American Idol season 19: Arthur Gunn returns with ‘Iris’ performance

We were excited for a couple of different things on this week’s American Idol 19, but the return of Arthur Gunn tops the list. How in the world could it not? We’re talking here about a beloved contestant from last season, someone with both a fantastic voice and a unique versatility. While we have our concerns about the comeback twist in general, we’re fine to be hypocritical about it when it comes to Arthur.

Entering tonight’s performance show, we knew already that Arthur’s song of choice was “Iris” by the Goo Goo Dolls. It’s a song we’ve heard a million times across singing shows over the years, so the concern that we had was fundamentally simple: What would Arthur be able to do in order to make it different? How could he shake up preconceived notions?

For some recent American Idol video coverage, be sure to check out our most-recent take on the show below! Once you do that, subscribe to Matt & Jess on YouTube — we’ll have some other updates coming there that you don’t want to miss.

The moment that Arthur hit the stage, we were confident he’d rock it out. Did he? Absolutely! This was a folksy, different version of “Iris” that we haven’t heard before. It brought a different side of Arthur out. We can’t speak to if he’ll advance, but we know that he has an enormous fan base out there. That has to be good for something right?

What was most surprising about Arthur’s performance is that he spent a lot of time trying to figure out what he was going to sing. He thought about doing an original or a cover of Bob Dylan. In the end, his version of “Iris” was the right choice.

Related – Be sure to get some more news on American Idol right now

What do you think about Arthur Gunn’s American Idol return, and his performance of “Iris”?

Be sure to share right now in the comments! Once you do that, stick around — there are some more updates ahead that you don’t want to miss. (Photo: ABC.)

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