FOX
Ashley Lilinoe of Kaneohe, second from right, with fellow competitors, from left, Juno Rada, Kayla Mickelsen and MacKenzie Bourg on the “American Idol” set.
Select an option below to continue reading this premium story.
Already a Honolulu Star-Advertiser subscriber? Log in now to continue reading.
Hawaii’s “American Idol” hopeful, Ashley Lilinoe of Kaneohe, lost her bid to be one of the singing competition’s contestants during the Hollywood Week round of judging, which aired Thursday on Fox.
The 21-year-old Lilinoe, a guitarist and singer, performed in a group rendition of the X Ambassadors song “Renegades.”
Lilinoe called the performance overwhelming. She said it was fun, but she lost her way while singing.
“There was so much going on that I didn’t know what to do,” she said. “When it came to our performance, there was a point where I think I kind of forgot the song. I didn’t really resonate with what I was singing.”
Lilinoe had earned an audition in the Hollywood Week round by impressing the judges with her performance in Denver, which aired Jan. 14. The Hollywood audition was shot in November, she said.
From the start, Lilinoe was ambivalent about her participation on “American Idol.” She said she did not have a burning desire to win the competition but wanted the experience.
“I knew that it wasn’t something that I wanted,” she said. “I just wanted to connect with everyone that I met and to evolve in being a singer.”
This is the 15th and final season of “American Idol.”
