‘American Idol’ Season 15 Spoilers: 2016 Top 10 Revealed, Perform For Judges And Special Guest Kelly Clarkson [RECAP]
The Top 10 "American Idol" Season 15 finalists have finally been revealed! After leaving the decision up to America, host Ryan Seacrest kicked off Thursday's two-hour show by revealing which contestants would join La'Porsha Renae, Dalton Rapattoni, Trent Harmon and Olivia Rox at the chairs.
The first person to get voted into the Top 10 was Tristan McIntosh. She was joined by Sonika Vaid, Gianna Isabella, MacKenzie Bourg, Avalon Young and Lee Jean. That meant Manny Torres, Thomas Stringfellow, Jenn Blosil and Jeneve Rose Mitchell were eliminated and sent home.
Following the big reveal, the Top 10 semifinalists then had to perform solo songs in front of the audience, judges Keith Urban, Jennifer Lopez and Harry Connick Jr., and special guest judge and "American Idol" Season 1 winner Kelly Clarkson. Some of the finalists completely nailed their performances, while others received lukewarm critiques from the judges.
First up to perform was Olivia, who sang "Unconditionally" by Katy Perry. The 17-year-old student took a gamble with the beginning of the song but it won over the judges. Urban told Olivia she's such a real artist, while Lopez said she sang it beautifully. Clarkson agreed telling Olivia it was "so, so good." Connick Jr. simply told Olivia her voice was "pretty" in the beginning.
Next, Gianna performed "Listen" by Beyonce and unfortunately the judges didn't seem too impressed with it. Most of them said it was shaky and Clarkson offered that she not think so much while on stage. Gianna, however, wasn't the only contestant to struggle during the Top 10 performances. Lea, who sang "Skinny Love" by Bon Iver, received mixed critiques from the judges and Connick Jr. told Avalon her performance of Shawn Mendes' "Stitches" wasn't the best song choice for her. Urban told the young singer she also looked nervous in the beginning. Clarkson, however, really enjoyed Avalon's performance and told her that she's captivating.
All the judges were in agreement that Dalton did a good job with his performance. The rocker sang Plain White T's' song "Hey There Delilah." Connick Jr. told him he's "batting a thousand so far," and Urban praised him for a "very cool" performance. Lopez also said he did a really good job and Clarkson pointed out that he looks really comfortable on stage already.
Things didn't go so well for Tristan, who took the stage next performing "Nothin' Like You" by Dan+Shay. Lopez told the aspiring country singer that it wasn't her best performance and Connick Jr. suggested that she choose country songs that people know and have more crossover appeal.
Lopez and Clarkson were both excited about the next performer: MacKenzie. Following him singing "I See Fire" by Ed Sheeran, Clarkson said she was excited to see what else he does on the show. Urban admitted that MacKenzie's performances pull people in and Connick Jr. said it's clear he's passionate when he sings.
The competition really kicked up a notch when single mom La'Porsha took the stage singing Rihanna's "Diamonds." La'Porsha changed the tempo of the song and it worked. She was the only contestant to receive a standing ovation from three judges and Clarkson predicted that she could win the entire competition. She also seemed to have won over the crowd who wouldn't stop cheering for her.
Even though La'Porsha was definitely a favorite among the judges, the performances after hers also received excellent feedback. Urban told Sonika, who sang "Bring Me To Life" by Evanescence that it was an excellent song choice and all the judges praised contestant Trent on his unique vocal skills.
Clarkson, who's eight months pregnant with her second child, closed out Thursday's show with an emotional performance of her song "Piece by Piece" which left Urban wiping away tears.
Now it's up to America to vote once again to decide which contestants will make it to the next round of the competition.
"American Idol" airs Thursdays at 8 p.m. EST on Fox.
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