When former Voice contestant Michael Williams first showed up for his American Idol audition, he left judge Katy Perry mesmerized by his smooth falsetto cover of Bruno Mars’ 2010 hit, “Talking to the Moon.” Williams returned on Sunday (April 9) for a soulful rendition of Miley Cyrus’ 2020 Plastic Hearts single “Angels Like You.”
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“The judges, in the first audition, told me that I was top 10 material, which kind of blew my mind,” said Williams in a pre-recorded interview before his performance. “I feel confident going into the room today, but I’m also keeping my expectations at a certain level.”
Williams added, “This is my one chance to make it to the top 24. I gotta prove to them that what they said was true.”
The 21-year-old Mason, Ohio singer sang softly powered through the Cyrus ballad, trying to make the evocative lyrics ring out, along with the peak of the chorus And it’s not your fault I can’t be what you need / Baby, angels like you can’t fly down hell with me / I’m everything they said I would be.
“This is going to be the most intense part of the process,” said Lionel Richie of this stage of the competition, early in the show. “We’re trying to find the magic 24.”
Following Williams’ performance, judge Luke Bryan said, “We kept losing him in the background.” Perry added, “I know, it wasn’t the best song for him.”
In the post-performance interview with all three judges, Perry shared an honest and harsh evaluation with Williams of his most recent performance.
“When you came to us and sang ‘Talking to the Moon,’ we felt that we had gone to the moon,” said Perry. “Your voice is very controlled. You play with falsetto. You can really control the sound in a room, but your last performance ‘Angels Like You,’ was a little bit of a departure from what your strengths were. I just didn’t hear your unique abilities throughout that version of the song, so I felt like I lost you.”
Perry continued, “There are also people that I think are in your category. I have really enjoyed and loved hearing you, and you have a sparkle in your eye and a presence. The challenging thing about love is that when you love something you have to let it go.”
Still leading Williams on, Perry added “We have to let you go, into the Top 24.”
After Williams survived the “whirlwind” sit down, Perry added, “We really believe in you, and of course, you’re going through into the top 24.”
Photos: ABC / Eric McCandless
