# American Idol season 22

The twenty-second season of American Idol premiered on February 18, 2024, on the ABC television network. Ryan Seacrest returned as host; Luke Bryan, Katy Perry, and Lionel Richie returned as judges. This season was Perry's final one on the show; she announced her departure on February 13, 2024, five days before the premiere.
Abi Carter won the season on May 19, 2024, while Will Moseley was the runner-up, and Jack Blocker finished in third place.

## Auditions

The Idol Across America virtual auditions program returned. Remote auditions took place from August 2 to September 8, 2023, as well as a number of open-call auditions, and from these, the producers selected the contestants who were then invited to audition in front of the judges. Three locations were new, and selected due to them being hometowns of the judges: Leesburg (Bryan), Tuskegee (Richie), and Santa Barbara (Perry).
The "platinum ticket" also returned from the previous two seasons. During the audition round, a total of three platinum tickets were awarded. The platinum ticket recipients were Odell Bunton Jr., Abi Carter, and Julia Gagnon. Carter ended up becoming the first "platinum ticket" recipient to win the series.
American Idol (season 22) – auditions :
| City | Filming date(s) | Filming venue |
| Leesburg, Georgia | September 19–20, 2023 | Lee County High School |
| Tuskegee, Alabama | October 2–3, 2023 | Tuskegee University |
| Santa Barbara, California | October 17–18, 2023 | Music Academy of the West |
| Los Angeles, California | October 24–25, 2023 | Calamigos Ranch |
| Nashville, Tennessee | November 11–12, 2023 | Graduate Nashville |

## Hollywood week

Hollywood week was filmed on December 10, 2023, at the Barker Hangar in Santa Monica. Dubbed the "Idol Arena", each contestant was chosen at random to perform a solo, and fifty-six of them advanced to the next round. The platinum ticket recipients (Abi Carter, Julia Gagnon, and Odell Bunton Jr.) sang "California Dreamin'" by The Mamas & the Papas as a trio. Their advantage was the ability to skip this round, but were asked to do a bonus performance. This season did not feature a duet round. The "Showstoppers" round would determine the Top 24 semifinalists.

## Showstopper round

The Showstopper round featured the top 56 contestants performing for the judges and a live audience at the Barker Hangar. This round was filmed on December 11, 2023, and aired on April 1, 2024. The judges then narrowed the number of contestants down to 24. The following is a list of the contestants who reached the top 24 and the song they performed. Contestants are listed in the order they performed.
Showstopper round (April 1) :
| Contestant | Song |
| Jordan Anthony | "Love in the Dark" |
| Odell Bunton Jr. | "Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood" |
| Nya | "Get Ready" |
| Blake Proehl | "In My Blood" |
| Triston Harper | "By Your Grace" |
| Roman Collins | "Come Together" |
| Kaibrienne | "Simple Man" |
| Jack Blocker | "You Should've Seen the Other Guy" |
| McKenna Faith Breinholt | "Anyone" |
| Mia Matthews | "You Ain't Woman Enough (To Take My Man)" |
| Emmy Russell | "More Hearts Than Mine" |
| Will Moseley | "Ain't No Sunshine" |
| Ajii | "Too Close" |
| Kayko | "Gives You Hell" |
| Elleigh Marie | "Golden Slumbers" |
| Kennedy Reid | "Total Eclipse of the Heart" |
| KBlocks | "River" |
| Abi Carter | "If I Could Turn Back Time" |
| Jayna Elise | "It's All Coming Back to Me Now" |
| Quintavious | "You Say" |
| Hailey Mia | "Alive" |
| Jennifer Jeffries | "Northern Attitude" |
| Julia Gagnon | "And I Am Telling You I'm Not Going" |
| Mackenzie Sol | "With a Little Help from My Friends" |

## Top 24 (April 7 & 8)

The top 24 contestants were split into two groups of twelve and performed one solo each at the Aulani resort in Kapolei, Hawaii. The first group taped on February 7 and aired on April 7, while the second group taped on February 8 and aired on April 8. Tori Kelly served as a guest mentor and judge for the first group, and Jelly Roll for the second group. Two contestants from each group will be eliminated based on the public vote, and the rest will advance to the top 20. Contestants are listed in the order they performed.
Color key:
Group 1 (April 7) :
| Contestant | Song | Result |
| Hailey Mia | "she's all i wanna be" | Eliminated |
| Jordan Anthony | "Titanium" | Safe |
| Jayna Elise | "Confident" | Safe |
| Julia Gagnon | "Rumour Has It" | Safe |
| Kayko | "How to Live Without You" | Safe |
| Nya | "The Best" | Safe |
| Blake Proehl | "Anyone" | Eliminated |
| Abi Carter | "Oceans (Where Feet May Fail)" | Safe |
| Quintavious | "Something in the Water" | Safe |
| Kaibrienne | "Heaven" | Safe |
| Will Moseley | "(Sittin' On) The Dock of the Bay" | Safe |
| McKenna Faith Breinholt | "The Story" | Safe |
Group 2 (April 8) :
| Contestant | Song | Result |
| Odell Bunton Jr. | "Uptown Funk" | Safe |
| Elleigh Marie | "Forget You" | Eliminated |
| Mackenzie Sol | "Jealous" | Safe |
| Jennifer Jeffries | "Bruises" | Safe |
| Emmy Russell | "Beautiful Things" | Safe |
| Ajii | "Higher" | Safe |
| Kennedy Reid | "Fancy" | Safe |
| Jack Blocker | "Rainbow" | Safe |
| Roman Collins | "How Sweet It Is (To Be Loved by You)" | Safe |
| KBlocks | "Harleys in Hawaii" | Eliminated |
| Mia Matthews | "Daddy's Hands" | Safe |
| Triston Harper | "God's Country" | Safe |
Non-competition performances (April 7) :
| Performer | Song |
| Tori Kelly | "High Water" |
| Iam Tongi | "Why Kiki?" |
Non-competition performance (April 8) :
| Performer | Song |
| Jelly Roll | "Halfway to Hell" |

## Top 20 (April 14 & 15)

The top 20 performances were taped on Wednesday, April 10 and aired on Sunday, April 14, followed by the live results show on Monday, April 15.
Color key:
Contestants are listed in the order they performed.
Top 20 (April 14) :
| Contestant | Song | Result |
| Jack Blocker | "You Don't Mess Around with Jim" | Safe |
| Mia Matthews | "Wildflowers and Wild Horses" | Safe |
| Mackenzie Sol | "I'll Never Love Again" | Wild Card |
| Roman Collins | "Never Would Have Made It" | Wild Card |
| Kennedy Reid | "Love Can Build a Bridge" | Wild Card |
| Ajii | "Like a Stone" | Wild Card |
| Jennifer Jeffries | "Grave Digger" | Wild Card |
| Emmy Russell | "Want You" | Safe |
| Triston Harper | "H-O-P-E" | Safe |
| Odell Bunton Jr. | "The Door" | Wild Card |
| Kayko | "Over You" | Safe |
| Jordan Anthony | "When the Party's Over" | Wild Card |
| Quintavious | "Hollow" | Wild Card |
| Kaibrienne | "Girl I Am Now" | Safe |
| Nya | "Georgia on My Mind" | Wild Card |
| Jayna Elise | "My All" | Wild Card |
| Abi Carter | "Welcome to the Black Parade" | Safe |
| Will Moseley | "Makin' Me Look Good Again" | Safe |
| McKenna Faith Breinholt | "Both Sides, Now" | Safe |
| Julia Gagnon | "I Believe" | Safe |
Top 20 (April 15) :
| Contestant | Song | Result |
| Quintavious | "Make It Happen" | Eliminated |
| McKenna Faith Breinholt | "Tumbleweed" | Safe |
| Jordan Anthony | "Attention" | Saved by the judges |
| Jack Blocker | "Feeling Whitney" | Safe |
| Kennedy Reid | "Somethin' Bad" | Eliminated |
| Jennifer Jeffries | "All I Want" | Eliminated |
| Ajii | "Call Out My Name" | Eliminated |
| Mia Matthews | "Burning House" | Safe |
| Kayko | "What If?" | Safe |
| Nya | "Water" | Saved by the judges |
| Will Moseley | "Gone For Good" | Safe |
| Abi Carter | "My Mind" | Safe |
| Odell Bunton Jr. | "Wait on You" | Eliminated |
| Kaibrienne | "Zombie" | Safe |
| Mackenzie Sol | "False Alarms" | Eliminated |
| Emmy Russell | "Skinny" | Safe |
| Julia Gagnon | "Need a Favor" | Safe |
| Jayna Elise | "All I Wanted" | Saved by the judges |
| Triston Harper | "'Til You Can't" | Safe |
| Roman Collins | "It's a Man's Man's Man's World" | Saved by the judges |
Non-competition performances (April 14) :
| Performer | Song |
| Teddy Swims | "Lose Control" |
| Paul Russell | "Lil Boo Thang" |
| Lauren Spencer-Smith | "Fingers Crossed" |

## Finals

Color key:

### Top 14 – Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (April 21)

Gene Simmons served as a guest mentor this week. Each contestant performed one song from inductees of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Contestants are listed in the order they performed.
Top 14 (April 21) :
| Contestant | Song | Result |
| Triston Harper | "Heartbreak Hotel" | Safe |
| Julia Gagnon | "Run to You" | Safe |
| Roman Collins | "You're All I Need to Get By" | Safe |
| Kaibrienne | "I Hate Myself for Loving You" | Safe |
| Jayna Elise | "I Have Nothing" | Safe |
| Mia Matthews | "Those Memories of You" | Safe |
| Kayko | "High and Dry" | Safe |
| Emmy Russell | "I Can't Make You Love Me" | Safe |
| Jordan Anthony | "I Wanna Dance with Somebody (Who Loves Me)" | Eliminated |
| McKenna Faith Breinholt | "Hard to Say I'm Sorry" | Safe |
| Jack Blocker | "Don't Think Twice, It's All Right" | Safe |
| Nya | "I Say a Little Prayer" | Eliminated |
| Will Moseley | "Night Moves" | Safe |
| Abi Carter | "Goodbye Yellow Brick Road" | Safe |
Non-competition performance :
| Performer | Song |
| Luke Bryan | "Small Town" |

### Top 12 – Billboard #1 Hits (April 22)

Meghan Trainor served as a guest mentor this week. Each contestant performed a Billboard #1 song. Contestants are listed in the order they performed.
Top 12 (April 22) :
| Contestant | Song | Result |
| Abi Carter | "All Too Well" | Safe |
| Will Moseley | "Starting Over" | Safe |
| Jayna Elise | "Diamonds" | Eliminated |
| Mia Matthews | "Over You" | Safe |
| Roman Collins | "Roar" | Eliminated |
| Jack Blocker | "Blinding Lights" | Safe |
| Emmy Russell | "Lose You to Love Me" | Safe |
| Triston Harper | "Beautiful Crazy" | Safe |
| Julia Gagnon | "Something in the Orange" | Safe |
| Kaibrienne | "Wrecking Ball" | Safe |
| McKenna Faith Breinholt | "Cardigan" | Safe |
| Kayko | "Somebody That I Used to Know" | Safe |
Non-competition performance :
| Performer | Song |
| David Archuleta | "Hell Together" |

### Top 10 – Contestants' birth year (April 28)

Shania Twain served as a guest mentor this week. Each contestant performed a song from the year of their birth. Contestants are listed in the order they performed.
Top 10 (April 28) :
| Contestant | Song | Result |
| Mia Matthews | "No One Needs to Know" | Eliminated |
| Jack Blocker | "Believe" | Safe |
| McKenna Faith Breinholt | "Iris" | Safe |
| Kayko | "Teenage Dirtbag" | Eliminated |
| Emmy Russell | "All the Small Things" | Safe |
| Triston Harper | "She's Country" | Safe |
| Abi Carter | "Clocks" | Safe |
| Julia Gagnon | "Here I Am" | Safe |
| Will Moseley | "Modern Day Bonnie and Clyde" | Safe |
| Kaibrienne | "Here Without You" | Safe |
Non-competition performances :
| Performer | Song |
| Just Sam | "One Moment in Time" |
| Scotty McCreery | "Cab in a Solo" |

### Top 8 – Judges' song contest (April 29)

The judges chose songs for each of the contestants to perform. Katy Perry had the most song choices selected by the contestants, and was able to save one contestant from elimination. Contestants are listed in the order they performed.
Top 8 (April 29) :
| Contestant | Song | Result |
| Will Moseley | "Folsom Prison Blues" | Safe |
| Kaibrienne | "Traitor" | Eliminated |
| McKenna Faith Breinholt | "Everywhere I Go" | Saved by Katy Perry |
| Jack Blocker | "Always on My Mind" | Safe |
| Abi Carter | "Bring Me to Life" | Safe |
| Julia Gagnon | "Over the Rainbow" | Safe |
| Triston Harper | "Sand in My Boots" | Safe |
| Emmy Russell | "Coal Miner's Daughter" | Safe |
Non-competition performances :
| Performers | Song |
| Jack Blocker & Emmy Russell | "Hello" |
| Triston Harper & Will Moseley | "What Makes You Country" |
| Melinda Doolittle, Colton Dixon & Danny Gokey | "Shackles (Praise You)" (Tribute to Mandisa) |
| Abi Carter, McKenna Faith Breinholt, Julia Gagnon & Kaibrienne | "Wide Awake" |
* 1 2 Song chosen by Lionel Richie
* 1 2 3 4 Song chosen by Katy Perry
* 1 2 Song chosen by Luke Bryan

### Top 7 – Dance songs & Adele (May 5)

Ciara served as a guest mentor this week. Each contestant performed two songs: one dance song, and one song from the Adele discography. Contestants are listed in the order they performed.
Top 7 (May 5) :
| Contestant | Order | Song | Result |
| Jack Blocker | 1 | "Long Tall Sally" | Safe |
| Jack Blocker | 9 | "One and Only" | Safe |
| Julia Gagnon | 2 | "Roam" | Eliminated |
| Julia Gagnon | 11 | "Set Fire to the Rain" | Eliminated |
| Abi Carter | 3 | "My Songs Know What You Did in the Dark (Light Em Up)" | Safe |
| Abi Carter | 14 | "Hello" | Safe |
| McKenna Faith Breinholt | 4 | "E.T." | Eliminated |
| McKenna Faith Breinholt | 8 | "Make You Feel My Love" | Eliminated |
| Will Moseley | 5 | "Gimme Three Steps" | Safe |
| Will Moseley | 10 | "Rolling in the Deep" | Safe |
| Emmy Russell | 6 | "Shut Up and Dance" | Safe |
| Emmy Russell | 12 | "Water Under the Bridge" | Safe |
| Triston Harper | 7 | "T-R-O-U-B-L-E" | Safe |
| Triston Harper | 13 | "Easy on Me" | Safe |
Non-competition performance :
| Performer | Song |
| Meghan Trainor | "To the Moon" "Been Like This" |

### Top 5 – Disney (May 12)

Kane Brown served as a guest mentor this week. Each contestant performed two songs from Disney films. Contestants are listed in the order they performed.
Top 5 (May 12) :
| Contestant | Order | Song | Disney film | Result |
| Abi Carter | 1 | "Part of Your World" | The Little Mermaid | Safe |
| Abi Carter | 8 | "The Chain" | Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 | Safe |
| Triston Harper | 2 | "Almost There" | The Princess and the Frog | Eliminated |
| Triston Harper | 7 | "Life Is a Highway" | Cars | Eliminated |
| Emmy Russell | 3 | "The Climb" | Hannah Montana: The Movie | Eliminated |
| Emmy Russell | 6 | "Carried Me with You" | Onward | Eliminated |
| Jack Blocker | 4 | "Nobody's Fool" | Cars 2 | Safe |
| Jack Blocker | 9 | "Space Oddity" | Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny | Safe |
| Will Moseley | 5 | "The Ballad of the Lonesome Cowboy" | Toy Story 4 | Safe |
| Will Moseley | 10 | "Born to Be Wild" | D3: The Mighty Ducks | Safe |
Non-competition performances :
| Performers | Song |
| Lionel Richie, Luke Bryan, Katy Perry & Ryan Seacrest | "You've Got a Friend in Me" |
| Jenifer Lewis & Terence Blanchard | "Dig a Little Deeper" |

### Top 3 and Top 2 – Finale (May 19)

Jon Bon Jovi served as a guest mentor this week. Each contestant performed two songs – one from the Jon Bon Jovi discography and one dedicated to their hometowns – before the contestant who had the fewest votes up to that point was eliminated, thereby finishing in third place.
After Jack Blocker was eliminated, the Top 2 were Abi Carter and Will Moseley. Near the end of the show after the guest performances, Moseley and Carter sang their potential coronation singles. After the voting lines were closed, Carter was declared the winner while Moseley was runner-up.
Finale (May 19) :
| Contestant | Order | Song | Result |
| Will Moseley | 1 | "It's My Life" | Runner-up |
| Will Moseley | 4 | "My Town" | Runner-up |
| Will Moseley | 7 | "Good Book Bad" | Runner-up |
| Jack Blocker | 2 | "I'll Be There for You" | Third place |
| Jack Blocker | 5 | "All My Ex's Live in Texas" | Third place |
| Abi Carter | 3 | "Bed of Roses" | Winner |
| Abi Carter | 6 | "Somewhere" | Winner |
| Abi Carter | 8 | "This Isn't Over" | Winner |
Non-competition performances :
| Performers | Song |
| Top 3 | "Livin' on a Prayer" |
| Top 3 with Jon Bon Jovi | "Legendary" |
| Julia Gagnon with Jason Mraz | "I Feel Like Dancing" |
| Jayna Elise with Seal | "Crazy" |
| McKenna Faith Breinholt & Kaibrienne with James Bay | "Let It Go" |
| Luke Bryan | "Love You, Miss You, Mean It" |
| Mia Matthews with Luke Bryan | "Run" |
| Top 12 with Lionel Richie | "Running with the Night" |
| Triston Harper with Cody Johnson | "'Til You Can't" |
| Bishop Briggs | "Triumph" |
| Abi Carter with Bishop Briggs | "River" |
| Will Moseley, Jack Blocker, Triston Harper, Kayko & Roman Collins with Nick Fradiani | "America" "Sweet Caroline" |
| Will Moseley with Hootie & the Blowfish | "Hold My Hand" "Let Her Cry" "Only Wanna Be with You" |
| Jack Blocker with Katy Perry | "What Makes a Woman" |
| New Kids on the Block | "Kids" |
| Kayko with New Kids on the Block | "You Got It (The Right Stuff)" |
| Emmy Russell with Wynonna | "Coal Miner's Daughter" "No One Else on Earth" |
| Roman Collins with CeCe Winans | "Goodness of God" |
| Abi Carter, Emmy Russell, Julia Gagnon, McKenna Faith Breinholt, Kaibrienne, Mia Matthews & Jayna Elise | "Teenage Dream" "Dark Horse" "California Gurls" |
| Abi Carter | "What Was I Made For?" |

## Elimination chart

Color key:
American Idol (season 22) - Eliminations :
| Contestant | Pl. | Top 24 | Top 24 | Top 20 | Top 14 | Top 12 | Top 10 | Top 8 | Top 7 | Top 5 | Finale |
| Contestant | Pl. | 4/7 | 4/8 | 4/14 | 4/21 | 4/22 | 4/28 | 4/29 | 5/5 | 5/12 | 5/19 |
| Abi Carter | 1 | Safe | N/A | Safe | Safe | Safe | Safe | Safe | Safe | Safe | Winner |
| Will Moseley | 2 | Safe | N/A | Safe | Safe | Safe | Safe | Safe | Safe | Safe | Runner-up |
| Jack Blocker | 3 | N/A | Safe | Safe | Safe | Safe | Safe | Safe | Safe | Safe | Third place |
| Emmy Russell | 4 | N/A | Safe | Safe | Safe | Safe | Safe | Safe | Safe | Eliminated | |
| Triston Harper | 4 | N/A | Safe | Safe | Safe | Safe | Safe | Safe | Safe | Eliminated | |
| Julia Gagnon | 6 | Safe | N/A | Safe | Safe | Safe | Safe | Safe | Eliminated | | |
| McKenna Faith Breinholt | 6 | Safe | N/A | Safe | Safe | Safe | Safe | Saved | Eliminated | | |
| Kaibrienne | 8 | Safe | N/A | Safe | Safe | Safe | Safe | Eliminated | | | |
| Kayko | 9 | Safe | N/A | Safe | Safe | Safe | Eliminated | | | | |
| Mia Matthews | 9 | N/A | Safe | Safe | Safe | Safe | Eliminated | | | | |
| Jayna Elise | 11 | Safe | N/A | Saved | Safe | Eliminated | | | | | |
| Roman Collins | 11 | N/A | Safe | Saved | Safe | Eliminated | | | | | |
| Jordan Anthony | 13 | Safe | N/A | Saved | Eliminated | | | | | | |
| Nya | 13 | Safe | N/A | Saved | Eliminated | | | | | | |
| Ajii | | N/A | Safe | Eliminated | | | | | | | |
| Odell Bunton Jr. | | N/A | Safe | Eliminated | | | | | | | |
| Jennifer Jeffries | | N/A | Safe | Eliminated | | | | | | | |
| Quintavious | | Safe | N/A | Eliminated | | | | | | | |
| Kennedy Reid | | N/A | Safe | Eliminated | | | | | | | |
| Mackenzie Sol | | N/A | Safe | Eliminated | | | | | | | |
| Elleigh Marie | | N/A | Eliminated | | | | | | | | |
| KBlocks | | N/A | Eliminated | | | | | | | | |
| Blake Proehl | | Eliminated | | | | | | | | | |
| Hailey Mia | | Eliminated | | | | | | | | | |

## Ratings

Viewership and ratings per episode of American Idol season 22 :
| No. | Title | Air date | Timeslot (ET) | Rating/share (18–49) | Viewers (millions) |
| 1 | "Auditions, Part 1" | February 18, 2024 | Sunday 8:00 p.m. | 0.6/6 | 4.62 |
| 2 | "Auditions, Part 2" | February 25, 2024 | Sunday 8:00 p.m. | 0.6/6 | 4.79 |
| 3 | "Auditions, Part 3" | March 3, 2024 | Sunday 8:00 p.m. | 0.6/7 | 5.11 |
| 4 | "Auditions, Part 4" | March 17, 2024 | Sunday 8:00 p.m. | 0.5/6 | 4.79 |
| 5 | "Auditions, Part 5" | March 24, 2024 | Sunday 8:00 p.m. | 0.4/4 | 4.25 |
| 6 | "Hollywood Week - Idol Arena" | March 31, 2024 | Sunday 8:00 p.m. | 0.6/6 | 4.40 |
| 7 | "Showstopper/Final Judgment" | April 1, 2024 | Monday 8:00 p.m. | 0.4/4 | 3.88 |
| 8 | "Top 24 at Disney's Aulani Resort in Hawaii Part #1" | April 7, 2024 | Sunday 8:00 p.m. | 0.5/5 | 4.36 |
| 9 | "Top 24 at Disney's Aulani Resort in Hawaii Part #2" | April 8, 2024 | Monday 8:00 p.m. | 0.5/5 | 4.15 |
| 10 | "Top 20" | April 14, 2024 | Sunday 8:00 p.m. | 0.5/6 | 4.24 |
| 11 | "Top 14 Reveal" | April 15, 2024 | Monday 8:00 p.m. | 0.4/4 | 3.94 |
| 12 | "Rock & Roll Hall of Fame" | April 21, 2024 | Sunday 8:00 p.m. | 0.5/5 | 5.13 |
| 13 | "Billboard #1 Hits" | April 22, 2024 | Monday 8:00 p.m. | 0.4/4 | 4.16 |
| 14 | "Top 10" / "Shania Twain Mentors the Top 10 on Songs From Their Year of Birth" | April 28, 2024 | Sunday 8:00 p.m. | 0.6/7 | 5.31 |
| 15 | "Judge's Song Contest" | April 29, 2024 | Monday 8:00 p.m. | 0.5/5 | 4.62 |
| 16 | "Adele Night" | May 5, 2024 | Sunday 8:00 p.m. | 0.5/6 | 4.96 |
| 17 | "Disney Night" | May 12, 2024 | Sunday 8:00 p.m. | 0.6/7 | 5.22 |
| 18 | "Grand Finale" | May 19, 2024 | Sunday 8:00 p.m. | 0.7/7 | 5.64 |