Prior to announcing the Top 5 contestants, American Idol brought in a famous flare with the help of Ed Sheeran and Alanis Morissette. The two non-American Idols—Sheeran hails from England and Morissette is from Canada – watched as the hopefuls played some of their biggest hits.
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Sheeran and Morissette appeared on the show in the place of Katy Perry and Lionel Richie as they were busy performing at the coronation of King Charles III. Recurring judge Luke Bryan was there alongside the guest judges to help bring the competition to its final stages.
Among the tribute performances was a duet between Iam Tongi and Oliver Steele. At this stage in the competition, each performer is a fan favorite in their own right. Both Tongi and Steele have been standouts throughout the show.
The pair has duetted before throughout this season of Idol. They previously performed The Weeknd and Ariana Grande’s “Save Your Tears” during the Hollywood rounds.
It’s not hard to see why these two contestants would be paired together. Both are golden-voiced and acoustically driven. The pair strapped on guitars to perform Sheeran’s “Photograph” during Sunday night’s episode (May 7).
The performance was every bit as stunning as one would guess after seeing these singers’ names alongside each other. Sheeran’s touching lyrics were made all the more so with Tongi and Steele’s voices crooning them out to the audience.
After they wrapped up the song, host Ryan Seacrest asked Sheeran what he thought of the performance.
“Just how well your voices complimented each other,” Sheeran said. “That was so beautiful to listen to. Both of your tones just fit so well with each other. I’m listening [to both of you] knowing that there’s a crazy power to your signing ability, but [also there is] a gentleness and a soulfulness that you bring.”
“I got emotional listening to that—it was so good,” Sheeran continued.
“You’re my hero,” Steele added after Sheeran extended his praise.
“You’re coming from two completely different places and yet you have this really cohesive and respectful connection with each other,” Morissette said. “I was just really moved hearing men be vulnerable.”
In the end, live voting eliminated Steele from the competition, advancing Tongi to the Top 5 finalists.
Check out the performance, below.
Photo by ABC/Eric McCandless)
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