‘American Idol’: A Pair of Shocking Eliminations as Top 8 Revealed (RECAP)

Hit All the High Notes

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[Warning: The below contains spoilers for American Idol.]

The Top 10 took the stage during American Idol to perform songs from their birth year. To help them with this trip down memory lane was country superstar Shania Twain, who served as Sunday’s show mentor. Judges Katy Perry, Lionel Richie, and Luke Bryan had a front-row seat as the singers aimed to secure a Top 8 slot based on America’s live voting.

Breaking up the heat of competition was two homecomings. Idol champs Scotty McCreery and Just Sam stopped by to show the competitors what is possible with their careers. Scotty brought “Cab in a Solo,” and Just Sam took on  Whitney Houston’s“One Moment in Time.” Since Just Sam won in 2020 during COVID and the at-home season, it was the first time they performed before a live Idol audience. A powerful moment indeed.

Who did host Ryan Seacrest announce making it to the next round? Did the right two go home? Let’s recap below.

Mia Matthews 

The 19-year-old fangirled meeting Shania (Can you blame her?!). Adding more pressure was that she chose “No One Needs to Know” by the Grammy-winner. She wanted something that was fun and flirty and a song to pay tribute to her boyfriend. Shania saw she was taking the easy way out by not going for the higher notes and encouraged her not to be afraid to go for it. Luke loved the commercial potential she has in the world of country music. He called out that she missed a few of the lyrics. Lionel appreciated that the teen was trying different things. Katy liked how she was moving around the stage and said she sounded great.

Jack Blocker 

The 25-year-old opened up about his shyness as a kid. He took us back to 1998 with Cher’s “Believe.” Shania loved the story-telling approach. She thought the Texan could settle into a lower key and be more introspective with the song. Lionel called the graphic designer “Mr. Magic Man” because of how he continues to reinvent himself. Katy liked how he took such a calculated risk with a dance song. Luke encouraged him to have fun with it and leave it all out there on the stage every week.

McKenna Faith Breinholt 

The 25-year-old talked about how she was shy as a kid. Her parents noticed she had an early ear for music. “Iris” by the Goo Goo Dolls. Shania liked her vocal style. For this one, the legendary performer thought simple was better and not to try to do too many things with the song. Katy called it her absolute favorite and said she transported her back in time. Luke found it mature and so well done with some Miley Cyrus mixed in. Lionel called her the queen of smokey voice and how she navigates it. She had a lot of friends in the audience rocking supportive t-shirts.

Kayko

The 23-year-old looked back to a specific drawing with him as a rock star for inspiration. He first decided to do “Oops…I Did It Again” in the spirit of Bohemian Rhapsody. Shainia felt it sounded too theatrical and not rock star-ish. He changed course late in the game and ultimately chose “Teenage Dirtbag” by Wheatus. Points for having his name graffitied on the piano. Luke appreciated how he kept people guessing. “You keep fooling around and you’re going to win this,” Lionel said. Katy thought how weird that would be considering he initially went into an audition playing for someone else at the piano. Shania chimed in to say she loved how he rocked out.

Emmy Russell 

The 25-year-old spoke to Shania about her late grandmother Loretta Lynn. Shania helped her channel her nerves by jumping up and down a bit. The country singer decided to take “All the Small Things” by blink-182 for a spin. Shania worked with her on a few more things that showed off her voice. Lionel said she had a real story-telling purity voice and liked seeing her having fun. Katy called this her most solid performance so far. Luke agreed and noticed she looked more free about it.

Triston Harper 

The 15-year-old decided on “She’s Country” by Jason Aldean. It was a song he listened to in the car with Mom. Shania encouraged him to bring more soul into the performance as he made it his own. Shania and Triston bonded over their respective hardships growing up. Katy called it a big star performance and thanked him for being a student of the game. Luke jokingly accused him of trying to out-gyrate him. Ryan invited him on stage to share a little hip action with Triston. Lionel thought it was great.

Abi Carter

The 21-year-old chose “Clocks” by Coldplay when she was born in 2002. The same year American Idol was born with winner Kelly Clarkson. Looking to go without the piano based on judge feedback, she worked through stage choreography with Shania. Luke liked seeing her connect with fans away from the keys. Lionel said she was on fire with how she worked the stage. Katy thought she stayed true to herself and that it was still angelic.

Julia Gagnon 

The 22-year-old chose Bryan Adams’’ “Here I Am” because of her emotional connection to it. She was age 4 and remembered watching Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron. It got her thinking about her adoption story. Shania encouraged the hopeful to take the vocal a half step down to show vocal dynamics. Lionel liked how she built up the performance. Katy liked to see her bring more intimacy. Luke felt she owned the moment.

Will Moseley 

The 23-year-old sent a video message to his mom from Shania and made her day I’m sure. The Georgia boy chose “Modern Day Bonnie and Clyde” by Travis Tritt. Shania thought he could go higher in his register and wanted him to use his dynamic chops. Katy thought it was the right key and proceeded to show literal keys. Luke liked the song choice. Lionel called it fantastic.

Kaibrienne “KB” Richins

The 20-year-old closed the show with a 2003 platinum hit from 3 Doors Down called “Here Without You.” She felt it captured the grief she was feeling after her childhood friend passed away unexpectedly. Shania felt she could be softer at the beginning of the song and helped her level up. Luke called it one of his favorite performances she has done. Lionel said she had a cry in her voice he could listen to all night long. Katy thought Shania brought the best out of her.

The Results

After a jam-packed night of music, Ryan revealed Mia Matthews and Kayko would be going home after the almost 21 million nationwide vote. Next up for the remaining finalists is Monday’s “Judge’s Song Contest.” The April 29 episode will also feature a tribute to 2005 Idol alum Mandisa, who recently passed away. Colton Dixon, Melinda Doolittle, and Danny Gokey are set to perform “Shackles” by Mary Mary as a tribute to their friend.

American Idol, Sundays and Mondays, 8/7c, ABC