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‘American Idol’ singer's audition was so smooth, judges made a bold prediction — and it almost came true

Judges were hyped for this ‘American Idol’ contestant's journey — but clearly, the show had other plans

Filo Ebid appeared on 'American Idol' Season 23 and belted out Otis Redding's hit song, 'Try A Little Tenderness' during the audition. His performance was so powerful, it prompted a standing ovation from all three judges, Carrie Underwood, Lionel Richie, and Luke Bryan. "We've been waiting for you. What took you so long to get here? That was amazing!" Said Richie, while Bryan added, "Born to sing!" Underwood also jumped in, "Yeah, you don't need to be no doctor."She added, "Three notes in, in my brain, I just thought, Holy, Shrek! Just wow! It was really fantastic!"

Bryan continued, "You're gonna go far in this, in my opinion. Definitely Top 20, in my opinion — maybe Top 10. It's perfect, in my opinion." Richie then concluded perfectly, "I'm just so happy that the universe has directed you to the three of us and 'American Idol.' Fans, too, wasted no time and flooded the YouTube comment section with Praise for Ebid. One said, "Not only was that AWEsome, but he just may have set some sort of Idol record for notes per syllable!" Another added, "Young man did Otis proud. Truly a gifted vocalist. Love the passion and soul. Soar, baby, soar." The third chimed in, "Wow. He’s INCREDIBLE!! A true star and TOP 10 for sure."

Despite winning the coveted Platinum to Hollywood, which allowed him to bypass the first round of Hollywood Week. Ebid's journey on the show didn't last very long. Per Soap Central, the med school contestant was eliminated in the top 12 on April 28, after ironically singing, 'I'm not going', by Jennifer Hudson. He received mentoring from former 'American Idol' winner Fantasia Barrino, who told Ebid to "pick and choose" his moments in the song, and instead of rushing the lyrics, try and "let it breathe." Ebid took her critiques seriously and ended up delivering a powerful performance on the main stage.

It even garnered roaring applause from the audience, who continuously chanted his name, "Filo! Filo!" Even Richie said, "The best performance I'd ever seen from you," While Underwood said, "Just keep doing that and you're not gonna be going anywhere." Bryan also added, "I love that Fantasia helped you tap into something different. At the end, you turned on the gas." But when the results were announced, Ebid was as shocked as everyone in the room. As reported by the aforementioned outlet, Ebid later opened up in a post on Instagram, sharing his thoughts on the elimination, "This marks the end of an incredible journey. I have so much to get off my chest…but in the meantime, I love you all for your support and I can’t wait to show you what’s to come." Indicating that he had a lot to say.

However, he gathered his thoughts and in the next post, he expressed nothing but gratitude. "And just like that, my @AmericanIdol journey comes to an end,” he wrote. “It’s hard to put into words what this experience has meant to me. The dream of being on the show felt far-off, and the fact that God allowed me to be a part of the Idol family is something that I will never take for granted."

However, Fans who were taken aback by his elimination did not share the same sentiment, one said on the Instagram post which revealed his final performance, "He got robbed! I had him picked as the winner!!!!" Another wrote, "You have an incredible gift! This might be the end of American Idol, but I think God is just getting started with you!!" One even Tweeted, Who keeps voting for Josh and Mattie? Seriously?! Filo and Che did not deserve to go home, especially Filo."