Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

Milwaukee native Ronda Felton eliminated on ‘American Idol’

- Piet Levy

Milwaukee native Ronda Felton seemed like an “American Idol” frontrunne­r from her first appearance on the show last month, moving judge Lionel Richie to tears with her audition performanc­e of “One Night Only” from the musical “Dreamgirls.”

But in a surprising upset, 19-yearold Felton, a Phoenix resident for the past eight years, was cut from the competitio­n on Monday night’s episode.

“This whole experience I just had to prove something to myself, which I did, so I don’t think that I failed at all,” Felton said on Monday’s show.

Felton was eliminated after the “Showstoppe­r” rounds during Hollywood Week, where she performed Stevie Wonder’s “All in Love Is Fair.”

Only a snippet of the performanc­e aired, and critiques of the performanc­e from judges Richie, Katy Perry and Luke Bryan weren’t shared on Monday’s episode of the ABC realitycom­petition series.

Felton, however, did face some pointed criticism — from Richie, actually — during the previous Hollywood Week Duets Challenge round when she performed with Funke Lagoke. Lagoke also was eliminated from the competitio­n Monday.

Richie suggested that their performanc­e turned into “a train wreck,” but his criticisms were overshadow­ed by a shocking medical emergency, when Lagoke fainted during the critique. Lagoke was dehydrated; she ended up getting three stitches on her chin and made a full recovery.

As Felton rehearsed for that performanc­e, she admitted to fighting her insecuriti­es. But as her time on “Idol” illustrate­d, she had come a long way.

Homeless at times living with her single mother, Juretha Jones, Felton attended 12 to 15 schools by the time she was a teenager. She found a calling through singing, commanding the spotlight on a national TV show for millions of viewers. Felton and her mom even got to sing one of their favorite songs, the Commodores’ “Zoom,” with Richie himself.

“This ‘Idol’ experience, I’m so happy you put yourself into this world to learn so many things about what you are capable of,” Bryan told Felton on Monday’s episode. “I think your journey, and the exploratio­n of what you are, has just begun, and never be afraid of exploring what you’re capable of.

“For the rest of your life, have no fears,” he added. “We’d love to have you around here again.”

“I’m not going to lie, I walked into the audition not expecting to get in,” Felton said on “Idol” Monday night. “And then each round teaching myself if you keep on pushing, if you keep on doing it, you can get where you want to be.

“I’m liking the person that I’m starting to feel.”

Contact Piet at (414) 223-5162 or plevy@journalsen­tinel.com. Follow him on Twitter at @pietlevy or Facebook at facebook.com/PietLevyMJ­S.

Piet also talks concerts, local music and more on “TAP’d In” with Jordan Lee. Hear it at 8 a.m. Thursdays on WYMS-FM (88.9), or wherever you get your podcasts.

 ?? ERIC MCCANDLESS/ABC ?? Ronda Felton, a Milwaukee native living in Phoenix, sang Stevie Wonder’s “All in Love Is Fair” during the “Showstoppe­r” round on “American Idol” on Monday.
ERIC MCCANDLESS/ABC Ronda Felton, a Milwaukee native living in Phoenix, sang Stevie Wonder’s “All in Love Is Fair” during the “Showstoppe­r” round on “American Idol” on Monday.

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