The sixteenth season of American Idol premiered on March 11, 2018, on the ABC television network. It was the show's first season to air on ABC, and after 15 years, Ryan Seacrest continued his role as host, while Luke Bryan, Katy Perry, and Lionel Richie joined the show as judges. Maddie Poppe won this season on May 21, 2018, while Caleb Lee Hutchinson was the runner-up,^[1] and Gabby Barrett finished in third place.

In early 2017, Variety reported that FremantleMedia was in talks to revive the show for either NBC or Fox.^[2] A dispute between Fremantle and Core Media Group derailed these plans.^[3] In May 2017, it was announced that ABC was making a bid to revive the program.^[4] Later, ABC announced that it had acquired the rights to the series and that American Idol would return for the 2017–18 television season.^[5][6] On November 6, 2017, it was announced that the revival would premiere on March 11, 2018.^[7]

On July 20, 2017, it was announced on Live with Kelly and Ryan that Ryan Seacrest would return as host for the revival season.^[8] On May 16, 2017, Katy Perry was the first judge to be announced by ABC.^[9] On September 24, Luke Bryan was announced for a second judge,^[10] and on September 29, Lionel Richie was announced as the final.^[11] On February 21, 2018, it was announced that iHeartRadio radio personality Bobby Bones would serve as the mentor for the top 24 this season.^[12]

On April 23, 2018, ABC announced that the April 29, May 6, and May 13 live shows of the season would air across all mainland U.S. time zones, a first for American Idol.^[13]

In June 2017, it was announced that American Idol would begin two bus tours in 19 cities, and this was later increased to 22, for auditions beginning on August 17, 2017.^[14][15] Those who passed their first audition went in front of the producers, where they would be selected to appear before the judges in different cities. Instead of focusing on a city in each episode as had been the case in previous seasons, each episode this season showed a compilation of auditions from different cities.^[16]

During the live broadcast of the 2017 American Music Awards, three contestants who did not advance after their auditions in front of the judges were given one more chance to convince the audience to vote for them. The contestants were Britany Holmes, Maris, and Dominique Smith.^[20] The winner of the golden ticket to Hollywood was then revealed the following night on an episode of Dancing with the Stars. Lionel Richie appeared in the show and announced that the vote was in favor of Britney Holmes, a 28-year-old vocal coach from Texas, who advanced to Hollywood as the first semifinalist of the season.^[21]

Hollywood Week aired over two episodes on March 26 and April 1. It featured three rounds: lines of ten, a group round, and a solo round. In the first round, each contestant sang individually, and after ten had sung, they gathered in a line. Those who impressed the judges and the producers were advanced to the next round, where the contestants performed together in groups of four or five.^[22] The contestants who passed the group rounds performed their final solos before advancing to the Showcase round.

The Showcase round aired on April 2, which featured the top 50 performing for the judges and a live audience at Exchange LA, a nightclub in Los Angeles. The following day, the judges narrowed the number of contestants down from 50 to 24. The top 24 contestants then moved on to perform solos and celebrity duets.^[23][24][25]

The following is a list of the contestants who reached the top 24 and the song they performed at the Showcase. Contestants are listed in the order they performed.

The top 24 contestants were split into two groups of twelve. Prerecorded performances of the first group aired on April 8 and 9, and the second group on April 15 and 16. On the first episode, each contestant performed one solo; and on the second episode, each contestant performed one duet with a celebrity singer. The judges then eliminated five contestants from each group on the second episode.

The artists who performed duets with the top 24 were Banners, Aloe Blacc, Bishop Briggs, Cam, Colbie Caillat, Luis Fonsi, Andy Grammer, Lea Michele, Patrick Monahan, Rachel Platten, Bebe Rexha, Sugarland, and Allen Stone.^[27]

Color key:

The Top 14 performances aired on Sunday, April 22, followed by the live results show on Monday, April 23.

Color key:

Contestants are listed in the order they performed.

• Maddie Poppe (born December 5, 1997) was from Clarksville, Iowa.^[32] She auditioned in New York City by performing "Rainbow Connection." In Hollywood, she sang "Dreams" by Brandi Carlile as her first solo and performed her original song "Don't Ever Let Your Children Grow Up" as her final solo. She advanced to the top 24 after performing "Me and Bobby McGee" in the Showcase round. During the course of the season, she played the ukulele, guitar and keyboard.

• Caleb Lee Hutchinson (born March 2, 1999) was from Dallas, Georgia.^[32] He auditioned in Atlanta by performing "If It Hadn't Been for Love." In Hollywood, he performed Keith Whitley's "Don't Close Your Eyes" as his first solo. He made it to the Showcase round by singing Josh Turner's "Your Man" as his second solo. After performing "I Was Wrong" by Chris Stapleton, Hutchinson advanced to the top 24 semifinals.

• Gabby Barrett (born March 5, 2000) was from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.^[33] She auditioned in Nashville, intending to perform one song, but the judges encouraged her to sing a church song instead. She sang "His Eye Is on the Sparrow" and advanced to Hollywood. She sang Aretha Franklin's "Ain't No Way" as her final solo and advanced to the Showcase round, where she then sang "Church Bells" by Carrie Underwood and advanced to the top 24.

• Cade Foehner (born July 24, 1996) was from Shelbyville, Texas.^[33] He earned a golden ticket from the judges after singing The Black Crowes' "She Talks to Angels" at his audition in New Orleans. In Hollywood, he performed "The Thrill Is Gone" by B.B. King as his first solo and "Feel It Still" by Portugal. The Man as the final solo. He sang Kaleo's "No Good" to advance in the semifinals in the Showcase round.
• Michael J. Woodard (born October 6, 1997) was from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.^[33] For his audition, he sang "Make It Rain." He then progressed to the Showcase round after performing "Maybe This Time." He also sang Alanis Morissette's "You Oughta Know" to advance in the top 24.
• Catie Turner (born February 14, 2000) was from Langhorne, Pennsylvania.^[33] She had auditioned for American Idol's fifteenth season, but was rejected by the producers. She auditioned in New York City and sang her original song "21st Century Machine." She also sang the Beatles' "Come Together" and another original song during the solo rounds of Hollywood Week. She sang "Bad Romance" by Lady Gaga in the Showcase round to earn a spot in the top 24.
• Jurnee (born May 11, 1999) was from Denver, Colorado.^[32] She had also auditioned for the fifteenth season, but did not make it through. She auditioned in Savannah with "Rise Up" by Andra Day. She also sang Demi Lovato's "You Don't Do It for Me Anymore" as her first solo and Ariana Grande's "One Last Time" to advance to the Showcase round. She made it to the semifinals after singing "Never Enough."
• Dennis Lorenzo (born April 4, 1991) was from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.^[33] For his audition, he sang "Unaware." He sang two songs in Hollywood: "Thinking Out Loud" as his first solo and "Home" by Daughtry as his final solo. He advanced during the Showcase round by performing "A Song for You" and moved on to the semifinals.
• Michelle Sussett (born August 2, 1995) was from Miami, Florida,^[33] but was born in Venezuela. After she passed her audition in Los Angeles, she sang "I'm Coming Out" by Diana Ross in Hollywood. She also sang "24K Magic" by Bruno Mars and made it to the top 24.
• Ada Vox (born May 17, 1993), whose birth name was Adam Sanders, was a drag queen from San Antonio, Texas.^[32] He had auditioned in the twelfth season, but was cut before the semifinals. As Ada, she sang "The House of the Rising Sun" at her audition in Savannah. After advancing through Hollywood, she sang "Creep" by Radiohead and made it to the semifinals.

Color key:

Color key:

The top 7 finalists performed for the summer tour along with eighth season Kris Allen.