“Sam got robbed”: American Idol fans react to Sam Finelli's elimination from Hollywood Week auditions

Sam Finelli from American Idol Hollywood Week Genre Challenge (Image via Eric McCandless/ABC)
Sam Finelli from American Idol Hollywood Week Genre Challenge (Image via Eric McCandless/ABC)

American Idol Season 20 Episode 6, which aired on Monday, featured the much-awaited Hollywood Week round.

Contestants with golden tickets went through the final leg of auditions to earn a spot on the singing reality show.

Sam Finelli was one of the contestants who appeared in the pop genre category and was mentored by Season 6 winner Jordin Sparks.

In Episode 6, Finelli was seen feeling a bit nervous before going on stage. However, he gave a terrific performance once he got up there.

The live audience cheered for the singer, who sang Say Something by A Great Big World.

Despite his good performance, judges didn’t pick him for the next round. His elimination left many viewers disheartened.


What do fans have to say?

Before his performance, Finelli revealed that he is autistic, making it hard for him to perform in front of an audience or crowd. He even burst into tears as he finished his performance because he felt nervous.

While fans were expecting to see more of him, he was eliminated from the show in the latest episode. Many felt that Finelli was robbed and should have been picked for the next round.

Here's what fans have to say about the elimination:


All about American Idol Hollywood Week

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While Sam Finelli was eliminated, Ava Maybee and Sir Blayke were promoted to the next round from the pop category.

Titled Hollywood Week: Genre Challenge, American Idol Episode 6 was graced by judges Katy Perry, Luke Bryan, and Lionel Richie, as well as host Ryan Seacrest.

Hollywood Week featured former American Idol winners and runner-ups, including David Cook, Jordin Sparks, Ruben Studdard, Lauren Alaina, Chayce Beckham, Haley Reinhart, and Lee DeWyze.

Towards the end of the episode, the judges invited three Platinum holders — Huntergirl, Jay, and Kenedi Anderson. These are the contestants who received platinum cards instead of golden tickets in their first audition round. Platinum holders don’t have to go through the genre challenge round.

In the upcoming episode, the three platinum holders will get to pick their partners for the duet audition round. The others will be partnered up as per the judges’ choices.

American Idol Episode 7 will be the final audition round and will produce the Top 24 contestants. The new episode will air on Sunday, April 4, at 8.00 pm Eastern Time on ABC. The competition series airs every Sunday and Monday.

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