Carrie Underwood dramatically backs out of an ‘American Idol’ decision: 'I have nothing to do...'
'American Idol' season 23 kicked off episode 15 with 8 powerful performances of judges' favorite songs. The 'Judges' Song Contest' episode had a new twist. Each contestant picked three songs, with one of those being chosen by a judge. The judges had already submitted their picks. When a hopeful chose a judge's song, that judge got a point. This point gave all the judges the chance to use 'Bingo Blitz,' a one-time opportunity that allowed the judge to save a contestant. As a result, the show would have a top 7 instead of the usual top 6 from previous seasons.
However, in an interesting twist, judges Lionel Richie and Luke Bryan had a tie as 6 contestants chose to sing their chosen songs, earning both of them 3 points each. Whereas Underwood lost with only one point in her kitty. Even with just one 'save' between them, the stakes skyrocketed when two of the season’s strongest contenders—Mattie Pruitt and Josh King—found themselves in the bottom two. As the host, Ryan Seacrest gave the judges time to contemplate the tough decision. Carrie Underwood, who looked uneasy in the situation, wheeled her chair away from the judge's table, showing that she was completely uninterested in taking part in making the decision. It prompted Bryan to joke, "Where are you going, Carrie?" as she replied, "I have nothing to do with this." Richie also pleaded, "Carrie, we need you." However, Underwood didn't succumb to their requests and responded firmly, "Nope. No," pushing her chair completely away from them.
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Throughout their playful banter, King kept nudging the judges to pick Pruitt as their save for the next round. His ability to self-sacrifice was later lauded as a "classic act" by fans, as reported by Good Housekeeping. Eventually, both Bryan and Richie ended up choosing Pruitt, earning her a spot in the Top 7 along with contestants Breanna Nix, John Foster, Gabby Samone, Jamal Roberts, Slater Nally, and Thunderstorm Artis. While Underwood was left clapping without a smile on her face. At the start of the episode, Underwood mentioned she was lucky enough to lose the 'Judges' Song Contest,' which allowed her to escape being on the hot seat and not having to save anyone, per Screenrant.
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Fans enjoyed the playful banter between the judges and loved Underwood's take on the entire episode. On an Instagram post, Bryan shared a post captioned, "Sweet victory, @lionelrichie! Sorry for your loss, @carrieunderwood #idol," teasing Underwood, and fans wasted no time joining in the flow. One fan wrote, "Love you Carrie, Ohh, wait, love you Lionel & Luke as well. Carrie just brings everything back from when she was on Idol from day one. I love her so much on IDOL! She’s an amazing judge." Another added, "You're never a loser in my book, Carrie!!! I wouldn't have wanted to make that choice either. John was such a gentleman about it. Props to him!!!" The third pointed out, "Ha, Carrie is having a hard time with losing LOL. She is very competitive!!!"