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American Idol‘s Zaylie Windsor has redeemed herself.
On Sunday, April 6, Wilson had a lot riding on her showstopper performance after she got a “no” from Luke Bryan during her audition — and she didn’t hold back.
“This is probably the biggest audience I’ve ever played in front of. I’m really nervous about holding back on stage like I did in my audition,” Windsor, 20, said before her performance.
During her audition, Windsor played an original song called “The Used” and Bryan, 48, said she wasn’t “quite ready” to move forward. However, she still made the cut because Carrie Underwood decided to “roll the dice.”
“There’s a Taylor Swift-esque quality… she doesn’t have these giant vibrato, belty voice but there’s something in there… she must have a lot of other things in her arsenal that she could bring to the table,” the “Before He Cheats” singer, 42, said. “I feel like there’s something about her.”
“You won me over and confirmed me,” Lionel Richie said.
Reflecting on her audition, Windsor said “a lot of my confidence wasn’t there.”
To prove herself, she chose to sing Billie Eilish’s “Happier Than Ever” for showstoppers.
“It shows more of my range and what I can do as a performer,” she said of the anthem.
During her rehearsal, Windsor was visibly nervous and explained that the song was a risk.
“I tend to get super nervous about things. Some of the notes are really high. Not out of my range but not really in my comfort zone. I think I’m really pushing myself with this,” she said.
She continued, “Especially with a song this big you really can’t hold back or it’s not going to hit like I really want it to.”
When she got onstage, Windsor started out soft and then belted out the lyrics — leading to a standing ovation by the judges.
“Wow, way to do it,” said Richie.
Underwood added, “Welcome to the Zaylie show.”
Then, Bryan admitted that she was “serious” about her role on the show.
He continued, “She has put herself definitely in the Top 10.”
American Idol airs Sundays at 8 p.m. ET on ABC.
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