Seasons · ABC

Season 20 (2022)

Aired on ABC from February 27, 2022 to May 22, 2022. The 14 finalists (Top 14): the contestants listed for season 20 in the Contestants table of Wikipedia's List of American Idol finalists, the same group as the season's Top 14 and elimination chart. Contestants cut at the Top 24 and Top 20 stages are not finalists.⁠[1][2]

Finalists

  • Winner
  • Runner-up
  • Other finalists
FinalistShow resultAfter the show
Noah Thompson
Winner⁠[1][2]
May 22, 2022
Noah Thompson won American Idol on May 22, 2022. 19 Recordings and BBR released the EP Middle of God Knows Where on June 9, 2023. One Day Tonight reached number 48 on Hot Country Songs. In May 2024 19 Recordings confirmed he was no longer on its roster, and on June 11, 2024 he said he would continue as an independent artist. Next Chapter Records released Upbringing in August 2024, and Find Em in a Bar followed in September 2025. He is a writer on Front Door Famous, the first song on Luke Combs's Fathers & Sons.⁠[3][4][5][6]
HunterGirl
Runner-up⁠[1][2]
May 22, 2022
HunterGirl is a country singer from Winchester, Tennessee. Her name is Hunter Wolkonowski. She is signed to Wheelhouse Records and 19 Recordings. Sources date her single Dirt to October 9, 2025 and October 10, 2025.⁠[7][8][9]
Leah Marlene
Third place⁠[1][2]
May 22, 2022
Leah Marlene is an independent singer based in Nashville. She released the EP We're All Buying Into a Dream on February 9, 2024. In 2025 she was a Top 50 finalist in the NPR Tiny Desk Contest. Her single My Girl came out on September 25, 2026.⁠[10][11]
Tristen Gressett
Eliminated (11th)⁠[1][2]
April 25, 2022
Tristen Gressett, from Pell City, Alabama, finished at number 11 on American Idol in 2022 and moved to California. Act I: The Poet, a self-released EP, came out on August 10, 2021. His debut album Hello, California came out on May 24, 2024. He self-produced it and played every instrument. Moment With You, dated April 13, 2024, is on that album. Act I: The Poet (Revisited) came out on October 3, 2026.⁠[12][13]
Fritz Hager
Eliminated (4th–5th)⁠[1][2]
May 15, 2022
Latest documented update (July 21, 2023): Fritz Hager III is a singer from Tyler, Texas. He released the EP Fritz Hager on March 25, 2022, and the singles Caroline, Two Step, and Bad Friend on 19 Recordings in 2023. By January 18, 2023, he had moved to Nashville.⁠[14][15][16]
Nicolina
Eliminated (4th–5th)⁠[1][2]
May 15, 2022
Nicolina Bozzo, known as Nicolina, reached the top 5 of American Idol season 20 and was the first contestant from Canada to reach the top 7. During the season she released Glitter on 19 Recordings. Way Out followed in June 2023, Pretty in October 2023, and Situations in May 2024. In 2024 she performed at The Sunset Concerts in Toronto. Rearview, an EP, came out on October 11, 2024, and You came out on May 13, 2025.⁠[17][18][19][20]
Christian Guardino
Eliminated (6th–7th)⁠[1][2]
May 8, 2022
Latest documented update (June 2, 2023): Christian Guardino, from Patchogue on Long Island, was a contestant on America's Got Talent in 2017, when he was 16. He released Higher on May 13, 2022, and was scheduled to headline a show in Patchogue on November 4, 2022. On June 2, 2023 he was a credited artist on Wanderer with .Wav Rider and Mykel Coppola Vocal Junkies.⁠[21][22]
Jay
Eliminated (6th–7th)⁠[1][2]
May 8, 2022
Latest documented update (April 29, 2023): Jay Copeland is a singer and actor from Salisbury, Maryland. He released the single Unlonely on May 13, 2022, through 19 Recordings. His stage credits include Hairspray, Jesus Christ Superstar and a 2022 opening set for Patti LaBelle. From April 11 to 29, 2023 he was in the cast of Ain't Misbehavin' at Westport Country Playhouse.⁠[23][24][25][26]
Emyrson Flora
Eliminated (8th–10th)⁠[1][2]
May 1, 2022
Emyrson Flora is an independent singer from Twinsburg, Ohio. She released the EP every song is about you in November 2024 and the EP Aren't You Curious? on February 27, 2026. Her single Die Next To You came out on June 26, 2026.⁠[27][28][29][30]
Lady K
Eliminated (8th–10th)⁠[1][2]
May 1, 2022
Latest documented update (July 21, 2022): Lady K, whose name is Kezia Istonia, is a singer from Montgomery, Alabama, and a Tuskegee resident. She released the album Time Of Your Life on April 4, 2022, under MUSIC BY LADYK LLC. As of July 21, 2022, she was preparing a Time Of Your Life tour.⁠[31][32]
Mike Parker
Eliminated (8th–10th)⁠[1][2]
May 1, 2022
Mike Parker, a country artist from Virginia, reached the Top 10 of American Idol season 20 and later moved to Nashville. He works with Jimmy Robbins and Mailbox Money Records, which has released his singles since Thinking Of You on January 27, 2023. Just Like Me came out on November 8, 2024, and Bone Dry on March 20, 2026. Withrow Street Music and CTM Entertainment publish his songs. He was a CMT Next Up Now artist and a Spotify Fresh Finds Country cover artist, and he was on the Best Of Fresh Finds Country lists for 2024 and 2025.⁠[33][34]
Allegra Miles
Eliminated (12th–14th)⁠[1][2]
April 24, 2022
Allegra Miles began playing shows in West Palm at 14 and appeared on The Voice and American Idol. She released the six-song EP Heal My Soul on August 25, 2023, then the EPs CINEMATIC, ARCADE, and Technicolor. On September 11, 2026 she was a credited artist, with San Holo, Kompany, and Underbelly, on SMILING/HIDING (feat. Au5).⁠[35][36]
Ava Maybee
Eliminated (12th–14th)⁠[1][2]
April 24, 2022
Ava Maybee, a Los Angeles singer, reached the top 14 on American Idol and began taking music seriously at 16. She released the six-track EP Orange Drive on May 16, 2025, and the single I Pray For Composure on January 16, 2026.⁠[37][38]
Dan Marshall
Eliminated (12th–14th)⁠[1][2]
April 24, 2022
Daniel Marshall Griffith performs as Dan Marshall. The Virginia singer moved to Nashville in the fall of 2022, released She Wants a Ring on May 5, 2023, and by November 11, 2024 had signed an exclusive publishing deal with Jonas Group Publishing. He released Can't Nobody on June 19, 2026.⁠[39][40][41][42]

Semifinalists

Semifinal round: the Top 24 picked after the Showstopper round, two groups of twelve, who sang over two weeks (Top 24 on April 10 and 11 in Hawaii, Top 20 on April 17 and 18). The 10 who did not reach the Top 14 are listed as semifinalists: three cut at the Top 24, Kenedi Anderson, who withdrew, and six cut at the Top 20.⁠[2]

SemifinalistShow resultAfter the show
Cadence Baker
Eliminated in the Top 20⁠[2]
April 18, 2022
No career summary documented yet.
Cameron Whitcomb
Eliminated in the Top 20⁠[2]
April 18, 2022
No career summary documented yet.
Elli Rowe
Eliminated in the Top 20⁠[2]
April 18, 2022
No career summary documented yet.
Jacob Moran
Eliminated in the Top 20⁠[2]
April 18, 2022
No career summary documented yet.
Katyrah Love
Eliminated in the Top 20⁠[2]
April 18, 2022
No career summary documented yet.
Sage
Eliminated in the Top 20⁠[2]
April 18, 2022
No career summary documented yet.
Kenedi Anderson
Withdrew in the Top 24⁠[2]
April 11, 2022
No career summary documented yet.
Sir Blayke
Eliminated in the Top 24⁠[2]
April 11, 2022
No career summary documented yet.
Danielle Finn
Eliminated in the Top 24⁠[2]
April 10, 2022
No career summary documented yet.
Scarlet
Eliminated in the Top 24⁠[2]
April 10, 2022
No career summary documented yet.

Sources

42 sources

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    • Contestants table, the 14 rows with Season 20
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    • Contestants table, row HunterGirl: Season 20, Place finish Runner-up
    • Contestants table, row Leah Marlene: Season 20, Place finish 3rd
    • Contestants table, row Tristen Gressett: Season 20, Place finish 11th
    • Contestants table, row Fritz Hager: Season 20, Place finish 4th-5th
    • Contestants table, row Nicolina: Season 20, Place finish 4th-5th
    • Contestants table, row Christian Guardino: Season 20, Place finish 6th-7th
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    • About: “He is signed to Withrow Street Music and CTM Entertainment for publishing.”
    • About: “Mike was a CMT “Next Up Now” featured artist”
    • About: “featured on the cover of Spotify's Fresh Finds Country playlist for several week”
    • About: “Best Of Fresh Finds Country end-of-year playlist for 2024 and 2025”
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