We Officially Know Who's in the Top 26 for This Season of 'American Idol'
Published April 11 2023, 9:28 a.m. ET
The competition is ramping up in Season 21 of American Idol and the contestants were going to be narrowed down to the top 24 ... until the judges decided that we actually need a Top 26!
Find out more about which fan favorites made it to the next round and who stunned audiences across America. We have all the details on the Top 26 contestants.
Here's who made it into the Top 26 for Season 21 of 'American Idol.'
On Sunday, April 9, the following contestants were welcomed into the Top 24:
- Kaeyra
- Warren Peay
- Nutsa
- Michael Williams
- PJAE
- Malik Heard
- Wé Ani
- Zachariah Smith
- Tyson Venegas (one of the Platinum Ticket Winners)
- Haven Madison
- Lucy Love
The episode ended in a cliffhanger as audiences waited to see whether Paige Anne or Megan Danielle would make it into the Top 24.
On Monday, April 10, the Top 24 actually became a Top 26! Here's everyone who made the cut:
- Megan Danielle
- Marybeth Byrd
- Oliver Steele
- Emma Busse
- Elise Kristine
- Olivia Soli
- Dawson Wayne
- Mariah Faith
- Hannah Nicolaisen
- Nailyah Serenity
- Matt Wilson
- Iam Tongi
- Colin Stough
What happens next on 'American Idol'?
Now that we officially have our Top 26, the competition is really going to heat up over the next few weeks. The next two episodes (airing April 16 and 17) will feature the contestants performing at Disney's Aulani Resort in Hawaii. After that, we'll see the judges narrow things down even further to a Top 20 on April 23 (unless they decide to go rogue again and give us a Top 22!).
We're also going to finally start being able to vote on our favorites and see some live performances starting on April 24, which is also when we'll see our Top 10! We can't wait!
Tune into American Idol Sundays (and some Mondays) at 8 p.m. ET on ABC.