The new Duets Round delivered some of the strongest performances in the long history of this show thanks to the judges deciding the pairing — but you still have to remember the lyrics!
Can we just say how surprised we are that so many contestants showed up in this Duets Round of “American Idol” that we’ve never seen before!
We know it happens every year, that some contestants just don’t get any screen time until later in the process, but it felt like a lot more this time around. And a few of those were even absolutely stunning vocalists. Others … let’s just say, we get it.
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With the judges having picked the duet partnerships this time around, it feels like we got a much better final product (or maybe they just selected the best for us to see). There were some absolutely incredible performances, including one we’ve already put on loop!
The night also featured one of the most frightening moments we’ve seen on this show as one contestant collapsed and hit the stage hard during a critique. Look, we’ve seen plenty of collapses before, but this one was genuinely heart-stopping.
Finally, we’d like to point out that while many of our favorite — at least, the ones that we saw — did survive this round, Katy’s wig did not. One performance was just too much for her, and she declared the whole competition over, taking off her gloves and yes, even her hair, as she headed off.
Yes, there are some definite frontrunners already, and they are strong this year! Could one of them be the next American Idol?
Fair warning, since I’m safe at home, I’m probably going to be a little harsher than my colleagues Lionel Richie, Katy Perry and Luke Bryan. But I might be nicer, too. Maybe.
Just for fun, I’m going to rank the performances from worst to first for overall duet performance to see who my favorites are.
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Alana & Samantha Sharpe
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(“Just Give Me a Reason,” P!nk – 22, Lakewood Ranch, FL & 25, Basking Ridge, NJ) Samantha started over at least twice in the short clip we got while Alana just stood there. Did she ever get to sing? We’re pretty sure Samantha didn’t endear herself to the judges with this performance.
Result: Unknown
Miguela & Monica Leah
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(“Titanium,” David Guetta f. Sia – Unknown & Unknown) Well, that was shrill. We’ve never seen either of these ladies before, but we’re now surprised they made it this far. This has to have been their worst performance yet. It was out of tune and out of harmony. Just yikes!
Result: Both going home
Sloane Simon & Zach D’Onofrio
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(“You Make My Dreams (Come True),” Daryl Hall & John Oates – Unknown & 19, Wesley Chapel, FL) Well, this was a trainwreck and a disappointment. Zach is definitely a better vocalist than this. We don’t know Sloane from before this episode, but her voice and performance didn’t live up to her peppy personality. She was a little whiny and a lot pitchy. He was even more timid than before vocally, sounding as if he was a reluctant guy dragged on stage to sing karaoke with his girlfriend.
Result: Both going home
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Alec Shaw & Sadie Leigh
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(“Somebody That I Used to Know,” Gotye f. Kimbra – Unknown & Unknown) We were as unfamiliar with these two as Sadie was with the lyrics to this song. We don’t learn their fate, but we can guess.
Result: Unknown
Claudia Conway & Hannah Everhart
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https://youtu.be/c6NlXbqFT6g
(“Sign of the Times,” Harry Styles – 16, Washington, DC & 17, Canton, MS) They probably should have harmonized less, because this sounded terrible from the first moment. And it was immediately clear that it was Claudia who was coming in just under where she needed to be, killing the blend at times. It was a very sleepy performance overall. Neither of them sounded amazing, but Hannah was definitely the more polished of the two. Overall, though, it was incredibly underwhelming.
Result: Claudia going home, Hannah going forward
Cameron Allen & Graham DeFranco
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https://youtu.be/gOe_CnaNM7E
(“Watermelon Sugar,” Harry Styles – 20, Moore, OK & 27, Rockwall, TX) We didn’t get much of a glance at this, but what we saw was nothing to really write home about. We got one line with Graham, and he had that same silky, smooth delivery we know he brings. But Cameron, who we didn’t even see in the last round, sang it like he didn’t know it, was maybe a little afraid of it and certainly wasn’t feeling any passion about it.
Result: Cameron going home, Graham going forward
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Laila Mach & Liahona Olayan
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https://youtu.be/pEVsIptV6do
(“Stay,” Rihanna f. Mikky Ekko – 15, New Paltz, NY & 17, Wahiawa, HI) Liahona was really struggling with her brother leaving the competition, feeling very alone. Even Katy noted the heaviness and it carried through to the stage, with even her body language looking totally defeated. Her eyes were puffy. While her voice still sounded great, and she harmonized well with Laila (who was giving it her all), Liahona was just listless.
By the end, it was obvious that only one person really cared still. Laila had a lot of power in her voice and she gave a great performance, animated and with lots of energy. She was everything her partner wasn’t. Katy saddled Liahona with some much-needed tough love, but she got another chance.
Result: Both going forward
Funke Lagoke & Ronda Felton
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https://youtu.be/6vbLKi_yAoo
(“Tell Him,” Barbra Streisand & Celine Dion – Unknown & 19, Milwaukee, WI) Ronda started worrying about getting her hopes too high only to fall back down, but it looked like she ahd a good partner in Funke, who was there for her. But if they can both rein in their emotion and the connection they found, this could be really special. Unfortunately, while it had a lot of heart and some really great moments from each of them, it also featured some forgotten lyrics and an early start for Funke. We still like this friendship, and they both have impressive tools, but was that too many mistakes?
It was definitely too many nerves. Even knowing it was coming, we’d somehow forgotten to pay attention to who and it was genuinely frightening watching Funke collapse on the stage while Lionel was giving her his critique. She fell and she hit hard and our heart was in our chest, too! Ultimately, there was too much potential in both of them to let them go — which we can support — but they definitely need to both get a better handle on their nerves!
Result: Both going forward
Beane & Kari Erickson
[[see Cameron & Graham above for video]]
(“Watermelon Sugar,” Harry Styles – 23, Boston, MA & Unknown) Unless we missed something, we’ve never seen Kari before this performance. Well, she brought just the right amount of sweet sassiness to this performance, matching Beane’s unique style quite well. They harmonized quite well, too, proving that even a song that doesn’t appear to offer much can be a showcase in the right hands. Kari’s timing was off quite a bit at times, but we still saw more than the judges.
Result: Bean going forward, Kari going home
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Deshawn Goncalves & Madison Watkins
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https://youtu.be/mv9UTPn9CI4
(“Stay,” Rihanna f. Mikky Ekko – 19, Cleveland, OH & 25, Fayetteville, AR) Well, they definitely oversang the hell out of this song. As a show piece to spotlight their range, vibrato and overall power as vocalists, it was great. As a piece of entertainment, it felt a bit much. Both of them can sing incredibly well, and proved that, but we’re not thrilled with all of the choices they made. Maybe about half of the dramatics and we’d have been in love with it. But they definitely can sing … no, they can sang!
Result: Both going forward
Alex Miller & Emisunshine
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https://youtu.be/XgFxZwUIvoM
(“I Walk the Line,” Johnny Cash – 17, Lancaster, KY & 16, Madisonville, TN) Despite Luke wanting to see them on a different song so Emisunshine could hit a big note and Alex could challenge himself away from old-school country, they instead retreated back to its comfort. And it was a pretty safe delivery for him for sure, though Emisunshine found some moments to — ahem — shine throughout. Her vibrato was a bit shaky and overdone, at times, but you could also tell Luke was a little disappointed they ignored his advice.
Result: Both going forward
Ben Dodson & Henry Thompson
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(“Mercy,” Shawn Mendes – Unknown & Unknown) Two people we’ve never seen before this moment, and while we think Ben had a little more gusto and grit in his voice, Henry was the perfect smooth counterpart. It was just a solid performance.
Result: Both going forward
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Lizzy O’Very & Murphy
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(“Dreams,” Fleetwood Mac – 20, Ephriam, UT & 27, Baltimore, MD) Lizzy brought a very interesting, ethereal quality to this vocal performance, almost reaching into the stratosphere for some of those notes. Back on the ground — barefoot and connected with her — Murphy mined his rich voice for even greater depth and connection. It was a connection both odd and compelling as they really made this song feel like it was theirs with a performance that could definitely have stopped right out of the ‘60s.
Result: Both going forward
Jazzy Rose & Re’H
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(“Common,” Maren Morris f. Brandi Carlile – Unknown & 27, Houston, TX) Another stellar combination. Even though we only saw the briefest glimpse of what they had to offer, it was stellar harmonies and solid individual, confident vocals.
Result: Both going forward
Chayce Beckham & Christina Daugherty
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(“July,” Noah Cyrus – 24, Apple Valley, CA & 28, Knoxville, TN) What they lacked in vocal tricks they more than made up for in heart. It was an emotionally connected performance. It felt like Chayce had a bit more power and grit in his voice, feeling it a little more raw and projecting that effectively to the audience. But Christina made some interesting choices that complimented the overall performance very well, and she has a great bit of gravel in her voice, as well, that we saw in the chorus.
Result: Chayce going forward, Christina going home
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Cassandra Coleman & Wyatt Pike
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(“Too Close,” Alex Clare – 24, Columbia, TN & 19, Park City, UT) Cassandra really needed to battle through her fear and nerves to be able to step up for her partner this round. Wyatt managed to almost sing backup to Cassandra and yet still stand out with this incredible timbre to his voice that draws you in. Cassandra managed to shake the nerves and deliver a strong performance, with lots of heart and some lovely vocal moves. Nothing was overdone, creating a really nice overall piece. Plus, their harmonies were just spot-on.
Result: Both going forward
Althea Grace & Camille Lamb
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(“You Don’t Own Me,” Lesley Gore – 21, Chicago, IL & Unknown) Althea pretty bluntly told the cameras she wasn’t feeling the “click” with Camille, so basically didn’t want to perform with her. A health scare with her daughter rattled Althea even more to the point she again considered going home, but she decided to power through.
And after all that, the ladies delivered a wonderful duet, filled with an unexpected sultry smokiness in their vocals through a beautifully harmonized chorus and then into their individual spotlight verses. It was a confident performance unexpected after such turmoil, but a testament ot their heart and compassion for one another as human beings.
Katy had to give them their props for overcoming their petty differences and really coming together to support one another. “Could you imagine what Taylor and I could do?” she asked her fellow judges, imagining that same “queen” energy that she just witnessed.
Result: Both going forward
Ava August & Hunter Metts
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(“Dancing on My Own,” Robyn [as performed by Calum Scott] – 15, Laguna Niguel, CA & 22, Franklin, TN) Easily one of the most popular versions of this song to cover, they both managed to find a lot of emotion in their performance. Ava had a haunting echo at times in her voice that was absolutely mesmerizing, while Hunter settled into a natural velvety crispness in his that’s just — well, yummy is the word that comes to mind. Even better, their sounds complemented one another extremely well.
Result: Both going forward
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Adriel Carrion & Anthony Guzman
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(“Watermelon Sugar,” Clinton Kane – Unknown & 27, Santa Rosa, CA) We’ve never seen Adriel before this performance and we suspect it’s because he didn’t stand out until this moment. Maybe some time with the “Viking” was just what the doctor ordered, because they just slayed a song that had been butchered over and over again to this point. Each brought their own unique vocal approach, but they paired wonderfully. It was different and interesting to the point you found yourself wondering with each line how they were going to interpret it. That’s how you create excitement in an audience.
Result: Both going forward
Kya Moneé & Willie Spence
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https://youtu.be/D_qjGKSJWEg
(“Stay,” Rihanna f. Mikky Ekko – Unknown & 21, Douglas, GA) If Kya is this good, how come we haven’t seen her before this? If Willie — who is definitely this good — lifted her to new heights, he’se even more amazing than we already thought. This was just wonderful from start to finish. A powerfully emotional performance, coming after Funke’s collapse to a palpably shaken room, it proved even more touching for the frayed nerves it was soothing. Willie remains a tour de force in his own class, but Kya really blew us away with some powerful runs and grit in her voice that really stood out even alongside him.
Result: Both going forward
Alyssa Wray & Grace Kintsler
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(“Grenade,” Bruno Mars – 18, Perryville, KY & 20, Chicago, IL) How do you critique mastery? What a perfect pairing. Already incredible powerhouse vocalists, Alyssa and Grace actually managed to push each other two new heights. But it wasn’t just in how big their voices could be, but in their artistry and how they chose to use it. Alyssa showed a wonderful grit and anger in her voice that she can channel, while Grace had a smoother, yet equally embittered tone that she found. This was just incredible from start to finish, and well worth the multiple times we’ve arleady watched it.
Result: Both going forward
”American Idol” continues Sundays and Mondays at 8 p.m. ET on ABC.
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