The judges gave him a standing ovation before revealing that Katy Perry chose the song. Jay guessed right that Katy chose it. He knew that she wanted to see more hurt. Katy’s score gave her 4 songs, and also judged her against Luke Bryan for the winner of the Judge’s Song Contest.
American Idol introduced a new twist to season 20 on Monday night. (Read our Summary). Each of the Top 11 contestants received a song from the judges – Lionel Richie, Katy Perry and Luke Bryan. The female singer chose one of three songs to sing without knowing which song the judges chose. The judge with the most selected songs won the “Jury Song Contest”.
Platinum ticket recipient and Maryland native Jay Copeland finally got his “moment” with a song the judges chose for him. He can choose from Jackson 5’s “I’ll Be There,” a band he covered earlier in the season, Jeff Buckley’s dreamy “Lilac Wine,” or a contemporary R&B song. , “Caught Up” by Usher. Jay only knows “I’ll Be There,” but vocal coach Adriana McPhee and music director Phredley Brown note that he is a quick learner. He decided to become vulnerable and push himself with “Lilac Wine”.
James Shelton wrote “Lilac Wine”, which was first performed in a play called Dance Me a Song by Hope Foye in 1950. Eartha Kitt performed the song’s first promotional cover and after listening to it. some performances, I can say it’s a very good song.
Jay starts the song with a very clear and open sound. His phrasing is so beautiful, and he sings with a lot of emotion without a lot of vocal acrobatics. The production with the band was amazing. It’s the perfect choice for a closer look. He uses his heavy vibrato, but it’s appropriate here. He hit a few glorious notes, and it’s wise not to aim to go any higher in his falsetto. It’s nice that he’s in a pocket like this. You can hear the battery drain during this performance. I’m not sure if he’s still in the competition after a couple of decent performances, but this “moment,” his best performance to date, has exceeded my expectations.
