American Idol 2016 finalist La’Porsha Renae had to leave her baby daughter behind to compete on the final season of the show, but she’s doing it all for her little girl. Not only does she want to provide a better life for the adorable tot, but La’Porsha also wants to be an example to her never to give up on your dreams.
La’Porsha Renae, a former Walmart cashier, moved to California to pursue a career in music. Her YouTube channel is peppered with music of all different genres, so this stage diva has no trouble being versatile with her song choices. Plus, she has a lot of great experience playing with live bands and in front of live audiences, which is probably why she seems so comfortable and confident on stage.
Audition: While American Idol judge Jennifer Lopez cooed over her cutie pie baby, La’Porsha Renae blew her audition of “Creep” by Radiohead right out of the water. The celebrity panel was very impressed with La’Porsha’s gorgeous tone and powerful singing voice. Even before the audition was halfway over, you knew the judges would be giving her a Golden Ticket to Hollywood! (Read more on La’Porsha’s backstory on her Top 24 profile page.)
Hollywood Week Lines of 8 Solos: La’Porsha said having her daughter with her during Hollywood Week kept her focused and determined to succeed. That motivation certainly seemed to work well for her during the first solo round. Her performance of “Roar” by Katy Perry was one of the best solos of the round, in our opinion. The American Idol judges seemed to agree, as they passed her through to the Group Round.
Hollywood Week Group Round: In the Group Round, La’Porsha made a risky move by abandoning her original group in order to help out two other contestants who couldn’t find a third member to perform with. If they hadn’t found someone, they would have been eliminated. La’Porsha’s original group already had their rehearsals well under way, so it was not an easy thing to join a new group and work out an entirely new routine. It all paid off in the end, however, as The Sistas group did an awesome job (even with a few missing words), and all three ladies made it through to the next round.
Hollywood Week Solo Round: We don’t have the video from La’Porsha’s second Hollywood Week solo, but obviously she blew it out again, securing a place in the Showcase Round.
Hollywood Week Showcase Round & Final Judgement: For her Showcase Round performance, La’Porsha blew out a rendition of “House of the Rising Sun” and the live audience really seemed to love it. However, La’Porsha ended up going head to head against Lindita Halimi in The Green Mile final eliminations for the last spot for the girls in the Top 24. After telling La’Porsha she did a “fantastic job,” Keith Urban let her off the hook by telling her she’d made it to the semi-finals.
Top 24 Semi-Finals Solo Round: La’Porsha’s Top 24 performance of “Proud Mary” by Tina Turner was her best performance of the season so far, which of course couldn’t have come at a better time. Harry Connick Jr. said La’Porsha was “either going to make the other competitors get better, or you’re going to make them want to quit.” Keith Urban told La’Porsha she was a “portal for the gift” and Jennifer Lopez said she just dreams about voices like hers. Extremely high praise indeed from the American Idol judges!
Top 24 Semi-Finals Duet Round: Following up on such a great solo Top 24 performance was not an easy task, but La’Porsha was paired up with former American Idol winner Fantasia Barrino in an amazing duet. Fantasia told La’Porsha that she got a “rush” off her amazing gift. The two of them together on “Summertime” by Ella Fitzgerald was absolutely fabulous and we could have listened to them sing all day! Jennifer Lopez thought the performance was “fantastic” and “mind-blowing.” Harry Connick Jr. thought La’Porsha “killed it” and Keith Urban was also thrilled with the performance.
Will La’Porsha Renae make it through the next cut to be part of the American Idol 2016 Top 10? We’ll bring you all the latest American Idol spoilers on the next round of the competition as they happen!