Competing on American Idol requires the ability to roll with the punches. Jack Blocker certainly learned this when he was sent to Hollywood by the grace of the Idol crew (and Luke Bryan.) But the 25-year-old Dallas, Texas native was undaunted, blazing a trail to finale night before finishing in third place. So when the venue lost power during a recent show, Blocker and fellow season 22 finalist McKenna Breinholt knew just what to do.
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“Divine Intervention”: ‘American Idol’ Stars Keep Playing In Spite of Power Outage
It was an American Idol reunion at Saturday’s (July 20) Franklin Summer Bash. Jack Blocker and McKenna Breinholt joined fellow season 22 Top 10 finalists Kaibrienne Richins, Mia Matthews, and Kayko at Liberty Hall just south of Nashville.
Richins, Matthews, and Kayko completed their sets without incident. However, Breinholt was in the middle of her final song, Hillsong’s “Oceans,” when lightning struck a nearby transformer. Liberty Hall plunged into darkness—but Breinholt didn’t stop singing. In fact, she wrote on Instagram that the crowd took up an a capella version after her microphone went out.
“All I can say is that I believe that was divine intervention and the spirit filled the entire room while we all praised the Lord in unison and in harmony,” wrote Breinholt, who finished in seventh place. “Forever grateful I can keep this memory with me forever. I love you Franklin!!”
“We Would’ve Held Our Flashlights Up All Night”
Next, Jack Blocker took the stage to close out the night. The singer-songwriter reprised his Top 8 performance of Willie Nelson’s “Always On My Mind,” this time with only the lights of a few hundred cell phones to guide his way.
“Powers out and there’s 5 strings left on the guitar but a Willie song’s a Willie song,” the American Idol finalist wrote on TikTok Monday (July 22.)
One fan chimed in, “We would’ve held our flashlights up all night!”
‘American Idol’ Finalists Support One Another on Social Media
You don’t go through an emotional rollercoaster like American Idol auditions without forming a few bonds. Those bonds were on full display in the comments section of McKenna Breinholt’s Instagram post.
“What a crew!” wrote season 22 runner-up Will Moseley. “That’s my people!”
Top 8 finalist Kaibrienne Richins agreed. “you were so amazing dude,” she wrote to Breinholt. “I’m so proud of you.”
(Featured image via YouTube)
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