“American Idol” Recap: Hollywood Week Continues with Group Performances
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Michael Tran/FilmMagic(LOS ANGELES) — Hollywood Week on American Idol continued Thursday night with the 104 remaining contestants performing for judges Jennifer Lopez, Keith Urban and Harry Connick, Jr. in groups of three or four. Nearly 30 of them were eliminated by the end of the one-hour episode.
Here’s what happened:
David Oliver Willis and Tony Foster Jr., two contestants from season 12, joined Sarina Joi Crowe for a rendition of the Alex Clare hit “Too Close.” Tony was dismissed, while his two colleagues moved on. When Tony asked why the judges made the decision that they did, Harry explained that Tony spent most of his time on stage staring down at his feet.
Casey Thrasher, Dexter Roberts and Ben Briley called themselves Backstreet Cowboys. The reason: they sang a country-tinged version of the Backstreet Boys single “I Want It That Way.” Keith loved how they made the country boy band concept work. All three men advanced.
The show then quickly recapped a number of other contestants who sang for the judges. Among those who advanced: Kenzie Hall, who previously put an acoustic spin on the Macklemore & Ryan Lewis song “Can’t Hold Us” on Wednesday’s episode.
Spencer Lloyd, Megan Miller and Alyssa Siebken teamed up on Gavin DeGraw’s “Best I Ever Had.” Megan messed up her part, and she shed tears afterward. Nevertheless, she and Spencer were told they are sticking around. Alyssa was sent home.
The show briefly told us some of the other contestants who were eliminated, including Madison Walker, Keith London and Adam Roth. Tiquila Wilson told the judges she was quitting the competition because her heart belongs to gospel music.
The next group was comprised of Caleb Johnson, Matthew Hamel, C.J. Harris and Tyler Ahlgren. Harry told Caleb he owned the performance. Caleb and C.J. advanced.
They were followed by the group known as Clarity. The members were Jena Asciutto, Sikenya Thompson, Munfarid Zarid and Allie Odom. Sikenya had gone missing during rehearsals, having asked for a day off because she was ill and needed to rest her voice. She struggled during the performance, but Keith praised her for staying tough despite her condition. The judges said goodbye to Allie, and kept her groupmates around.
A group featuring Savion Wright and John Fox sang Lorde’s Grammy-winning song, “Royals.” Savion cried after learning that John, who like Savion had auditioned in Austin, Texas, was going home.
Nica Nashae, Stephanie Hanvey, Cara Watson and Jessica Meuse covered the Beyoncé hit “Single Ladies (Put A Ring On It).” J-Lo said it looked as if they didn’t know what was going on. Only Stephanie was eliminated, to the dismay of her mom, who shouted words of support from the cheap seats. Afterward, the mom berated the rest of the group, and rubbed Jessica the wrong way in the process. Jessica told her she was being rude.
Terrica Curry, Carmen Delgina and Emmanuel Zidor sang the Destiny’s Child song “Say My Name.” It didn’t go over well with the judges. Only Emmanuel was asked back.
Christina Collins, Olivia Diamond, Queen Bulls and Malaya Watson closed out the round with a Jackson 5 tune. They all were passed through.
Only 77 contestants are left heading into next Wednesday’s episode on Fox. They’ll have one final solo as the judges try to narrow down the field to 30.
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