A Mississippian is among the final 14 on the hit TV singing competition “American Idol,” as a big twist was revealed at the end of Monday night’s episode.
During the opening hour of Monday’s “Songs of Faith” episode – the first live episode of season 24 – Daniel Stallworth was announced as part of the top 14, advancing from the top 20. The 27-year-old from Moss Point received enough fan votes after his March 17 performance of judge Lionel Richie’s “All Night Long” to survive the night’s first round of planned eliminations.
Fans were tasked with sending two more contestants home in real time. To make his case, Stallworth sang “Brighter Days” by Blessing Offor. He again impressed with another energetic performance.
“You have the ability to tell a story and then move the crowd. That was a great performance,” Richie said as fellow veteran judge Luke Bryan added, “You got me in the spirit. Keep growing.”
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The newest of the judges, Carrie Underwood, who’s in her second season after replacing Katy Perry, predicted Stallworth’s showing would be enough to stave off elimination.
“I feel like we’re watching you get into a more comfortable, fun space,” Underwood said. “I love that you picked an up-tempo song. That’s going to differentiate you tonight.”
Underwood’s prediction did not get a chance to pan out, though, as the remaining 14 contestants took the stage before host Ryan Seacrest shocked the room and millions of viewers at home.
“We want to make sure we get everything counted and everything right,” Seacrest said, noting that “tens of millions of votes” have been received, but to ensure the integrity of the competition, the results will not be announced until next week.
The decision to hold off on the top 12 being announced comes as “Idol” recently became the first reality competition to make the leap to social voting, meaning fans can vote in the comments on Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok. Social voting, combined with traditional voting methods through text message and the show’s website, resulted in an “unprecedented” number of votes being cast in real time, per Seacrest.
Even with the shocking twist, Stallworth joined a handful of Mississippians to make the top 14. He is the fourth Mississippian in the past four seasons to advance this far in the competition. Monroe County’s Colin Stough and Zachariah Smith both made it to the top 5 of season 21 before Meridian’s Jamal Roberts went on to win it all in season 23.
“American Idol” will return with the top 12 on Monday, April 6, at 8/7c on ABC.