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‘American Idol’ Season 23 fans say one singer has already sealed the win — even before the finale

This contestants display of powerful vocals in the top 5 episode of 'American Idol' has fans made up their minds already

With 'American Idol's latest episode revealing its top 3 finalists, fans started calling out their favorites. Out of the top 5 contestants, the three who cut the final live show are Breanne Nix, country boy John Foster, and Jamal Roberts. All three contestants performed two songs each; however, there was one contestant whose performance hit differently with the fans. Robert, who belted out a perfect rendition of 'Go the Distance,' had garnered praise from all the judges. Carrie Underwood said, "Throughout your journey with us, I feel with every theme we throw at you, every song you tackle, you always find a way to put yourself in it. You make it your own."

Impressed with Robert's versatility, she added, "Singing any kind of genre of music that you are not used to singing can be difficult for anybody, but you just make it look easy. It was great!" Luke Bryan also commented, "What I loved about your interaction with Lin-Manuel is he didn't have to give you any tips or anything; you just got the special stuff, man. You are always able to channel it; even if you take a Hercules song, you just take it to the next level." Lionel Richie also raved about his performance: "You know you have an ability. A lot of times, people will come out and they will put on flashy clothes because it's to compensate for the thing they can't do. You are just the opposite." He continued, "You can wear flashy clothes, and it gets bigger than that. It is amazing!"

Fans wasted no time and flooded the YouTube comment section. One fan gushed, "He's the only one that can do any style of music. He is the American Idol." Another added, "He’s been touched by something far more powerful than we know!! Glory be to God, just sing on, Jamal!! He got you!!" The third chimed in, "He's special and can sing anything!!! Jamal is the winner of American Idol 2025," while the fourth wrote, "America, here is your winner! Team Jamal!!"

With the Idol judges having little to no say in the final judgement or voting, we are yet to see if Robert will be declared the winner of the coveted trophy, but the fans' message is loud and clear. Even on social media, fans sang in the same chorus. One fan tweeted, "Just crown Jamal the winner already. There’s no need to even have next week's shows. From the opening note, that was crazy!" Another tweeted, "Jamal Roberts is our winner." 

Jamal Roberts appeared on the Disney episode with two of his daughters, both of whom have musical names (6-year-old Harmoni and 3-year-old Lyrik), which is no less of a testimony to his passion for music. “I always said, even before I had kids, that I was going to name my kids after music,” the 27-year-old PE teacher said in an interview with Parade. He added, “If I had another girl, she would be Melody. And then I had thought about Symphony, all these beautiful names. I love my daughters. They are my world, my life. They’re the reason I'm here and working so hard to keep smiles on those little faces."