American Idol 2023: Season 6 Dates, Judges, Mentors & Performances

American Idol has now completed its sixth season finale on ABC - and its 21st overall - on May 21st 2023.

The star-studded, genre-spanning triumvirate of judges, Luke Bryan, Lionel Richie and Katy Perry have all been scouring the nation in search of America's next singing superstar.

The finale featured a trio of prodigies, comprising Colin Stough, Megan Danielle and the evocative powerhouse Iam Tongi, with the latter ultimately being crowned the winner of American Idol 2023.

Each of the superstar judges performed during the momentous May 21 occasion, along Jelly Roll and Lainey Wilson, who serenaded viewers with their new single, ‘Save Me’.

Earlier in May, the duo linked up for a moving rendition of the heartfelt anthem during the 2023 ACM Awards ceremony earlier this month.

The new season kicked off in sunny Hawai’i at Disney's Aulani resort, where the judges were joined by pop sensation, Noah Cyrus.

Keith Urban joined Luke Bryan, Katy Perry and Lionel Richie as a mentor for the final week, with the Australian chart-topper also performing in the final.

In addition, the final featured special sets from the likes of Lauren Daigle, Kylie Minogue, TLC, Pitbull, James Blunt, Ellie Goulding, Jazmine Sullivan and Kevin Cronin.

As usual, the 2023 season of American Idol has featured a mix of heartwarming successes and tear-jerking back-stories, infused with a generous dose of hilarious moments - the majority of which inevitably came from the show's resident country star, Luke Bryan.

One of the most notable country music prospects to appear early on in Season 6 was Trey Louis, who performed an evocative rendition of Whiskey Myers’ ‘Stone’.

He went on to movingly explain that much of his musical inspiration arises from a traumatising experience he had with a school shooting in Santa Fe, Texas.

Another country music highlight from the season so far has been Colin Stough, who hails from a small town in Mississippi.

The 18-year-old delivered powerful version of Lynyrd Skynyrd's iconic hit, ‘Simple Man’ during his audition, and has since gone on to make it to the grand final.

American Idol has a strong track record of showcasing some fine country music talent, as well as featuring performances from an array of big-name artists from across the genre.

Two of the most successful country contestants on American Idol were Scotty McCreery and Lauren Alaina. Alaina finished as runner-up to McCreery on the show's tenth season in 2011.

In a special moment during last year's series, the two reunited for an emotional performance, eleven years on from their original appearance on the show as wide-eyed contestants.

Last season, in addition to McCreery and Alaina, the likes of Gabby Barrett, Deana Carter and Thomas Rhett all took to the American Idol stage for memorable performances.

The final of American Idol Season 6 (Season 21) aired on 8pm ET/5pm PT on Sunday, May 21.

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