American Idol sneak peek: Olivia Ximines takes on ‘Proud Mary’

On Sunday night’s American Idol 18 episode, the performances in Hawaii are going to come to a close. By the time we reach the end of the episode, we’re going to learn the identity of the top 20 — and there will also be a twist.

For our most-recent American Idol video discussion, watch some of the latest at the bottom of this article! After you do that, remember to then also subscribe to CarterMatt on YouTube and then view our series playlist. We’ll have more coming tomorrow night…

It’s true that there is a great deal of uncertainty as to what the future of American Idol is going to look like in this current climate, but that’s something more to worry about down the road. For the sake of this article, though, we’re going to show off the latest sneak peek performance led by Olivia Ximines. From the moment we first saw her on the show, what we saw was that she was high-energy and a genuine performer. She’s a great singer, but she’s also a great dancer with no real fear of tearing up the stage. She’s one of those people who shows off constant confidence — regardless of whether or not she legitimately has it at all times, that’s the projection that she puts out there into the world. That’s what could end up mattering the most to people who are watching her. She sells things.

In the video below, you can see Olivia taking on for a final performance the Tina Turner classic “Proud Mary.” It’s a tough song to sing, and the biggest concern is that it comes across more like an impersonation of the original than something that shows off your true self. We don’t think that Olivia falls into that a little bit, but it also shows that she’s more than capable of carrying a song like this and making it feel believable. Her vocals are solid (though they do suffer slightly given all the movement), but she does an incredible job of winning over the crowd and she has infectious enthusiasm. She’s got the makings of someone who would be a good representative of the season.

Yet, will she make the top 20? The sneak peek doesn’t give that away, and we’ll have to watch tomorrow night in order to find out.

Do you think that Olivia Ximines should make the top 20?

Be sure to share in the comments below, and check back for more updates. (Photo: ABC.)

This article was written by Jessica Carter. Be sure to follow her on Twitter.