American Idol kicked off Season 18 Night 2 last night, which featured another dozen artists hoping to win over the three judges – Luke Bryan, Katy Perry and Lionel Richie – and get one of the coveted tickets to Hollywood.
Among was Margie Mays, who auditioned last year and made it as far as the Top 40. The music teacher returned to try again, along with her boyfriend Jonny West, a piano teacher. They both made the cut. Unfortunately for Mays, the judges fell more in love with her boyfriend’s performance. “I don’t want this for you and your relationship, but you may go farther than Margie,” Perry told West. “You need to know and understand this is something that could possibly change your life.”
Mays and West weren’t the only couple auditioning together. Country music singer Curt Jones and Hannah Prestridge tried their luck for Hollywood. While Jones didn’t impress with Travis Tritt’s “Help Me Hold On,” Prestridge tugged at the heartstrings with an original song about the struggles she’s gone through the past few years. While pregnant, Prestridge developed an opioid addiction, recovering with the support of Jones and their two daughters. She did get a ticket.
A scary moment also occurred during last night’s episode, when a gas leak caused the cast, crew, and contestants to flee the scene. “Do you guys smell gas? It’s pretty intense,” Katy Perry called out. “I have a slight headache from it. Oh, it’s bad. It’s really bad.”
“We’re getting heavy propane,” Luke Bryan told producers. “This is not a joke. There really is a gas leak.”
Alarms went off and the set was promptly evacuated, where outside a typically dramatic Katy swooned and fell to the pavement, moaning, “I’m not feeling good.” But she seemed to recover rather quickly. The best moment was when the firemen finally gave the all-clear and everyone celebrated with a group sing-along of judge Lionel Richie’s “All Night Long,” which was good enough to earn all of the firefighters golden tickets.
Here are the contestants that made it through:
- Cyniah Elise, 17 (Atlanta, Georgia) – “You Are the Reason” by Calum Scott
- Kay Gynse, 19 (High Point, North Carolina) – “Mercy” by Duffy
- Kyle Tanguay, 21 (Rochester, New Hampshire) – “Mercy” by Shawn Mendes
- Jovin Webb, 28 (Gonzales, Louisiana) – “Whipping Post” by The Allman Brothers
- Margie Mays, 26 (Wilmington, Delaware) – “I Found a Boy” by Adele
- Jonny West, 23 (Murietta, California) – Original Song by Johnny West
- Sarah Isen, 20 (Berkeley, California) – “If I Were a Boy” by Beyoncé
- Julia Gargano, 21 (Staten Island, New York) – “Growing Pains” by Julia Gargano
- Hannah Prestridge, 24 (Rockdale, Texas) – “Day By Day” by Hannah Prestridge