According to boston.com, American Idol will save the best for last during its season 19 premiere on Feb. 14, 2021.
They were, of course, referring to Grace, who dazzled judges Lionel Richie, Luke Bryan, and Katy Perry with renditions of Gladys Knight & The Pips’ “Midnight Train to Georgia.” Even though the judges were already impressed by her performance, they asked her to sing a second song. So she sang Aretha Franklin’s “Natural Woman,” and she astounded them as much as she had the first time.
As a result, Luke, who has never been moved by a song in his four years on the show, compared her performance to Kelly Clarkson and Jennifer Hudson. Meanwhile, Grace’s voice has been described as “true magic” by the singer-songwriter of “Roar” and “Dark Horse.”
Grace performed “10 Seconds” by Jazmine Sullivan, “Grenade” by Bruno Mars, and “Father” by Demi Lovato during the Hollywood Round. She advanced to the Top 24 with her performances of “Queen” by Jessie J and “Midnight Train to Georgia” by Gladys Knight & The Pips.
Grace chose Sia’s “Elastic Heart,” Pharrell Williams’s “Happy,” and Idina Menzel and Aurora’s (from Frozen II) “Into the Unknown” to perform during the Top 16, Top 12, and Top 10 rounds, respectively.
Grace’s Top 7 performances included Coldplay’s “Fix You” and Adele’s “When We Were Young.” She reached the Top 3 by singing a duet with Willie Spence and the other two songs in the Top 4.
Grace performed Celine Dion’s “All By Myself” and Whitney Houston’s “I Have Nothing” in the season finale. Despite her best efforts, she was unable to secure enough votes to win American Idol.
