Emmy Russell advanced to the top 7 on American Idol on Monday night.
The judges gave each contestant three songs to choose from for their performance, including Russell’s grandmother’s hit and Loretta Lynn’s- Coal Miner’s Daughter.
Russell’s take on the classic song brought the audience and judge Katy Perry to tears. Perry selected the song for the now Top 7 contestant, sharing, ”You are Emmy Russell, and you can do anything as Emmy Russell.”
The top 7 contestants moving forward to the Sunday, May 5th show will be Abi Carter, Jack Blocker Julia Gagnon, Triston Harper and Will Moseley. McKenna Faith Brienholt was saved by Perry. Ciara will serve as a guest mentor for the Top 7, who will perform dance songs from various artists and iconic hits from bestselling artist Adele. Meghan Trainor returns to perform while America votes live for the Top 5.
Also, on Monday’s show, American Idol paid tribute to Mandisa, the former top 5 contestant who suddenly passed away on Thursday, April 18th. The performance featured Colton Dixon, Danny Gokey and Melinda Doolittle. The past American Idol finalists performed “Shackles (Praise You),” a song Mandisa performed as a contestant on the show’s 5th season and recorded on her debut album, True Beauty, in 2007.
Watch Emmy Russell’s performance of Coal Miner’s Daughter below.
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