'American Idol' Season 18 Top 20: Kimmy Gabriella enthralls with 'Leave Me Lonely', fans say she 'killed it'
After two weeks of airing unseen footage of performances, 'American Idol' Season 18 now goes remote as the Top 20 contestants battle it out from the comfort of their homes.
With the coronavirus pandemic confining us in our homes in order to stay safe, 'American Idol' is creating history by airing from 25 different locations. The Top 20 contestants will perform from their homes, while judges Katy Perry, Lionel Richie and Luke Bryan critique them from theirs. They will be joined by in house mentor Bobby Bones and Ryan Seacrest, who will be hosting it from his living room.
The contestants who advanced to the Top 20 were Kimmy Gabriella, Jovin Webb, Franklin Boone, Olivia Ximines, Louis Knight, Makayla Phillips, Aliana Jester, Faith Becnel, Nick Merico, Lauren Spencer Smith, Cyniah Elise, Francisco Martin, Sophia James, DeWayne Crocker, Dillon James, Arthur Gunn, Julia Gargano, Grace Leer, Just Sam and Jonny West.
First up! @GabrielaKimmy coming at you straight from Florida! 🙌 pic.twitter.com/ZIPHMBEE60
— American Idol (@AmericanIdol) April 27, 2020
Kickstarting 'American Idol' Season 18's first-ever remote edition was Kimmy Gabriella, and she delivered a stunning performance. Kimmy performed her rendition of 'Leave Me Lonely' by Ariana Grande and Macy Gray.
She performed outside on her porch with flowers as a backdrop. Kimmy, without a doubt, sounded great throughout her performance. Katy said that Kimmy has evolved as an artist. Apart from that the singer also added that Kimmy showed improvement compared to her previous performances. Luke was impressed by the way she could navigate between her notes. He also called her a world-class singer.
Fans who watched Kimmy perform took to Twitter affirming the contestant killed it. "First up, Kimmy Gabriela! Loving her song choice, sounding GREAT! Off to a great start! #AmericanIdol."
"Kimmy sounded amazing during her performance, Her voice is the best #AmericanIdol," a fan said. While another fan added, "I'm not necessarily a Kimmy fan but that was pretty solid. Idk how well we'll be able to weed people out this way but im looking forward to some good performances #AmericanIdol."
"Ok Kimmy killed that!!!!! #AmericanIdol," a fan wrote. Adding to that another fan shared, "Kimmy, it was a nice performance which was good #AmericanIdol #Idol #IdolTop20."
"Ooo kimmy is really good. #americanidol," a fan added.
'American Idol' Season 18 airs every Sunday night only on ABC. Check your local listings for more information.
