Luke Bryan has been won over by one particular contestant on American Idol after originally giving her a no, to now saying she could quite possibly be in the top 10.
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For Zaylie Windsor, a wake-up call came when she didn't get a unanimous yes in the early stages of the show. One no can be quite a confidence knock, but she didn't let it slow her down. She's come back with gusto and certainly managed to impress the judges on the Hollywood stage.
Standing with her guitar, she belted out "Happier Than Ever" by Billy Eilish. It's a pretty bold undertaking. Billy Eilish has an incredibly unique voice that I think can't be covered by just anyone. But, the American Idol judges liked it, and Bryan especially was impressed.
"She's serious, y'all," Bryan said after Zaylie Windsor finished. "She has put herself definitely in the top 10." The three of them were standing up, obviously caught up with the energy of the crowd. Zaylie tried to hit some pretty high notes during her performance, and some folks obviously thought she succeeded. I just didn't hear it that way, though.
If That's The Top Ten, I Hate To See The Bottom
Listening to Zaylie Windsor's performance on American Idol, I struggled to see why the judges were so impressed. She gave it her all, for sure, but the high, 'powerful' notes were painful to listen to. There is a big difference between singing with power and just shouting. She was doing the latter.
" data-instgrm-version="14" style="background:#FFF;border:0;border-radius:3px;margin: 1px;max-width:540px;min-width:326px;padding:0;width:99.375%;width:-webkit-calc(100% - 2px);width:calc(100% - 2px)">Her notes were flat, screeched, and shouted into the mic. There was little to no vocal control, and I could see the strain on her face. She took on a song that was far too technically difficult and ended up just screaming the last notes.
The audience of an American Idol show is the easiest thing to hype up in the world. Shout a modern classic at them, and they're frothing. The judges aren't much different. In a show where the three of them have a good cry any time someone mentions their pet hamster dying three years ago as a sob story, watching them get excited hardly carried gravitas.
Seeing the three of them giving a standing ovation has little to no meaning anymore, especially after a performance like that.
