Season 19

**Season 19** of *American Idol* premiered on ABC on Sunday February 14th, 2021 and ended on May 23, 2021. It is the show's fourth season to air on ABC.

Ryan Seacrest returned as host, Lionel Richie, Katy Perry, and Luke Bryan returned as judges, and Bobby Bones returned as mentor. On April 12, Paula Abdul filled in for Bryan.

This season was won by Chayce Beckham.

### Audition Cities

The following cities held auditions for Season 19, date of the auditions are also shown.

* **Los Angeles, California** - *October 5, 2020*
* **San Diego, California** - *October 16, 2020*
* **Ojai, California** - *November 16, 2020*

## Hollywood Week

Hollywood Week was filmed from December 7th-10th, 2020 in the Dolby Theater, Los Angeles, CA and aired March 21st & 22nd, 2021. This season was similar to the 18th season, with contestants competing in the Genre Challenge. The judges brought a twist and decided to do a Duet challenge, where they chose who performed with who. Those who survived the Duet Challenge moved onto the Showcase & Final Judgement.

## Showcase/Final Judgement

The Showcase & Final Judgement aired on March 28th & 29th, 2021. It featured the Top 64 contestants. Each contestants performed, and at the end 24 contestants were chosen to move on to the Live shows.

### Top 24

After the Final Judgement, 24 contestants were chosen to move on to the semifinals.

**Males:**

* Beane
* Chayce Beckham
* Graham DeFranco
* Deshawn Goncalves
* Colin Jamieson
* Caleb Kennedy
* Hunter Metts
* Wyatt Pike
* Cecil Ray
* Willie Spence
* Jason Warrior

**Females:**

* Alana
* Ava August
* Casey Bishop
* Cassandra Coleman
* Hannah Everhart
* Grace Kinstler
* Anilee List
* Liahona Olayan
* Alanis Sophia
* Andrea Valles
* Madison Watkins
* Alyssa Wray
* Mary Jo Young

## All Star Duets and Solos

The Top 24 performances were split into 2 groups (12 each), and were pre-recorded and aired on April 4th & 5th, 2021. Each contestant sang a solo, followed by a duet with a celebrity, resulting in a total of 48 performances. The following week the Top 16 would be revealed. Celebrities included people such as Katherine McPhee, Tori Kelly & Jimmie Allen.

## Top 16

The Top 16 were revealed on April 11th, 2021. This was recorded a few days prior. The Top 16 shortly became the Top 15, due to Wyatt Pike withdrawing. America then voted 10 into the Top 12, while the judges saved 2 from the 5 in the danger zone.

The Top 12 results were revealed on April 12th, with Paula Abdul as guest judge due to Luke Bryant having COVID-19 and staying home.

## Oscar Nominated Songs (Top 12)

The Top 12 aired live on April 18th, 2021. The contestants sang songs from movies that were nominated Oscar Awards, such as The Greatest Showman, Harriet & Despicable Me 2. The Top 9 were revealed at the end. Special performances by Lauren Daigle, Henry Connick Jr. & Lionel Richie.

## The Comeback

10 Contestants from Season 18 were invited to perform again on a live stage due to not being able to last year because of the pandemic. The winner from the 10 would join the Top 9, making it the Top 10. Aired live on April 19th, 2021.

## Disney Night (Top 10)

The Top 10 performed Disney songs live on May 2nd, 2021. The 10 also got to go to Disney World. The Top 7 were revealed at the end of the show. John Stamos as guest mentor. Special performances by Sofia Carson & John Bastite.

## Mother's Day (Top 7)

The Top 7 will perform 2 songs, one for Mother’s Day & a song by Coldplay. This will air live on May 9th, 2021. Coldplay will be guest mentor. Coldplay also sang their new single, Higher Power. The Top 5 were revealed at the end of the show.

## Top 4

The Top 4 will perform 3 songs, one from their Personal Idol, an Artist single, and a duet of a song by guest mentor FINNEAS with another contestant.

Despite securing a place in the Top 5, Kennedy was disqualified from the show due to a controversial video, thus changing the Top 5 to the Top 4 with one contestant eliminated that week.

### Top 4

The following contestants advanced to the **Top 4:**

* Chayce Beckham
* Casey Bishop
* Grace Kinstler
* Willie Spence

## Finale

### Top 3

The following contestants advanced to the **Top 3:**

* Chayce Beckham
* Willie Spence
* Grace Kinstler