Noah Thompson wasn’t about to let COVID stop his “American Idol” journey.
On Sunday night’s Mother’s Day episode, the singer performed remotely from his hotel room after testing positive for COVID-19.
For his first song of the night, Thompson took on Sundy Best’s “Painted Blue”, delivering a heartfelt and note-perfect performance.
After the performance, Luke Bryan asked how he was feeling, and the singer said, “I’m getting by, man. It sucks.”
Bryan’s fellow judges agreed when he then told him it was “one of your best performances.”
Later on the show, Thompson performed Fleetwood Mac’s classic “Landslide”, dedicating the song to his grandmother.
“When you go to record your first record, you’ll probably need to build a mobile studio in that room, because the right vibes are happening in there,” Bryan commented afterward. “You sound great.”
Lionel Richie added, “When you’re sick, you’re sounding a lot better. The believability, the growl in your voice, that texture, that’s called selling, man. You nailed it.”
Katy Perry agreed, saying “adrenalin took over.”
