It’s another exciting night of American Idol on ABC tonight with an all-new Monday, May 1, 2023, season 6 episode 15 called “Judge’s Song Contest” and we have your weekly American Idol recap below.
On tonight’s American Idol season 6 episode 15 as per the ABC synopsis,“The Judge’s Song Contest returns as judges Luke Bryan, Katy Perry and Lionel Richie each suggest songs for the contestants to choose from. America votes for the Top 7 LIVE coast to coast.”
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Tonights American Idol episode begins with Ryan Seacrest explaining that the top 10 were given three different songs each, chosen by a mystery judge – and we will find out which judge choose the song they sing.
Kicking off the music tonight is Zachariah Smith. His fondest memory of Katy is her telling him that he was top ten material early on. He gets to choose from “Crocodile Rock” by Elton John, “Wanted Dead Or Alive,” by Bon Jovi or “Ain’t Too Proud to Beg,” by The Temptations. Zachariah says Bon Jovi’s song is a grand slam, the voice pushes his voice to the edge, he just has to maintain control. He is going to try to keep it calm.
Zachariah thinks Luke picked that song, but it wasn’t him, it was Lionel who says the attitude was perfect, the edge in his voice was incredible, it was nasty, fantastic job. Katy says the crowd hasn’t screamed that loud except for Iam, and he is great. Luke says the energy from yesterday is still there, it was amazing, congrats to Lionel.
Haven Madison Is next, and she gets to choose from “The Only Exception,” by Paramore, “River” by Bishop Briggs or “Cuz I Love You,” by Lizzo. She chooses “The Only Exception,” and she is singing it because it is an experience she is going through.
Haven thinks Katy choose the song, and she is correct. Katy thought the song would perfect for her because it was beautiful and delicate, it was amazing. Luke says that he is going drive up to her place and find this boy, he better not break her heart. Lionel says she has graduated, she is control of her entire career, she has that it thing going for her.
Winner of the 19th season of American Idol Chayce Beckham returns to the stage and sings his newest single, “Till The Day I Die.”
Ani is the next one to perform and she gets to choose from “Don’t Watch Me Cry,” by Jorja Smith, “I Have Nothing,” by Whitney Houston or “I Try,” by Macy Grey. She is going to tackle a Whitney song, but everyone knows it so it is easy to mess up, that is the challenge.
Wé thinks it was Lionel who picked that song, it wasn’t. I was Luke and he is proud of her in that performance, it was one of the most elegant things he has ever seen, it was breathtaking, he never had chills like that. Lionel says he watched Whitney do it a million times, but tonight she owned that song, she slayed it. Katy says she was wrong, she picked the right song.
Oliver Steele gets to choose from “Heartbreak Warfare,” by John Mayer, :Bigger Than My Body,” by John Mayer or “High and Dry,” by Radiohead. Oliver chooses “High and Dry” because it is out of his comfort zone and he wants to push himself.
Oliver thinks Katy choose the song, he is right. Katy says he went with his intuition and it was spot on, delicate, so angelic, nothing like he has done before. Luke says he se a feeling and emotion, and he would like to see him play more guitar, its really cool how he integrates it with his vocals. Lionel says the vibe was everything.
Warren Peay is up and he gets to choose from “Free Bird,” by Lynyrd Skynyrd, “Colder Weather,” by Zac Brown Road and “Blue Side of The Mountain,” by The Steeldrivers. Warren says these are some of his favourite songs, they are powerhouse iconic songs. He chooses to sing “Colder Weather,” because vocally it is better for him.
Warren thinks Luke picked the song, but he did not. Lionel choose the song and he says Warren gabbed the mic and became he artist, the storyteller, it was amazing. Katy loved it, she says he has this beautiful softness that goes grit, it was nasty and she wants to see more of it. Luke says great song choice and loves to hear the grit.
Iam Tomi is next and he gets to choose from “What A Wonderful World,” by Louis Armstrong, “Consider Me,” by Allen Stone, or “More Than Words,” by Extreme. Ian chooses “More Than Words,” but changes his mind and goes for “What A Wonderful World.”
Iam thinks Lionel picked the song, but he didn’t, it was Luke and he prayed Iam would sing that and he is glad he did, jay felt like the right time and the right moment. Lionel says his presence, his sensitivity, he drags them in on the first night, he is a phenomenon and he is very special. Katy says when he wins America Idol, will he sing “More Than Words,” for her – she says it is a wonderful world because he is in it.
Marybeth Byrd is up for her song choice and she gets to choose from “Wasted On You,” by Morgan Wallet, “Here You Come Again,” by Dolly Parton or “Don’t It Make My Brown Eyes Blue,” by Crystal Gayle. She goes wither gut and chooses “Wasted On You.”
Marybeth thinks Luke choose that song, and he did not, Lionel did and says she needed to fight, get out of her comfort zone, get nasty and she did. Katy says last night she thought have the contestants evolved but Marybeth didn’t, but tonight, she is the butterfly. Luke says Katy is right on the money, that was her stand out moment, they needed to see that, her best performance thus far.
Tyson Venegas is up and he gets to choose from “When I Was Your Man,” by Bruno Mars, “Someone Like You,” by Adele, “Someone You Loved,” by Lewis Capaldi. Tyson has not sang an emotional song on the show, but the Lewis Capaldi song he can relate to because he misses home and he has to put that emotional into the song.
Tyson thinks Katy choose that song and she did, that is what she wanted to see from him, in her own way, he has graduated to butterfly status, he has heart, soul, passion and spirit. Luke says it is an amazing group, they are feeding off each other, great performance, way to show up. Lionel says that he has his own style, he owned that emotional point of his career, it was fantastic.
Megan Danielle gets to choose from, “Go Rest High On That Mountain,” by Vince Gill, “Rescue Story,” by Zach Williams or “Make you Feel My Love,” by Bob Dylan. Megan sang Vince Gill’s song for her grandpa’s funeral, so she is choosing it for her performance and it is going to be very emotional, she says this is the perfect way to honour him.
Megan thinks she thinks it is Lionel who choose the song, he reminds her of her grandpa. It was a Luke, he says that was unbelievable, amazing, and he gives her hug – he loves that she is never scared to tell anyone her faith, and he thought he could not pick a better one, she was perfect. Lionel says she has an amazing ability to touch, her voice is so powerful when it comes down to telling a story. Katy says her grandpa choose that song, and he is trying to tell her that she is exactly where she is meant to be, she deserves this moment, it was heaven sent.
Colin Stough gets to choose from “‘Till You Can’t.” By Cody Johnson, “Starting Over,” by Chris Stapleton, or “It’s Been Awhile,” by Staind. Colin chooses Staind’s song because it relates to his life and he likes to sing songs that mean something to him.
Colin thinks Katy choose that song, she says she is happy that she won and he picked the right song, he listened to his intuition. Luke says he is just so everything perfect in the world, he will get even more comfortable and he is knocking it out of the park. Lionel say he scared himself to death with that last note.
Voting is over, time for results.
Just under 23 million votes came in. The first person in the top seven is Megan Danielle, then Haven Madison, Warren Peay, Wé Ani, Colin Stough, Yam Tomi, Zachariah Smith.
Tyson Venegas, Marybeth Byrd and Oliver Steele are eliminated.
THE END!