‘American Idol’ will continue its season with first-ever at-home performances

The ‘at-home’ movement is alive and well; in fact, it isn’t stopping at virtual house parties and Instagram Live concerts from your favourite celebs. Now, it’s bringing a new kind of excitement to our living rooms, the kind that can only be achieved with a high-stakes vocal competition.

On Tuesday, American Idol announced it will continue it’s current season with a never-before-seen twist — the finalists will compete from home, via remote performances.

This news arrives after much debate surrounding if — and how — the current season of the beloved show, which premiered on February 16th, would continue to air as physical distancing measures remain in effect North America in response to COVID-19. Following the Top 40 showcase in Hawaii, which aired on April 5th, the Idol judges arrowed down their group of contestants to 20 finalists. Naturally, fans were eager to know if they would have the opportunity to see the season play out in typical fashion, with the Top 20 competing in live shows.

But you know what they say… the show must go on. Only this time, instead of taking the stage in the iconic Americal Idol studio, finalists will be performing remotely from various locations around North America, in their own homes. The judges will also be joining in virtually, with Katy Perry and Lionel Richie judging from their respective houses in California, Luke Bryan and mentor Bobby Bones tuning in from Nashville, and last but not least, Ryan Seacrest hosting from his place in California, too.

There really is a first for everything, you guys.

How will @AmericanIdol continue?I'll be judging from California ☀️@LionelRichie from LA ?@LukeBryanOnline & @mrBobbyBones in Nashville.@RyanSeacrest will host from Cali!?Contestants perform at their house!?America will VOTE from HOME and choose a WINNER!?️? pic.twitter.com/DF1emYAfuR

— KATY PERRY (@katyperry) April 14, 2020

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This marks the first confirmed shift to an ‘at-home’ filming structure for televised competitions; a dilemma which other popular shows including The Voice and America’s Got Talent are currently facing. Will they follow in American Idol’s footsteps? How exactly will producers set up the at-home streaming for each participant and judge? We don’t have those answers just yet, but we’re eager to find out.

Let’s do this @AmericanIdol. We’ll all be coming to you from our homes, contestants included. @mrBobbyBones and I from Nashville, @katyperry, @LionelRichie and @RyanSeacrest from California. You guys will VOTE and choose a winner. pic.twitter.com/iIAiPKtSzY

— Luke Bryan (@LukeBryanOnline) April 14, 2020

More importantly, this means we'll get to see Canadian Lauren Spencer-Smith take over the stage — or, her living room — again soon, and show off her unbelievable pipes. The 16-year-old Vancouver native absolutely nailed her final performance during the Hawaii Top 40 showcase (despite some seriously impressive competition), and we can’t wait to watch her journey unfold throughout the rest of the competition. In the meantime, you can catch Part 2 of this season's special American Idol – This Is Me (Part 2) on Sunday, April 19th at 8pET on CTV2.

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