Francisco Martin sings for “American Idol” judges from inside his home during the COVID-19 pandemic. Image: ABC
Francisco Martin impressed judges as he fought to be a top 10 contestant Sunday, April 26, on “American Idol.”
The top 20 participants of the reality singing competition are all filming from home amid the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic.
Martin, a Filipino college student in California, chose to perform the 2010 pop hit “Teenage Dream” by Katy Perry, who happens to be a judge on the reality singing competition.
https://youtu.be/ZeeCvjRRgaI
His acoustic rendition got praises from judges Perry, Luke Bryan and Lionel Richie, who all viewed the song choice as a risk.
“What a dice roll to do that song. Good for you because it really worked,” Perry said.
She did give some pointers to work on: “I would’ve liked to see you come down just a little bit and bring it back to that sultry ‘Teenage Dream’ subtle part, but that’s just me being overly critical of a song I’ve sung tens of thousands of times.”
“But you did it real justice, good job,” she concluded.
Bryan admitted he was nervous for Martin. “I was like please do not let this kid cover a Katy song and mess it up.”
“You didn’t man, you made it you, and you just have the magic. And I’m jealous,” he quipped.
Richie too commended the cover: “You turned it into your song, you made it your song.”
Martin and other contestants can receive votes through the American Idol app or website, or by texting the contestant’s number to 21523. Martin is contestant number 12.
Audience votes will determine the 10 who will advance to the next round, and the result will be announced next week. /ra
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