'American Idol' Season 18 Episode 8: Makayla Phillips makes a minor misstep but talent gets her through
The latest episode of 'American Idol', which aired on Monday night, March 23, threw up a lot of surprises and some expected results in Hollywood Week. After absolutely nailing her Hollywood Duet performance with her similarly talented vocal powerhouse partner, Cyniah Elise, on Sunday night, Makayla Phillips earned rave reviews for her sparkling vocal ability. However, the following episode featured the Hollywood Solo segment of the show, and this is where the otherwise flawless Makayla began to falter.
Even the fact that she had flaws seemed remarkable. She was being branded as a sure-fire favorite to win the entire competition just 24 hours earlier. Her jaw-droppingly good vocal technique, crystal clear high notes and pop diva looks had previously earned her inevitable comparisons to Ariana Grande by none other than Luke Bryan, the 'American Idol' judge himself. And having already received a golden buzzer from Heidi Klum when she appeared on 'America's Got Talent' two years ago, it seemed that the 17-year-old songstress could do no wrong.
The problem arose with the talented singer's song selection for her Hollywood solo. Having sailed through the competition with dazzling performances of power ballads and torch songs thus far, Makayla had lulled us (and perhaps herself) into a false sense of security, considering she was crushing every song that came her way. No song or category was too big for her humungous pipes, and her confidence was sky-high given her incredible journey thus far. So when she decided to change up her genre of choice and pick the upbeat Lizzo smash hit, 'Cuz I Love You' for a bit of variety, no one really imagined that she'd do a bad job; Makayla Phillips seemed incapable of it. While admitting that stepping outside her comfort zone was a bit of a risk, Makayla revealed, "This song is really playful, and I wanted to have some fun with it."
However, her performance was forgettable. It's not that Makayla sang it badly — she is and always will remain a supremely talented singer. It just wasn't the right song for her voice, given her singing forte and song choices thus far. But we, as viewers, were expecting another phenomenal performance and ended up being distinctly underwhelmed. Even 'American Idol' judge Katy Perry remarked that this was the worst song pick she'd ever seen from Makayla.
To give the judges their credit, they recognized she'd probably made an error in judgment, and put through to the next round in Hawaii purely on the basis of her outstanding vocal ability. But this will prove to be an eye-opening experience for the teenager, who will definitely be more prudent with her song selection in the future.
Fans online were in agreement that it was just an off-night for the otherwise talented singer. "I really liked her performance a lot because she sang it beautifully. It was stunning, but I didn't feel a connection with her," mused one supporter.
Another fan posted that despite her song choice, she was still one of the favorites for the 'Idol' crown. "The song was off, but this performance blows half of the competition out of the water on their good day."
We certainly agree! And we also hope she quickly rebounds in Hawaii to regain her place as one of the front-runners to win the entire singing contest. Stay tuned for more 'American Idol' episodes on Sunday and Monday nights at 8 pm ET on ABC.