Louisiana's John Foster and the state's adopted son Baylee Littrell sung their way into the top 24 on "American Idol" Monday night.
Foster, 18, of Addis, and Georgia-born Littrell, 22, both attend LSU.
The singers advanced in the ABC singing competition series after pulling all-nighters in preparation for the critical head-to-head (duets) round. The 46 remaining hopefuls were trimmed to two dozen before the end of the two-hour episode.
AMERICAN IDOL - “808 (Head to Head)” - The competition heats up as competitors face off in intense head-to-head battles, and this season’s new artist in residence, Jelly Roll, makes his highly anticipated debut. MONDAY, APRIL 7 (8:00-10:01 p.m. EDT) on ABC. (Disney/Eric McCandless) JOHN FOSTER, CLARA RAE
Foster paired up with another Louisiana hopeful, Clara Rae, to perform "Until I Found You" by Stephen Sanchez and Em Beihold.
The under-the-radar Rae hadn't been featured on an "Idol" episode since her Nashville audition. There, she surprised and wowed the judges with her country twist on rock band Imagine Dragon's "Radioactive."
Unfortunately, she didn't make the cut.
"This is the end of the road for you at 'Idol.' Thank you," judge Luke Bryan told Rae after the duet. "But please don't let us be the end of the road for you. You keep your chin up."
Backstage, Rae, also 22, remained positive about her "Idol" experience.
"It's been such a privilege and an incredible opportunity to have even gotten this far," she said.
"This is an incredibly bittersweet moment, but I'm so ready for the top 24," Foster said.
AMERICAN IDOL - “808 (Head to Head)” - The competition heats up as competitors face off in intense head-to-head battles, and this season’s new artist in residence, Jelly Roll, makes his highly anticipated debut. MONDAY, APRIL 7 (8:00-10:01 p.m. EDT) on ABC. (Disney/Eric McCandless) BAYLEE LITTRELL, KEILENE
Meanwhile, Littrell, son of Backstreet Boys vocalist Brian Littrell, and New York's Keilene Bultron tackled the song "Shallow," sung by Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper in the 2018 remake of "A Star is Born."
"We worked through the night. We were up almost until the sun came up trying to get this song done," Littrell said after the singers went back and forth with the "Idol" vocal coach and mentor Jelly Roll on who would sing what parts of the powerful love song.
"You hung on to your identities while pulling off something that I don't know whether it was powerful or too powerful," judge Lionel Richie commented after their performance.
"Baylee, you were more comfortable singing with somebody else. It's kind of like we got to see a different side of you," judge Carrie Underwood said. "It was a solid performance.
"Baylee, I am your cheerleader. I believe in you. And I had to, I had to be very vocal about that," she continued. "I will tell you something that I was told after one of my performances in Hollywood Week. It was not a unanimous decision. So, moving forward, I need you to step it up."
Underwood's rise to country music fame came after winning the fourth season of "Idol" in 2005.
"I'm going to be giving it all I've got," Littrell said afterward. "Every little last bit of what's in here (patting his chest) is going into my music.'
The next stop is Hawaii for the 24 remaining singers, who'll perform there for a chance at cracking the top 12. "American Idol" airs at 7 p.m. Sunday and Monday, and also streams on Hulu.