American Idol Top 24 in Hawaii: Mia Matthews Sings Touching “Daddy’s Hands” Tribute For Late Hawaiian Father
American Idol Season 22’s performances in Hawaii continued on Monday with the 2nd half of the Top 24 performing for America’s vote, including 19 year old Mia Matthews who had already started a growth arc, which she continued with an emotional tribute to her late father. (Read our Recap)
Mia, a 19-year-old from Alabama auditioned with her sister Jacy, whom the show cut during Hollywood Week’s Arena round. She also is a product of The Voice where she was a part of a trio with her mom and sister called Worth The Wait.
The setting of these performances felt meant to be for Mia as her late father was Hawaiian, and lived only 30 minutes from Aulani. He passed away before they could travel there. She chose to sing “Daddy’s Hands” by Holly Dunn because her father was a carpenter who built houses.
Mia and Jelly Roll bonded over loss
Jelly Roll, who served as the episode’s judge and mentor, shared with Mia that he lost his father in 2019, The two bond over their shared loss and are in tears during rehearsal. “There was a moment you looked right in that camera, and I seen your soul, I seen your daddy’s soul,” said Jelly Roll, “You look America in the eye, and you make them feel Mia Matthews.”
Mia started the song with beautiful phrasing and a slight yodel to her voice. From the moment she sang, it was evident she connected to the lyrics. The song choice was perfect for Mia’s voice, and even if her range seemed limited in earlier performances, she hit some notes that appeared to be towards the top of her range with ease. The song was a good challenge for Mia, and she pulled it off. This was a major moment. Mia might be a dark horse to go the distance. During Mia’s Showstopper performance, she showed off more range, and here she continued to show off that range, proving that she has more skill than many may assume.
“This song is my story…I can feel my dad in here”
The judges applauded as they stood up, and her mom and sister who are in the audience were in tears. Jelly Roll said he liked that she went for a ballad to honor her father while the others were doing uptempo. He added, “I think you slide into the Top 20, easy money.”
Lionel Richie told Mia, [the vulnerability] gave you the best performance I have ever seen come from you on this show.” He also called the performance “a moment.” Katy Perry said, “You were born tonight. It was like all of your angels were here supporting you tonight.” America, vote for Mia, she said. Luke Bryan connected to the song choice due to growing up with the song, and said, “I’m so proud of how country you are and how you are growing.” Mia told host Ryan Seacrest, “This song is my story; it meant a lot to me” adding, “I can feel my dad in here.”
The vocalists on Night 2 seemed vocally more confident and less nervous than the previous night, even if Night 1 had the stronger group of singers when taking previous rounds into account. Mia was one singer who had a breakout moment, but there were a few others who also stood out. Ajii continued to bring the fire with his modern style on his performance of Tems’ “Higher.” Emmy Russell also had a moment with her flipped version of Idol dropout Benson Boone’s “Beautiful Things.”
