‘Idol’ Hopeful Hollie Cavanagh Gets Mixed Reviews Singing Carrie Underwood’s ‘Jesus, Take the Wheel’
‘American Idol‘ contestant Hollie Cavanagh isn’t one of the country singers in the bunch; but given the choice to sing a song from her real-life idol, small-statured, giant-voiced Cavanagh went for a Carrie Underwood hit.
Practicing ‘Jesus, Take the Wheel’ with the mentors backstage, the hopeful at first didn’t sell it. But as soon as Stevie Nicks took it to a personal level, explaining that her mom just passed away and that overtakes all of her problems and all of her life, something flipped within Cavanagh and she seemed to connect with the song.
After bringing Nicks to tears and knowing that Nicks believed in her and thought the rest of the world would believe as well, Cavanagh stepped into the spotlight. Wearing a fitted white sequined dress that perfectly fit the snowy stage setup, the young blonde brought soul to the Underwood hit, delivering it with surprising power and conviction.
And while she donned a Greek goddess-like chunky gold necklace for her ‘Idol’ performance tonight, Cavanagh actually received a necklace from Underwood this week, as well as an encouraging note. We’re not sure if the country starlet knew the ‘Idol’ hopeful would be singing her song, but we do know she’s definitely a fan — and she knows what it’s like to be in that spotlight.
While Cavanagh did bring a convincing performance, she got mixed reviews from the judges. Randy Jackson thought it was so-so, explaining once again that it’s always hard to bite off a song from a killer past ‘Idol’ talent and pointing out that it was pitchy in some of the lower register. While the audience booed him, he pointed out that he was just trying to give constructive criticism to make her better.
Jennifer Lopez, on the other hand, was a huge fan, suggesting that it might have been the best performance she’d seen from Cavanagh yet. Steven Tyler landed between the other two saying, “I’m not gonna mess with Jesus and/or Carrie … I just wish you sang a different song.” But in the end, America will get to decide how the sweet songstress did.
Watch Hollie Cavanagh Perform ‘Jesus, Take the Wheel’ on ‘American Idol’