Vaid is tipped by many to win the competition.
AB Wire
Indian American singer and a favorite of judges and celebrities as she has made her way through the competition with her svelte voice, Sonika Vaid, 20, of Martha’s Vineyard, has made the cut of 24 in the final season of ‘American Idol’ reality show competition on Fox.
Vaid, originally from Weston, Massachusetts, wowed the judges Wednesday with a cover of Ariana Grande’s “One Last Time”, reported Patch.
Vaid was one of 51 contestants who remained heading into Thursday night’s show, where a total of 24 contestants were to be picked. She has been declared an early favorite to win Idol.
On Wednesday, the judges agreed her vocals were superb but said her physical performance could use work.
“You know, you sang beautifully,” said judge Harry Connick, Jr., after Vaid sang “Look at Me” by Carrie Underwood in her original audition. “That was a perfect performance. I was totally engaged. This was the only time this particular season that I saw somebody that I actually thought would win this thing. That’s a God-given voice.”
The MetroWest Daily News reported that the glad tidings of her going through to the round of 24 was given to Vaid by judge Jennifer Lopez.
“Sonika, welcome to the top 24!” exclaimed Lopez on Thursday night’s episode of “American Idol.”
Sonika’s mother, Anna Vaid of Weston, was waiting with host Ryan Seacrest to give her daughter a big hug.
“Oh my God, I’m so excited, I can’t believe this!” Sonika exclaimed on the show. Her final performance before the judges whittled down the top 50 to 24 was a beautiful rendition of Celine Dion’s “I Surrender.”
At first, it was unclear whether Vaid, a college student, would make it through based on Lopez’s initial comments.
“You gave a great performance yesterday vocally,” Lopez said. “But we worry in that there’s just something missing in your performance. There’s something that needs to come alive, and that’s what we argued over.
“So after much debate, we decided that we would like you to be part of the top 24, and maybe work on that part of things because of that amazing voice you have,” she added.
Judge Harry Connick Jr., who said Vaid could potentially win the whole season at her first audition in Denver, Colorado, where she sang Carrie Underwood’s “Look at Me,” effused more praise on Thursday night’s episode.
“A lot of times you know somebody has a great voice, and then there’s people who have voices that actually personally, they just touch you. She has one of those voices,” Connick Jr. said to his fellow judges.