Idol Chatter & Voice Views

Julia Gagnon reacts to the judges’ feedback on her American Idol Season 22 audition. (ABC Photo)

Sunday marked American Idol’s final audition episode of Season 22.

And it turned into a gold rush, with the show introducing us to no fewer than 18 Hollywood bound artists.

So many, in fact, that we didn’t get full introductions to all of them.

And talk about an embarrassment of riches. Eleven of those Hollywood bound singers are still in their teens.

Below, I’ve listed my favorite performances of the night. But I couldn’t judge the ones we only saw snippets of.

I would have loved to have heard full auditions from Sophia Ava Marie, Brant McCullough and Carmen Olivia.

Instead, they were packaged together in a clip featuring contestants who are young and fearless. And extremely talented. I’ll be eager to hear more from all three.

As usual, following the links below will take you to full profiles on the artists.

BEST OF THE NIGHT

Julia Gagnon, 21, Cumberland, Maine, “Ain’t No Way” by Aretha Franklin: Born in Guatemala, she was adopted from an orphanage there at age 2 and raised in Maine. Which was wonderful until she entered school and was bullied because she looked different from the other children. The final contestant in the final audition show, Julia said she auditioned because her birth mother encouraged her to do something “big.” She then showed off a big, rich voice with oodles of range in what was easily one of the best auditions we’ve heard. The performance brought the judges to their feet. Katy said she performed like she had several soul singers inside her. She predicted she could be Top 10. Lionel called the performance “amazing.” The judges were so impressed they followed Julia outisde the audition room to take away her gold ticket and replace it with a platinum ticket. More on Julia.

RUNNERS-UP

Isaiah Case, 22, Jacksonville, Ill., “What Could I Do” (an original): A dad and worship leader, Isaiah performed an original he released the same day as the Idol premiere. He performed it with a touch of grit and a lot of passion. And I could see him doing very, very well on the show. He’s the type of contestant fans love to support. Luke complimented him on the character in his voice. Lionel loved his story-telling voice. Meanwhile, if you’re looking for the song on streaming sites, Isaiah released it under the stage name CASE. More on Isaiah.

Ricky Moyer, 22, Philadelphia, Pa. “It Must Have Been Love” by Roxette: Ricky displayed a really lovely tone and turned the Roxette tune into a heartfelt ballad. Lionel called it a great performance. Luke and Katy loved it as well. He received a standing ovation. I have no idea why Idol didn’t make video of this performance available. We learned very little about Ricky on the show. You can learn lots more here.

ALSO MADE THE SHOW

Jayna Elise, 22, Washington, D.C., “The Climb” by Miley Cyrus: Jayna is returning to Idol after making the Top 55 last year. I hate the song. I wasn’t a fan of the frills Jayna added to it. But I was glad to see Idol give Jayna credit for the drama diffusion she provided at Hollywood Week last year. The judges loved it. Katy called her audition a “full three-course meal” and said she’s clearly grown vocally. Lionel’s reaction: “Wow, welcome back.” More about Jayna.

Cate Gartner, 18, Aledo, Texas, “The Place That I Call Home” (an original) Cate was working on a debut album when her unexpected pregnancy interrupted the project. This ode to her baby helped complete the project. The female singer-songwriter field is packed in Season 22, but the judges clearly liked what they heard from Cate, giving her a standing ovation. Lionel said her voice displayed great story-telling ability. Luke said the “sky is the limit” in his opinion. And Cate breezed to Hollywood with three yes votes. More about Cate.

Jordan Anthony, 18, Perth Australia, “Forget Me” by Lewis Capaldi: Jordan displayed a nice pop voice on this cover. Which isn’t all that surprising since he made the finals of The Voice Australia. Katy said she’s “really intrigued,” especially with Jordan’s vocal range. Lionel and Luke were also impressed with his audition. He joins Michael Rice, Ziggy and Mackenzie Sol as imported male pop singers headed to Hollywood on Idol Season 22. More about Jordan.

Bethany Teague, 25, Charlotte, N.C., “Piece by Piece” by Kelly Clarkson: Bethany was adopted by and raised by her grandmother. She dedicated her performance to her family and delivered an emotional cover of Kelly’s song. It was one of the night’s most moving performances. By the end of it, Bethany was in tears. Lionel called the performance very moving. Luke and Katy both said she needs to build a bit more confidence. She, too, got three yes votes.

Liliana Tovar Dalton, 17, San Antonio, Texas, “5 Percent” (an original): She writes songs about stupid boys, saying she’s in her “Taylor Swift era.” She sings a song called “5 Percent” because she says that’s about how much effort the guy in question gave to their relationship. Katy said she loved her original for being raw, honest and vulnerable. Liliana comes across as quite a character for age 17. Katy wants to hear something big from Liliana, so she encourages her to sing a bit of “Someone Like You.” Which Liliana does before walking out of the room with a unanimous golden ticket.

Camila Galavis, 14, Miami, Fla., “Rabia” by Joaquina: She’s the daughter of Juan Pablo Galavis, star of Seaosn 18 of The Bachelor. She was also a high school freshman at the time of the audition, making her Season 22’s youngest contestant. The judges debated whether she’s ready to face the Idol gauntlet. Lionel voted “no,” but Camila got yes votes from Katy and Luke based on her pop-ready vocals. She sang her entire audition in Spanish.

Jacy Matthews, 17, Centre, Ala., “Help Me Make It Through the Night” by Kris Kristofferson and Mia Matthews, 18, Centre, Ala., “No Place That Far” by Sara Evans: These gals and their mom made Season 19 of The Voice as the country-pop trio Worth the Wait, turning four chairs in their blind audition. Both gals advanced on Idol by 2-1 votes. Luke and Katy said they were a bit more impressed by Mia, and I’d agree. That said, Jacy showed off a lovely tone, but might have been affected by nerves. The judges encouraged both young ladies to deliver more grit and growl, in their delivery and attitude. More about Mia.

Garrison Bennett, 18, Statesville, N.C., “Superstition” by Stevie Wonder: Garrison turned in a solid audition, but it was a bit tough to judge because the judges were being so raucous during the performance.

Victoria Johnson, 16, “No Excuses” by Meghan Trainor: Another very young singer who showed off lots of sass and a bubbly personality. Luke says she’s got some star quality. Lionel likes her confidence.

Sophia Ava Marie, 15, Las Vegas, Nevada, “The One That Got Away” by Katy Perry: She displayed a lovely tone, plenty of vocal firepower and sounded older than her age. A very strong audition. Katy said she “nailed it.”

Brant McCullough, 16, Samson, Ala., “Fire Away” by Chris Stapleton: He’s easily one of the best young country singers we’ve heard on the show. Luke’s reaction: “You’ve really got something and you’re gonna really have something.” More about Brant.

Carmen Olivia, 16, Bethel, Conn., “Oscar Winning Tears” by Raye: Wow, talk about a nice combination of soul and sass. At just 16. Katy’s response: “You’re 16 in the best ways of being 16.”

Ty’Esha Lasha, 22, Monroeville, Ala., “Unaware” by Allen Stone: She showed off a big, rich voice, but we say just a snippet of her audition. Lionel told Ty’Esha her vocals were solid and added that she knows what she’s doing. More about Ty’Esha.

Spencer Wells, 24, “Use Somebody” by Kings of Leon: He was montaged with Ty’Esha, but had the judges proclaiming “touchdown” when he finished singing.

Isaiah Case listens to the feedback from the American Idol judges during an audition that aired Sunday night. (ABC Photo)