‘American Idol’ Season 23 Live Blog: Top 14 Reveal (April 21, 2025)

After much deliberation, the judges revealed the four people they decided to pass through to the Top 14. Those lucky four were Desmond Roberts, Josh King, Ché, and Amanda Barise. That meant that Isaiah Misailegalu, Drew Ryn, Olivier Bergeron, Baylee Littrell, Zaylie Windsor, and Victor Solomon were sent packing.

The final two contestants of the night, Amanda Barise and Gabby Samone, learned their fates side-by-side. It was Samone who landed the final automatic spot in the Top 14. She celebrated the happy news by performing Barbra Streisand’s “Don’t Rain on My Parade,” leaving all three judges on their feet. Afterwards, Barise had to sing for her life, performing Aretha Franklin’s “Ain’t No Way.” Barise earned a standing ovation from the judges, with Richie telling her, “That’s called standing up and reminding us who you are.” 

After Victor Solomon performed Kurt Carr’s “For Every Mountain,” America was not impressed enough to vote him into the Top 14. Instead, Solomon had to perform to stay alive, aptly opting for the Bee Gees’ “Stayin’ Alive.”

“You have brought the entertainment,” Bryan praised after the performance. “… Thank you so much for just brining it every week.”

Slater Nalley’s Allman Brothers Band cover of “Soulshine” was enough to win over America. With his spot in the Top 14 secure, Nalley celebrated with a performance of Jason Isbell’s “This Ain’t It.”

Jamal Roberts’ rendition of Jason Nelson’s “Forever” captured America’s hearts, and voters sent him through to the Top 14. A performance of Otis Redding’s “Try a Little Tenderness” followed, proving once again why Roberts is moving on in the competition.

 Zaylie Windsor’s cover of Fleetwood Mac’s “Silver Springs” didn’t earn her a spot in Idol‘s Top 14. After learning that tough news, Windsor sang for her life with a performance of Paramore’s “Still into You.” Afterwards, Underwood praised her song choice and noted how hard the contestants vying for their lives had made it.

Breanna Nix’s performance of Patty Griffin’s “Up to the Mountain” won over America and earned her enough votes to make it into the show’s Top 14. A performance of Queen’s “The Show Must Go On” followed, with Nix clearly enjoying her time on stage absent of the pressure it usually includes.

Even though Jon Batiste himself was a fan of Desmond Roberts’ rendition of “Worship,” America didn’t agree. He instead had to sing for one of the judges’ four picks, performing an impressive version of David Guetta’s “Titanium.” All the judges were on their feet after his performance, with Richie declaring, “That simplicity is what we need more of. That was standing still, nailing it.”

Baylee Littrell’s performance on Easter Sunday didn’t get him enough of America’s votes to snag a spot in the Top 14. He tried to get through with the judges’ help by performing John Legend’s “All of Me.” Carrie Underwood said Littrell’s time on stage was his “best performance” to date and encouraged him to keep up the good work.

Ché performed Bob Marley’s “Redemption Song” during the Easter Sunday episode of Idol, and redemption is exactly what he was in search of the following night. Since America didn’t vote Ché through to the Top 14, he performed John Lennon’s “Jealous Guy” to try and stay alive with the help of the judges. All three judges offered Ché a standing ovation after his performance, with Luke Bryan declaring, “I don’t know how he’s not going through.”

America voted Canaan James Hill through to the Top 14 thanks to his performance of Le’Andria Johnson’s “Better Days.” To celebrate, he took the stage to perform an expert rendition of Donnie McClurkin’s “Stand.”

This season’s youngest finalist, Mattie Pruitt earned America’s votes with her performance of Lauren Daigle’s “Rescue.” She celebrated the happy news with a performance of “In the Stars” by Benson Boone.

Josh King’s performance of Joe Cocker’s “You Are So Beautiful” didn’t inspire America to vote him through to the Top 14. As such, King was forced to sing for the judges in order to extend his stay on Idol. After performing Rick Astley’s “Never Gonna Give You Up,” all three judges gave King a standing ovation.

“Give me more of that,” Richie said after King’s time on stage.

After John Foster performed “Tell That Angel I Love Her” for his late friend, America voted him through to the Top 14. His celebratory time on stage came with a performance of Brooks and Dunn’s “Neon Moon” that had the audience and judges swaying and singing along.

Filo’s unforgettable performance of Simon and Garfunkel’s “Bridge Over Troubled Water” got him through to the Top 14. His first performance as a member of the exclusive club was of Adele’s “Skyfall.”

After finding out that his performance of Rihanna and Mikky Ekko’s “Stay” wasn’t enough to get him into the Top 14, Olivier Bergeron performed “It’s Not My Time” by 3 Doors Down to try and stay in the competition. Carrie Underwood praised Bergeron’s “perfect song choice” and said he’s done “so much” to try and stay alive on Idol.

In between results, Seacrest revealed that, on Sunday, the show will host its annual Rock ‘N Roll Hall of Fame Night with special guest James Taylor. The following night, Fantasia will be on hand to mentor contestants.

Thunderstorm Artis’ performance of Cory Asbury’s “Reckless Love” earned him a spot in the Top 14. He celebrated the happy news with an impressive rendition of Billie Eilish’s song, “I Love You.”

Drew Ryn’s performance of Coldplay’s “Yellow” was well received during the last episode, but the singer was disappointed to learn that she’d have to suffer through a commercial break before learning if she’d made it through. It wasn’t news that eventually came. After the break, Seacrest told Ryn that she’d lander herself in the Danger Zone. She fought for her life on Idol by performing Lady Gaga’s “Million Reasons.” After her performance, Lionel Richie praised her “spectacular” voice, by encouraged her to ramp up her energy in future performances.

Next up to the stage was Isaiah Misailegalu. Unfortunately, his performance of “Give You Blue” was not enough to earn him a place in the Top 14. As such he was forced to perform for the judges to try and force his way in. He performed Sammy Johnson’s “Sleepwalker” to fight for his spot. Luke Bryan noted that Misailegalu handled the “tough news” well, and assured that his “performance will keep us talking about keeping you here.”

Seacrest wasted no time in getting to the results. He revealed that, following her performance of “Amazing Grace,” Kolbi Jordan had earned her spot in the Top 14. Jordan celebrated the news by performing an energetic rendition of “I’m Every Woman.”

Host Ryan Seacrest welcomed viewers to the live episode by revealing that voters sent in one billion votes to narrow the pool down to 14.