‘American Idol’ Recap: The Judges Save 4 Artists To Round Out the Top 14

Fourteen artists moved on during the April 18 episode of ‘American Idol,’ which meant that six were eliminated after America’s votes and the judges four saves.

After the top 20 performed on the April 17 episode of American Idol, America voted for their favorites, and 14 moved on during the April 18 episode. The ten singers who got the most votes from America automatically moved on, while the judges saved four more out of the ten others. However, all 20 artists performed once again to get votes from America for next week.

The first contestant announced safe was Ava Maybee, who sang Lizzo’s “Cuz I Love You.” The judges were on their feet applauding Ava after the performance. The next artist to learn his fate was Christian Guardino, and he was also safe. Christian belted “Creep” by Radiohead for his performance. Once again, the judges gave a standing ovation, and the audience cheered so loudly for Christian.

‘American Idol’ Top 14 Reveal

Cameron Whitcomb was not one of the artists to be saved by America’s vote, so his performance was as much for the judges as it was for the viewers. Cameron sang “If It Hadn’t Been For Love.” The judges stood up for Cameron, too, and Katy Perry gushed, “I can tell you want to be here by that performance.”

Up next, Allegra Miles also found out that she wasn’t in America’s top 10, so she sang for the judge’s pick, too. Allegra performed “Tainted”, and the judges once again got to their feet. “The passion, the control, and the delivery, you were in control of that with this song,” Lionel Richie told Allegra.

Lady K learned that she was safe, so her performance of “Bust Your Windows” was to earn America’s votes for next week. The judges were definitely feeling the love tonight, as Lady K got a standing ovation, too. Also safe was HunterGirl, who followed up the exciting reveal with a performance of Miranda Lambert’s “Vice.

Next to learn her fate was Katyrah Love, who unfortunately didn’t get one of the coveted automatic spots. Katyrah fought for her spot with a performance of “Through The Fire” by Chaka Khan. “Great performance, way to sing for your life,” Luke Bryan told Katyrah. “To get that news and then deliver a performance like that is amazing. Great job.”

Cadence Baker was up next, and she did not get enough votes from America to automatically make the top 14. She hoped to win over the judges with her performance of Whitney Houston’s “I’m Your Baby Tonight.” Katy said the song fit “perfectly” for Cadence, and gushed over the performance being a “package deal.”

Dan Marshall Performs A Lionel Richie Song

Dan Marshall learned he was safe, then took the stage to perform Lionel’s own hit “Stuck On You.” He’ll find out next week if it’s enough to earn America’s votes for the top 11. Lionel was impressed, and he lip synced along the whole time. He also said Dan “knocked it out of the park.”

The next contestant to hear her fate was Leah Marlene. Leah was confirmed safe, and she excitedly performed an original song. Leah impressed the judges with this original track earlier this season, and now, she’s hoping it has the same affect on voters.

Next, Nicolina was announced as the next member of the top 10. Nicolina sang “She Used To Be Mine,” which is the same song she blew the judges away with at her audition. Meanwhile, Sage learned she had to fight for a judges’ save spot with her performance of “Brown Eyed Lover.” The judges were surprised to see Sage in jeopardy, as Lionel gushed that she “owned the stage.”

Jay Copeland also had to sing for his spot in the top 14. He performed “Believer” by Imagine Dragons, which got the judges and crowd going absolutely wild. “This is why we gave you the platinum ticket and the audience just spoke it here tonight,” Luke said. “Tremendous performance, tremendous song choice for you.”

Up next in the spotlight was Noah Thompson. Noah got one of the top 10 spots, which was the perfect celebration for his 20th birthday. Noah gave a swoon-worthy performance of “Cover Me Up” in hopes of continuing to impress America.

Next to hear results was Jacob Moran, who was not voted through by America. He sang one of Katy’s songs, “Rise,” for his survival song. The judges got to their feet, and Katy joked that she’d be officially “retiring” that song because of how impressive Jacob’s performance was.

Elli Rowe learned her fate next. She didn’t get in the top 10, and sang “All I Want” for her performance. “You have grown so much during this entire session,” Lionel confirmed. “That’s the best performance I’ve seen from you.”

The next artist in the spotlight is Emyrson Flora, who scored an automatic spot in the top 10. She celebrated the news with a performance of her genre round song, “Love in the Dark”, by Adele. Next, Mike Parker had to sing for survival, as he did not get voted through by America. Mike performed “Bed On Fire” by Teddy Swims. “I’m just a huge fan of what you’re doing, what your about, your presentation, and great song choice,” Luke said.

With one spot left in the top 10, Fritz Hager found out he was moving on. Fritz sang Harry Styles’ “Golden” while rocking out on guitar. Finally, Tristen Gressett had to sing for his life, as he did not automatically move on. Tristen performed “Are You Gonna Go My Way?” with the judges pick on the line. Katy screamed and said, “Tristen, you are a rockstar no matter what happens to you!”

The Judges Save 4 Artists 

After all the performances were complete, the judges had to save four artists of the bottom 10: Cameron Whitcomb, Allegra Miles, Katyrah Love, Cadence Baker, Sage, Jay Copeland, Jacob Moran, Elli Rowe, Mike Parker and Tristen Gressett.

The judges deliberated before making their decision. The first person they chose to move on was Allegra Miles, followed by Jay Copeland. The last two spots were given to Mike Parker and Tristen Gressett. So, eliminated tonight was: Cameron Whitcomb, Katyrah Love, Cadence Baker, Sage, Jacob Moran and Elli Rowe

So, the full top 14 on season 20 of American Idol are: Christian Guardino, HunterGirl, Leah Marlene, Nicolina, Noah Thompson, Ava Maybee, Dan Marshall, Lady K, Emyrson Flora, Fritz Hager, Allegra Miles, Jay Copeland, Mike Parker and Tristen Gressett. These 14 singers will perform again on April 24 in hopes of making it to the top 11.