Casey Bishop finally cut loose on Sunday’s episode of “American Idol.” Her long brown hair flew through the air. She jumped around. She stomped her feet. She prowled the stage.
It was something judge Katy Perry had been waiting to see for weeks.
“Woo, Casey!” Perry said after Bishop sang the Coldplay song “Paradise.” “It was so great to see you let loose towards the middle of that song and the hair go everywhere …
“I hope that when I get to see you sing again and again, that you’re just, like, moving around like a little tornado. I want more tornado!”
‘American Idol’: Watch all of Casey Bishop’s performances, from Mötley Crüe to ‘Toy Story 2’
Then Bishop sang Alanis Morissette’s “Ironic” and brought even more rock ‘n’ roll fury onstage.
Perry grinned afterward.
“There’s my little whirlwind!” she said.
“American Idol’s” viewers must have loved Bishop’s force-of-nature performances, too. They voted during Sunday’s live episode and made their decision: Casey Bishop is now one of “American Idol’s” Top 5 singers.
“There it is: Your Top 5, America!” said host Ryan Seacrest, moments after announcing the winners. “Give it up for ‘em!”
Now there are only two weeks left until “American Idol’s” finale, Seacrest said.
For next week’s episode, Bishop and the rest of the Top 5 will be mentored by producer and singer-songwriter Finneas, brother to pop star Billie Eilish. They’ll also debut new singles recorded with a top producer, Seacrest said.
Casey Bishop’s breakthrough? Working with Coldplay lead singer Chris Martin
Bishop’s breakthrough onstage Sunday came after the Estero teenager got a one-on-one coaching session with Coldplay singer-songwriter Chris Martin. He gave her tips on getting over her anxiety and throwing herself into the song onstage.
“The main thing, I think, that helps me is just to exist within the song,” Martin told her, “and don’t worry about what anybody thinks. Then your body just finds where it wants to go, and you’re free.”
Interview with Casey Bishop: The ‘American Idol’ singer talks about the songs, Stamos, what it’s like in the Top 7
Bishop took those word to heart for Sunday’s performances.
“Chris definitely gave me some advice on how to just be in the moment and not think so much,” Bishop says. “It really helped.”
The judges definitely saw the difference.
“I’ve never heard you hit a bad note this whole time,” Luke Bryan told her after she sang Coldplay’s “Paradise.” “I mean, you keep delivering night after night, and that was yet another glimpse into your future and what you can be.”
Sunday’s episode was broken into two rounds. In the first hour, the show’s Top 7 singers performed songs from the Coldplay songbook. Then, in the second hour, they performed songs for Mother’s Day and dedicated them to their own mothers or other people in their lives.
Bishop dedicated Morissette’s “Ironic” to her mother, Danielle Davis, who’s been with Bishop in Los Angeles during her time on “Idol.”
Bryan said it was fun seeing Bishop doing a rock song again on “Idol.”
“It was so fun watching you be like, ‘Alright, this is my jam and I’m gonna do it my way,” he told her. “It was awesome. It was great.”
“American Idol” airs at 8 p.m. Sundays and sometimes Mondays on ABC. Learn more about the show at abc.com/shows/american-idol.
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