Disney/Matt Stroshane
On the May 2, 2021 episode of ABC’s “American Idol,” long-time host Ryan Seacrest announced the winner of the Comeback show as well as the top 7 contestants. The top 7 were voted in by viewers of the show.
WARNING: Spoilers for the top 7 live reveal episode of “American Idol” follow. Do not read on if you don’t want to know who made it through to the top 7.
Read on below for a live recap of the results as they aired. If you’d rather just have a list of which contestants made it through and which were eliminated, scroll to the bottom for that.
‘American Idol’ 2021 Top 7 Live Recap
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The show started with Mickey Mouse welcoming the top 9 contestants to Disney World, and that led to the introduction of Sofia Carson, a Disney star, who sang “A Whole New World” from Aladdin. The original top 9 contestants all joined Carson on the stage to perform the song.
Ryan Seacrest took the stage to welcome viewers to the show and announce the start of Disney Night. Judges Katy Perry, Lionel Richie and Luke Bryan were introduced, and Perry came dressed as Tinkerbell.
The comeback contestant was announced to be Arthur Gunn, the season 18 runner-up.
First up to perform was Caleb Kennedy with “Real Gone” from Cars. The judges praised his performance, with Katy Perry telling him he got more “sparkle” and Bryan saying Caleb was finally giving them a look into who he is as an artist.
Next up was Willie Spence singing “Circle of Life” from The Lion King. He received a standing ovation from the judges, and Luke Bryan in particular was impressed.
“I’m sitting here like, ‘Why am I crying on The Lion King?” Richie told him with tears still in his eyes.
Deshawn Goncalves was up next to perform, singing “When You Wish Upon a Star” from Pinocchio. He sang a jazz rendition of the song, which received high praise from Lionel Richie.
Casey Bishop took the stage next, and she chose to sing “When She Loved Me” from Toy Story 2. The judges adored her change of tone since a few performances ago.
Chayce Beckham sang “Baby Mine” from the movie Dumbo for his Disney song. His take on the song made a lullaby into a “cool song,” according to Katy Perry. She told him he needed “Faith, trust, and Pixie Dust” to move forward.
Next up was Alyssa Wray, who chose to sing “A Dream Is a Wish Your Heart Makes” from Cinderella. She took the stage in a very shiny dress, and the judges said they adored the presentation.
Arthur Gunn chose to sing “Remember Me” from Coco for his song. He changed up the arrangement from the original, and the judges thought it was one of his “best performances” ever.
The show took a break to have John Batiste perform “It’s All Right” from the Oscar-winning animated movie Soul.
Then, Cassandra Coleman took the stage to sing “Go The Distance” from Hercules. The judges told her it was the most solid performance yet.
Up next was Hunter Metts with “You’ll Be In My Heart” from Tarzan. The judges told him the performance was great, especially at the end of the song.
The last performance of the night came from Grace Kinstler, who chose to perform “Into the Unknown” from Disney’s Frozen II. The performance was filled with show-stopping notes, and the judges gave her a standing ovation.
“I mean, you walked to the mic with the look in your eyes like, ‘I’m about to slay this,’ and there was never any doubt,” Luke Bryan told her.
‘American Idol’ Top 7 & Who Was Eliminated
Here’s who made it through to the top 7:
- Chayce Beckham
- Casey Bishop
- Willie Spence
- Hunter Metts
- Caleb Kennedy
- Grace Kinstler
- Arthur Gunn
Here’s who was eliminated:
- Deshawn Goncalves
- Cassandra Coleman
- Alyssa Wray
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“American Idol” airs on Sundays and Mondays at 8 p.m. Eastern on ABC.
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