Seasons · ABC

Season 18 (2020)

Aired on ABC from February 16, 2020 to May 17, 2020. The 11 finalists (Top 11): the ten contestants voted through from the Top 20 plus Makayla Phillips, saved by the judges, as listed for season 18 in the Contestants table of Wikipedia's List of American Idol finalists; the same group as the season's Top 11 (May 3) and elimination chart.⁠[1][2]

Finalists

  • Winner
  • Runner-up
  • Other finalists
FinalistShow resultAfter the show
Just Sam
Winner⁠[1][2][3]
May 17, 2020
Latest documented update (April 29, 2024): Just Sam signed with Hollywood Records and 19 Recordings after winning in May 2020 and left the label about a year later without releasing an album. They released independent singles in 2021 and said in 2023 that they had gone back to singing in New York City subways for money. By late 2023 they had signed with an agent at CrowdMGMT, and on April 28, 2024 they returned to American Idol as a guest performer.⁠[4][5][6][7]
Arthur Gunn
Runner-up⁠[1][2][3]
May 17, 2020
Arthur Gunn (Dibesh Pokharel), runner-up on American Idol season 18, released the album Riti on June 4, 2026. Earlier albums include Grahan (2018), Khoj (2021), and Tell Me, How Do You Sleep at Night? (2022).⁠[8][9][10]
Dillon James
Finale, 3rd–5th⁠[1][2]
May 17, 2020
Latest documented update (July 12, 2024): Dillon James, a season 18 finalist from Bakersfield, released the EP River Black on July 12, 2024. His first single on Buena Vista Records, Walking Man, came out on October 6, 2023, after a deal with UMG Nashville, Hollywood Records, and 19 Recordings reported on July 10, 2020. By April 2021 he had signed a management deal with The Core Entertainment.⁠[11][12][13]
Francisco Martin
Finale, 3rd–5th⁠[1][2]
May 17, 2020
Francisco Martin finished in the top 5 of American Idol season 18. He plays drums and sings with the San Francisco band The Aura. 19 Recordings released his EPs Beautiful Ramblings of a Restless Mind in 2021, Manic in 2022, and Breakfast for Dinner in 2023, along with a run of singles from Swollen in 2020 through Evil Eye in 2023. On April 24, 2025 he released the self-produced single Friend.⁠[14][15][16]
Jonny West
Finale, 3rd–5th⁠[1][2]
May 17, 2020
Jonny West records for Tomorrow Music. He released the EP Oh. on October 4, 2019, the album The Thing About This Is on June 25, 2021, and the EP Motel California in October 2022. Later releases on the same recording line include the EP meantime in 2024 and the album B on June 23, 2026. Hollywood Records and 19 Recordings issued his American Idol performance of Makin' Love in May 2020.⁠[17][18][19]
Julia Gargano
Eliminated (6th–7th)⁠[1][2]
May 10, 2020
Julia Gargano released the single You Don't Get To on 19 Recordings on February 19, 2021, after a featured appearance on Francisco Martin's Swollen. She later said the 19 Recordings deal was a poor fit and left it. With Ferry Townes, the group she fronts, she released the album Side Effects of Happiness on the independent label Licorice Pizza Records on July 26, 2024. Ferry Townes released the single I Once Was a Fighter on August 20, 2026.⁠[20][21][22][23]
Louis Knight
Eliminated (6th–7th)⁠[1][2]
May 10, 2020
Louis Knight released his first EP, Small Victories, in 2019; sources give two release dates for it, September 2019 and October 20, 2019. The song Change is on that EP. In October 2020 he released Save a Little Love, said he had no record deal, and announced a free tour from October 13 through October 28. He later released the EPs Twenty, Twenty-Two on December 7, 2022, and Better Life on August 28, 2026, under his own name.⁠[24][25][26][27]
Grace Leer
Eliminated (8th–11th)⁠[1][2]
May 3, 2020
Grace Leer signed a recording contract with 19 Entertainment and a deal with Red Light Management after American Idol. Her self-titled debut EP came out in 2022, and 19 Recordings released the single Brought A Girl on February 25, 2022. She later released Best Friend for Life, then the EP It Was Worth It on October 10, 2025, under her own name. She also acted in the 2023 Hallmark film Time for Her to Come Home for Christmas.⁠[28][29][30][31]
Jovin Webb
Eliminated (8th–11th)⁠[1][2]
May 3, 2020
Jovin Webb signed a multi-record deal with Blind Pig Records, announced on December 21, 2023. Blind Pig released his debut album Drifter on October 18, 2024, and his second album Son of a Sinner on September 18, 2026. Drifter received a 2025 Blues Music Award nomination for Best Emerging Artist Album, and he received two 2025 Blues Blast Magazine nominations. Before the show he had fronted the Bayou Bullets, sung with Captain Green, and led the Jovin Webb Experience.⁠[32][33][34]
Makayla Phillips
Eliminated (8th–11th)⁠[1][2]
May 3, 2020
Makayla Phillips, from Canyon Lake, California, sang Demi Lovato's Warrior on America's Got Talent in July 2018 and received Heidi Klum's Golden Buzzer. She advanced from the August 21, 2018 quarter-final and was eliminated after the September 4, 2018 semi-final. She released Fool Like You on February 21, 2020 and Lips Like Candy on September 3, 2021. On April 19, 2021 she sang Anyone in the season 19 comeback and was eliminated. In May 2022, Drown In Alcohol won SongwriterUniverse's Best Song of the Month. As of May 5, 2025 she was recording her own music in Los Angeles.⁠[35][36][37][38][39][40][41]
Sophia James
Eliminated (8th–11th)⁠[1][2]
May 3, 2020
Sophia Louise Wackerman records as Sophia James and plays piano and guitar. She released the EPs Stand Beneath the Sky on July 30, 2021, Lines on the Freeway on November 25, 2022, Clockwork on April 19, 2024, and The Wrong Shoe Theory on May 1, 2026. Clockwork includes a live performance of Amy Winehouse's Valerie. She has written music for Phineas and Ferb and Hamster & Gretel. She released the single Ryan on June 26, 2026. A Group 7 TikTok using So Unfair reached the Today Show and more than 15.5 million people.⁠[42][43][44][45]

Semifinalists

Semifinal round: the Top 20, chosen at the Showcase round (the 20th place by a public vote between two singers). Each sang from home in the April 26 show; the ten with the most votes went on, and the judges saved Makayla Phillips to make the Top 11. The 9 others are listed as semifinalists.⁠[2]

SemifinalistShow resultAfter the show
Aliana Jester
Eliminated in the Top 20⁠[2]
April 26, 2020
No career summary documented yet.
Cyniah Elise
Eliminated in the Top 20⁠[2]
April 26, 2020
No career summary documented yet.
DeWayne Crocker Jr.
Eliminated in the Top 20⁠[2]
April 26, 2020
No career summary documented yet.
Faith Becnel
Eliminated in the Top 20⁠[2]
April 26, 2020
No career summary documented yet.
Franklin Boone
Eliminated in the Top 20⁠[2]
April 26, 2020
No career summary documented yet.
Kimmy Gabriela
Eliminated in the Top 20⁠[2]
April 26, 2020
No career summary documented yet.
Lauren Spencer-Smith
Eliminated in the Top 20⁠[2]
April 26, 2020
No career summary documented yet.
Nick Merico
Eliminated in the Top 20⁠[2]
April 26, 2020
No career summary documented yet.
Olivia Ximines
Eliminated in the Top 20⁠[2]
April 26, 2020
No career summary documented yet.

Sources

45 sources

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    Cited parts (8)
    • Contestants table, the 11 rows with Season 18
    • Contestants table, row Just Sam: Season 18, Place finish Winner
    • Contestants table, row Arthur Gunn: Season 18, Place finish Runner-up
    • Contestants table, row Dillon James: Season 18, Place finish 3rd-5th
    • Contestants table, row Francisco Martin: Season 18, Place finish 3rd-5th
    • Contestants table, row Jonny West: Season 18, Place finish 3rd-5th
    • Contestants table, row Julia Gargano: Season 18, Place finish 6th-7th
    • Contestants table, row Louis Knight: Season 18, Place finish 6th-7th
  2. American Idol season 18 — Wikipedia, updated July 21, 2026. Reference work (secondary). Retrieved October 6, 2026.
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    • Finals section, Top 20 (April 26): “The ten contestants who received the most votes continued on, while the judges were granted a one-time judges' save, which they used to save Makayla Phillips from elimination.”
    • Top 11 (May 3) table; Elimination chart (rows with Pl. 1 to 8)
    • Lead section; Top 5 – Finale (May 17) table; Elimination chart, row Just Sam: Pl. 1, 5/17 Winner; ratings table, episode 16 Grand Finale, May 17, 2020: “On May 17, 2020, Just Sam was crowned as the winner, with Arthur Gunn finishing as the runner-up.”
    • Lead section; Top 5 – Finale (May 17) table; Elimination chart, row Arthur Gunn: Pl. 2, 5/17 Runner-up: “with Arthur Gunn finishing as the runner-up”
    • Top 5 – Finale (May 17) table; Elimination chart, row Dillon James: Pl. 3, 5/17 Finalist
    • Top 5 – Finale (May 17) table; Elimination chart, row Francisco Martin: Pl. 3 (shared), 5/17 Finalist
    • Top 5 – Finale (May 17) table; Elimination chart, row Jonny West: Pl. 3 (shared), 5/17 Finalist
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    • Article body: “as of late last year had signed with a new agent at the CrowdMGMT management company, the Post reported.”
    • Article body: “In 2023, they revealed on Instagram that they were back to busking in New York City subways”
  5. 'American Idol' 2020 Winner Just Sam Says She Went Broke Paying Back Her Record Label — Blavity (Shadow and Act), published February 1, 2022. News report. Retrieved October 6, 2026.
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  6. American Idol Winner Just Sam Signs with 19 Recordings — Music Connection, published May 18, 2020. News report. Retrieved October 6, 2026.
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    • Post-Idol section: “On March 13, 2021, Just Sam released "Africando," their first single since American Idol”
    • Post-Idol section: “On April 28, 2024, Just Sam was a guest performer on American Idol, performing a cover of "One Moment in Time" by Whitney Houston.”
  8. American Idol Runner-Up Arthur Gunn Releases New Album — Talent Recap, published April 22, 2022. News report. Retrieved October 8, 2026.
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    • Biography: “He is the drummer and one of the vocalists of The Aura , a San Francisco-based Filipino band”
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    • Dated list: “On August 26, 2022, 19 Recordings released his EP “Manic”.”
    • Dated list: “On July 7, 2023, 19 Recordings released his EP “Breakfast for Dinner”.”
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    • Premiere: “The American Idol finalist paves his own way with his smooth new EP, “Motel California”.”
  18. Jonny West is back from his Joshua Tree grave — Ladygunn, published June 25, 2021. News report. Retrieved October 8, 2026.
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  29. Grace Leer Announces Sophomore EP It Was Worth It Out Friday, October 10th — EIN Presswire, published October 7, 2025. News report. Retrieved October 8, 2026.
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