Despite her Top 5 elimination Sunday night, McKenna Faith Breinholt sang her way into the final seven contestants on Season 22 of ABC's "American Idol."
She has captivated audiences and judges alike with her smoky voice, moving backstory and renditions of songs by Dolly Parton, Goo Goo Dolls and her late birth mom, Amy Ross Lopez, a folk singer who was half of the indie duo Nowhere Man and A Whiskey Girl.
"Honestly, I feel like this whole thing has been super surreal," Breinholt told The Arizona Republic, part of the USA TODAY Network, in late April. "But now ... it's getting real. Like, it feels like I'm on 'American Idol' now. It feels like there's competition. And it's intense a little bit."
'American Idol' recap:Top 7 singer makes Katy Perry 'scared for my job,' and two more go home
Breinholt was born in Arizona. She's based in Gilbert.
Breinholt graduated from Highland High School in Gilbert, Arizona, in 2016.
Breinholt was 25 years old as of this writing.
Breinholt was working as a receptionist at a local medical spa while pursuing a career as an esthetician.
Breinholt auditioned in Nashville, playing piano while delivering a heartfelt rendition of "There Was Jesus," a duet by Christian artist Zach Williams and country music icon Dolly Parton.
Breinholt auditioned for "Idol" when she was 14 but never heard back.
Breinholt was adopted as a baby before her mother's death. It was a closed adoption, which meant she couldn't find out any information on her birth mother until after her 21st birthday.
The story of Breinholt discovering her birth mother had been a singer was a deeply moving highlight of her audition, where she played an emotional acoustic rendition of "There Was Jesus."
Amy Ross Lopez, a singer from Bisbee, Arizona, was half of the folk duo Nowhere Man and A Whiskey Girl. Ross Lopez died in October 2013 of complications from lupus.
Breinholt also appeared on Season 11 of "America's Got Talent" in 2016 as part of Cinematic Pop, a group she started singing with when she was 16. But after getting four yes votes at the audition, Cinematic Pop withdrew before judges made cuts.
Catch up on 'American Idol':Watch Emmy Russell bring Katy Perry to tears with touching Loretta Lynn cover
2024-12-25 02:061884 view
2024-12-25 00:561941 view
2024-12-25 00:38143 view
2024-12-25 00:142926 view
2024-12-25 00:02395 view
2024-12-24 23:561949 view
Dick Van Dyke has some choice words about Donald Trump's second presidential term.A week after endor
BANGKOK (AP) — Riot Games, the developer of the popular “League of Legends” multiplayer battle game
A geomagnetic storm watch has been issued for Monday and Tuesday, which may result in the aurora bor