Sunday night marked a big moment for “American Idol.”
During the two-hour live episode, roughly 19 million votes from viewers determined the competition’s top 12. In addition to eliminating two singers, “Idol” also revealed the 2025 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inductees.
Here’s a brief recap of the episode.
A look at the ‘American Idol’ Rock and Roll Hall of Fame episode
With some guidance from Rock and Roll Hall of Famer James Taylor, who was inducted in 2000, the “American Idol” top 14 performed songs from Hall of Fame legends.
The episode was live, and viewers at home had the chance to vote for their favorite singers during the broadcast.
Performances Sunday night included:
Filo — “With a Little Help From My Friends,” The Beatles
Mattie Pruitt — “Piece of My Heart,” Janis Joplin
John Foster — “Jailhouse Rock,” Elvis Presley
Desmond Roberts — “Jesus Is Love,” The Commodores
Jamal Roberts — “Shout Pt. 1 and 2,” The Isley Brothers
Amanda Barise — “I Can’t Help It,” Michael Jackson
Canaan James Hill — “Mary, Don’t You Weep,” Aretha Franklin
Josh King — “The Longest Time,” Billy Joel
Thunderstorm Artis — “Fire and Rain,” James Taylor
Gabby Samone — “Saving All My Love For You,” Whitney Houston
Slater Nalley — “Your Song,” Elton John
Kolbi Jordan — “You’re All I Need to Get By,” Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell
Che — “It’s a Man’s, Man’s, Man’s World,” James Brown
Breanna Nix — “Open Arms,” Journey
To celebrate the night’s rock and roll theme, “American Idol” also announced the 2025 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inductees.
The following seven artists will be inducted in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame this fall:
- Bad Company
- Chubby Checker
- Joe Cocker
- Cyndi Lauper
- Outkast
- Soundgarden
- The White Stripes
Per rockhall.com, the 14 2025 nominees were:
- Bad Company
- The Black Crowes
- Mariah Carey
- Chubby Checker
- Joe Cocker
- Billy Idol
- Joy Division/New Order
- Cyndi Lauper
- Maná
- Oasis
- Outkast
- Phish
- Soundgarden
- The White Stripes
Who’s in the ‘American Idol’ top 12?
At the end of Sunday’s episode, “American Idol” announced its top 12.
The top 12 includes the season’s three platinum ticket winners — Kolbi Jordan, Canaan James Hill and Filo; 15-year-old Mattie Pruitt, the youngest contestant remaining in the competition; and Thunderstorm Artis, a singer who placed third on “The Voice” in 2020.
Below are the 12 singers still in the “American Idol” competition:
Kolbi Jordan
Filo
John Foster
Mattie Pruitt
Jamal Roberts
Slater Nalley
Gabby Samone
Josh King
Ché Chesterman
Who was eliminated on ‘American Idol’?
The following two singers were eliminated from the “American Idol” competition Sunday night:
- Desmond Roberts
- Amanda Barise