‘American Idol’ Eliminates 2, Announces Top 5

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After two heartbreaking eliminations, American Idol announced their Top 5 contestants Sunday night (May 5).

During Sunday night’s episode of American Idol (May 5), the Top 7 contestants were tasked with singing two songs: An Adele cover and a “Song That Makes Me Wanna Dance.” But for two hopefuls, the performances weren’t enough to move them through to the Top 5.

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Triston Harper, Emmy Russell, McKenna Faith Breinholt, Julia Gagnon, Abi Carter, Will Mosely, and Jack Blocker were mentored by megastar Ciara and gave it their all in hopes of avoiding elimination. Unfortunately, McKenna Faith Breinholt and Julia Gagnon were sent home in an emotional and shocking elimination.

Julia Gagnon first wowed judges with her cover of Aretha Franklin’s “Ain’t No Way.” She was the final audition of the season and earned the third and final Platinum ticket, allowing her to skip the first round of competition during Hollywood Week.

McKenna Faith Breinholt won the hearts of America with her emotional story and audition. Breinholt, an Arizona native, was adopted at birth and was unable to search for her birth mother until her 21st birthday. After her touching “There Was Jesus” audition performance, American Idol producers introduced her to her birth family for the first time.

In the weeks since their auditions, both women have delivered solid performances and showcased their incredible talent. It was enough to earn public votes until this week’s episode. Despite leaving it all on the stage, they were sent packing.

It’s likely that this is just the beginning for McKenna and Julia as numerous artists who have appeared on Idol and fell short of the title have found success outside of the show. Artists such as Tori Kelly and Lady A’s Hillary Scott went on to superstardom even though they were rejected during the audition process. Others like Lauren Alaina, Adam Lambert and Jennifer Hudson fell just shy of winning the title and it only catapulted their path to stardom.

Watch the Top 5 announcement in the video below.