the last few auditions, then review what went down on Monday night for the next phase of the competition.
Big Personalities
Sunday night’s show was full of big personalities who could also sing. The judges described 17-year-old Gabby Barrett as a cross between Carrie Underwood and Nicki Minaj or Demi Lovato after she sang Carrie’s “Good Girl,” but it was a church song that earned her a golden ticket. Elvis-impersonator-turned-country singer Drake Milligan also scored himself a trip to Hollywood after singing George Strait’s “You Look So Good In Love” which Luke Bryan called “cowboy cool.”
After singing a duet with Lionel Richie, 20-year-old Lee Vasi went a little off the rails in her version of Toni Braxton’s “Love Should Have Brought You Home”, but the judges gave her a golden ticket anyway based on her star potential. 20-year-old Michael Woodard charmed the judges with his innocence and fought his nerves to deliver a bombastic version of Ed Sheeran’s “Make It Rain” that had the judges seeing stars.
Drag Queen Ada Vox makes her triumphant return to “American Idol” [credit: ABC]
The bubbly Samuel Swanson also channeled his more soulful side with Al Green’s “Let’s Stay Together” that had Lionel comparing him to Luther Vandross. And we’d be remiss not to talk about Ada Vox, who auditioned back in Season 12 as Adam Saunders, but returned in drag and gave the judges new life with her version of The Animals’ “House of the Rising Sun.”
Untapped Potential
Sometimes on Idol, a person’s talent takes precedence over their personality and such was the case with several contestants on Sunday night as well. Caitlin Lucia took a risk singing Katy Perry’s hit “I Kissed A Girl” in front of her, but it paid off when Katy declared it better than her own version before sending Caitlin straight through. Despite some hesitation about her song choice, Mylon Shamble managed to score a golden ticket with her unique take on Ben E. King’s classic “Stand By Me.”
Dreadlocked dancer Brielle Rathbun may have taught the judges some of her moves, but it was her take on Sara Barielles’ “Gravity” that earned her a spot in Hollywood. For her audition, Carly Moffa sang an original called “I’d Let The Lion Out” that had the judges comparing her to pop-star Florence + the Machine and declaring her “quirky,” “crazy” and “amazing.” Sunday’s penultimate audition went to 18-year-old Jurnee, who sang Andra Day’s inspirational ballad “Rise Up” before nabbing one of the last golden tickets.
10s for the Lines of Ten
The first part of Hollywood Week, which aired on Monday night, involved the contestants singing solos as part of a group of ten before some of the group is cut and the rest move on. This gave Idol fans a chance to see whose audition was just a flash in the pan and whose was indicative of their true potential. Fortunately, for many fan favorites, the latter was true. 15-year-old Alyssa Ragu dedicated a heartfelt a cappella cover of Bette Midler’s “Wing Beneath My Wings” to her dad that left her, her family, and Katy Perry in tears. Noah Davis, who made Katy’s wig fly during his audition, also brought the fire again with his cover of Jessie J’s “Mama Knows Best.”
Jonny Brenns charms the judges with his piano skills during Hollywood Week [credit: ABC]
Acoustic guitarist Maddie Pope‘s tone won the day on her version of “Dreams” by Brandi Carlile. We were also introduced to Cade Foehner, whose auditioned wasn’t shown, but definitely made himself one to watch after his version of “The Thrill is Gone” by BB King. Although Jonny Brenns parents had no idea he was auditioning, this time he’s brought his mom along and his version of The 1975’s “Somebody Else” definitely didit for the judges. Jurnee, whose audition we saw on Sunday, also advances after she slays Demi Lovato’s hit “You Don’t Do it For Me Anymore.” Dennis Lorenzo and Katy’s crush Trevor Holmes also earned themselves spots during the group round after acoustic covers of Ed Sheeran’s “Thinking Out Loud” and Vance Joy’s “Riptide” respectively.
Standing Out from the Group
Part two of Hollywood Week is the notoriously hard group round, and since Idol seems to be wasting no time with drama and filler this season, we got to all the groups perform on Monday night. “God’s Diversity”, which featured standouts like Michael Woodard, pianist Shannon O’Hara and comeback kid Thaddeus Johnson, all advanced after a stellar version of Clean Bandit’s “Rather Be.” We also saw young dad Marcio Donaldson and the bubbly Maddie Zahm advanced after their group, “The Gurope,” sang the Bee Gees classic “Stayin’ Alive.”
The flamboyant Catie Turner and Idol baby Victoria McQueen both made it to the next round when their group, “TACO,” performed Sam Smith’s song “La La La.” We also got snippets of fan faves like shoe salesman William Casanova, drag superstar Ada Vox, country girl Gabby Barrett and the soulful Dominique Posey advancing from their groups. We also got another look at Britney Holmes singing “Me and My Broken Heart” by Rixton with her group “Don’t Touch.” She was cut during her auditions, but voted back in by the public and proved herself worthy of the second chance by advancing with the rest of her group. All in all, it was great to see more singing and less drama because it helps fans get attached to their favorite contestants.
The First Cuts Are The Deepest
Unfortunately, we also said goodbye to a few fan favorites after seeing them sing. The Sposato twins, who sang Bruno Mars together during their audition, sang separately this time around which meant Julian went home, while Milo stayed. Country girl Kennedee Rittenhouse, Sinatra crooner Zach D’Onofrio, and David Franscisco, who was recovering from a car accident during his audition, were all sent packing after lackluster solos during the Lines of Ten round. The group round also claimed Samuel Swanson‘s big personality after his voice failed him during his song. It’s always sad to see people go, but better to get a chance to see them sing and know why they were cut.
Next Sunday and Monday night, we’ll see the remaining contestants sing solos before the final judgement where the judges have to make the tough decision to narrow this talented crop of singers down to just 24 before the semi-finals. They don’t have an easy job ahead of them, but I have faith that they’ll make the right choices. I’ll see you next week, when we discuss the decisions they made!
Which moments were your favorite over the two nights? Are there any contestants who have won you over so far? Let us know in the comments below.
The Hudsucker 
Jurnee is quickly becoming one of my early favourites – I love her voice and her style. Jonny wins bonus points for that solo song choice alone.
I agree with both of your favorites! Jurnee’s audition and her take on Demi’s song were both fantastic. I liked Jonny’s audition too, but I was worried he’d be a little one-note, but his Lines of 10 performance definitely proved otherwise. Can’t wait to see what they both do next!