American Idol Is Going To Hawaii – Learn About The New ‘Ohana Round
American Idol found two superstar performers to serve as guest mentors during Season 24!
Season 24 of American Idol premiered on Monday, January 26. It was the show’s most-watched season premiere in four years, with over 5.9 million viewers tuning in.
Judges Luke Bryan, Carrie Underwood, and Lionel Richie have all returned. The two-hour premiere episode showcased their shocked, stunned, and emotional reactions to the auditions they witnessed.
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Idol plans to introduce some big changes this season. One of those changes is a new “‘Ohana Round.” This round will take place when the show’s Top 30 contestants travel to Hawaii to perform at Aulani, a Disney Resort & Spa.
ABC described the ‘Ohana Round in a press release, which read:
“Designed as the ultimate focus group, the ’Ohana Round blends peer respect, emotional support and professional insight before the competition moves on to America’s Vote. In this new round, the top 30 hopefuls will perform for industry tastemakers — who collectively reach nearly 149 million followers…“
Those “industry tastemakers” include Kaniyia Brown, Terry McCaskill, Anthony Gargiula, Loren Gray, Shirley Halperin, Evan Ross Katz, Cheryl Porter, and Kelly Sutton.
Brad Paisley And Keke Palmer Share Video To Announce Their Roles As Guest Mentors On Season 24 Of American Idol
In addition to hearing from the industry tastemakers, the Top 30 contestants on Season 24 of American Idol will receive guidance from two guest mentors. Those guest mentors’ identities were revealed on Wednesday (January 28).
Grand Ole Opry member Brad Paisley and Emmy-award-winning actress/singer Keke Palmer are Idol‘s guest mentors in Hawaii this year! They shared the news in a comical video playing off the “owl impression” trend circulating on social media.
These videos usually begin with the phrase “This is my impression of an owl if they were…” before completing the phrase with the name of a (usually famous) person.
In Paisley and Palmer’s case, their video read, “Our impression of an owl who’s gonna be a mentor on American Idol!”
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Idol’s “industry tastemaker” Kelly Sutton of Y’all Access Radio caught up with judge Carrie Underwood in Hawaii to ask her about the show’s new mentors. She specifically asked about Paisley, since he and Underwood are longtime friends, duet partners, and former CMA Award co-hosts.
“I love it…” Underwood said about Paisley being a mentor. “If there’s anybody that could point the hopefuls in the right direction, it would be Brad. I think he’ll give very great, constructive advice, and help them be their best, cause he’s such an incredible performer and artist, obviously.“
It turns out, Paisley has already appeared on Idol once this season! He teamed up with Luke Bryan to prank Lionel Richie and Carrie Underwood during the auditions…and chaos unfolded.
Watch that hilarious video below!
