Kelly Clarkson serves as a guest judge, declaring that La'Porsha Renae deserves to be the winner in this final season.
- Feb 26, 2016
AceShowbiz - Here are the Top 10 of "American Idol" season 15. Following their performances on Wednesday night, six other contestants who nabbed the remaining spots in the Top 10 were announced on Thursday, February 14. They were Tristan McIntosh, Sonika Vaid, Gianna Taylor, MacKenzie Bourg, Avalon Young and Lee Jean. This meant Manny Torres, Thomas Stringfellow, Jenn Blosil and Jeneve Rose Mitchell were eliminated.
Host Ryan Seacrest then brought out the first Idol, Kelly Clarkson, who served as a guest judge that night, followed by a performance by one of the Top 10 artists. Olivia Rox performed first, delivering "Unconditionally" by Katy Perry. The judges loved the arrangement, and Harry Connick Jr. had nothing to complain, but Keith Urban encouraged her to "keep loosening up and relaxing."
Gianna Isabella sang Beyonce Knowles' "Listen" next. Jennifer Lopez frankly said it wasn't her best performance and urged her to pick songs that show her strengths. Harry said it felt "very arranged."
Lee Jean followed it up with a performance of "Skinny Love" by Bon Iver. Keith noted that Lee's strength was his ability to "tell a story," but Harry was concerned that Lee sounded similar with MacKenzie Bourg.
Avalon Young took on "Stitches" by Shawn Mendes. Kelly said she usually didn't like the original versions of the songs that Avalon sang, but she loved them when Avalon sang them. Harry, however, thought it wasn't the best song for Avalon and J.Lo agreed with him.
Dalton Rapattoni chose "Hey There Delila" by the Plain White T's. Keith liked that Dalton always made the songs he sang different and Kelly praised his artistry. Harry added, "Every time you have sung, you have completely flipped the concept of the arrangement and so far you are batting a 1,000."
Up next was Tristan McIntosh who went with "Nothin' Like You" by Dan + Shay. It was pitchy, so J.Lo suggested that she picked the songs she's comfortable with. Kelly agreed with J.Lo, adding that she would love to hear Tristan sing a Trisha Yearwood song.
MacKenzie Bourg sang "I See Fire" by Ed Sheeran. The judges once again praised his ability to connect to the song and MacKenzie shared that the song reflected the feeling he got from this competition, a fire within him.
La'Porsha Renae took a risky choice with her arrangement for a cover of Rihanna's "Diamonds", but it paid off. "If you don't win, I don't understand, you are so blessed," Kelly declared. Keith added, "What you just gave was pure humanity, it was beautiful."
Sonika Vaid rocked the stage with a rendition of "Bring Me to Life" by Evanescence. J.Lo said Sonika's "dangerous," because she had "such an amazing voice." Kelly said, "You are never pitchy, and that is amazing accomplishment in itself."
Last but not least, Trent Harmon sang "Like I Can" by Sam Smith with a country twist. "Wow, seriously I feel like we have one of the best competitions ever on Idol this year," J.Lo exclaimed. She and Kelly liked his unique voice.
Kelly closed out the night with an emotional performance of her single "Piece by Piece".
Next week, the Top 8 will be revealed.
