American Idol got dramatic after a contestant fainted on stage following her performance.
The talent show hit the duet performance stage of the competition this week, with hopefuls paired up to perform for judges Lionel Richie, Katy Perry and Luke Bryan.
While drama is expected on the stage, nobody was expecting a medical emergency on stage, when singer Funke Lagoke fell flat on her face after passing out.
The former Miss Nigeria USA winner was paired up with Ronda Felton to perform a duet of the Barbra Streisand and Celine Dion classic Tell Him, and backstage, Funke was seen encouraging her partner to believe in herself.
Despite their preparation, Funke and Ronda’s performance didn’t thrill the judges, with Katy Perry whispering that she thought that Funke wasn’t ‘perfect’ and that she should leave the competition.
However, Luke Bryan said that the 28-year-old’s voice was starting to grow on him.
Eventually, it was left to Lionel Richie to deliver the good or bad news, as he outlined problems with both singers’ performances and saying that their rendition of Tell Him ‘crashed and burned’.
But before he could say whether the girls would make it through to the next round, Funke collapsed and hit the ground hard, face first.
Lionel and Luke ran to the stage while medics reached Funke, while Katy looked stunned as she stayed away from the crowd. Medics remarked that the singer had ‘busted her chin’ after her fall, and were seen putting gauze on her chin after turning her over.
Funke was put on a trolley and brought to hospital, and regained consciousness after leaving the stage. A title card explained that the singer ‘was treated for dehydration and released from the hospital’.
Back at the competition, Ronda, 19, was seen in tears as the judges consoled her after the ‘traumatic’ incident.
However, there was a bit of good news as Lionel told the teenager that both she and Funke would be going through to the showstopper round.
Ronda said: ‘It’s absolutely amazing news. I can’t say that I’m happy in this moment, I’m worried about her health more than anything.
‘That’s the number one important thing right now. I just want her to know that I love her, I care about her, and I just want her to be OK.’
Elsewhere on Monday’s edition of American Idol, Claudia Conway reached the end of the road in her Idol journey.
The 16-year-old – daughter of former Trump advisor Kellyanne Conway – surprised viewers when it emerged that she had auditioned for the show, and made it to Hollywood.
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