American Idol Top 3 Results Recap: Who Went Home?

Welcome to the live blog and recap of American Idol 2014, "Top 3 Results"! Who will make the finale, and who will just barely miss out on the title after last night's Top 3 performance show?

Rickey.org readers predict that Alex Preston will be eliminated. For the first time this season, Alex received the highest percentage votes in a prediction poll, with 47.09% of our readers predicting he'll be headed home tonight. Close behind is Caleb Johnson, with 38.75% of the vote. Jena Irene comes in last, with only 14% of our readers predicting she'll be headed home tonight. Could Jena really become the first wildcard contestant to make the finale? It's not too late to add your prediction, so click the link above to head on over and vote! Also, check out last night's post-show power rankings and see where your favorites landed!

Credit: FOX

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RECAP

-After introductions, Ryan talks about how we've "waited months" to find out who would be competing at the finale, and he's not kidding. While this season has been exactly as long as just about any other, it feels like contestants such as MK Nobilette, Majesty Rose, and Emily Piriz were from last season, this thing has been going for so long. It's mostly because we had no double eliminations. No double elimination at the Top 13, no double elimination after the Save was used, no double elimination thanks to the contestants gave the figurative middle finger to the producers by refusing to vote to stave off the Top 5 results for one extra week. So this is pretty much the longest we've ever spent with a group of live show finalists before.

POST-SHOW DINNER RECAP

-Jena can't believe that Caleb went onstage, sick as a dog, and "still killed it." Alex said he couldn't believe Caleb smashed the mic stand onstage after the performance, saying it's something that's never been done on Idol before. Jena praises Alex for beating the drum during his performance of "Pompeii," and he reveals that before dress rehearsal, he'd never played drums and sang at the same time before. It gave him a whole new respect for lead singers who play drums. Then Caleb notes J-Lo's attempts to get Harry to stand after "Dazed and Confused". They theorize that Harry is saving his standing O for the finale. They go on to talk about Top 3 pressure, and throughout all of this, Randy's comments are obnoxiously woven in. None of it is insightful, it's just a bunch of empty platitudes about how the person going home will miss the finale (really, Randy? Gee, I didn't know), and how he doesn't know how America is supposed to choose.

-After the video, Ryan notes that the contestants ordered the full burgers this time and not the minis. Somehow, I imagine they're given about as much variety in their pick for dinner as they do in their weekly song choices.

-Back from break, we get a sneak preview of the songs the Top 2 will be singing in next week's finale. And they're...not bad, actually. Alex's single sounds particularly good, but honestly, they all sound great on their respective songs.

JENA IRENE'S HOMETOWN VISIT

-Jena absolutely flips out as her plane lands and she sees her family and their dogs waiting for her. She arrives at her old restaurant, and an entire mob is waiting for her, from a little girl who squeals "You're my idol!!!!" to her old boss, who gives her a huge hug. Back at her home, her grandparents are fighting back tears, talking about how much they've missed her and how excited they are to see her. Jena collapses into her bed when she gets home and lets out a euphoric sigh. For the record, Jena's house is MASSIVE. Seriously, that's some serious real estate there, inside and out.

-She sits at her keyboard in her living room and plays "Unbreakable Me," which plays over the rest of the segment, as she goes to her concert and is presented with the key to the city by the Mayor of Farmington Hills. The crowd is absolutely losing it for her. She plays "Unbreakable Me" for everyone, and then breaks down backstage, as she tearfully talks about how proud she is to be making a difference in her community. "I really want to win for them now," she says, and we come back to the studio with Jena concealing her emotions through a beaming smile (and several metric tons of makeup). Then, Ryan makes a huge announcement...

-At the finale, Jena Irene will perform with...PARAMORE! Her stunned reaction is almost as good as Malaya Watson's bowled over reaction to hearing she'll be performing with John Legend. Ryan tells her that Hayley is excited to be performing with her, and Jena is just at a loss for words. This is why I love this show. The Voice doesn't really do anything like this, between the hometown visits, the finale duet announcements, the focus on just how much each contestant has changed since we first met them (although, to be fair, neither did other talent shows like The X Factor USA or America's Got Talent. I still love The Voice too, of course, but Idol has always been the best about depicting a contestant's journey over the season.

-Back from break with a new tour promo that features clips from each of the final three contestants' hometown visits. We then catch up with ELLIOTT YAMIN AND DANEY GOKEY! Danny reveals that he's gotten married since the show, and has had a child with his wife. He also announces that they're now pregnant with their second child. He then talks about the charity organization he founded in the name of his late wife Sophia, which has taken several homeless families off the streets. Danny even talks a bit about his new record deal and single. I may not have been his biggest fan while he was on the show, but he seems like such a good guy, and I'm so glad he's been able to find happiness. Elliott, for his part, talks about working on a new album, although he says he hasn't had any babies since he's still a baby at heart. This was a neat segment, and I'd love to see more "catch-ups" with Idol alumni.

SCOTTY MCCREERY PERFORMS

-Scotty McCreery performs his new single, "I'm Feeling It," and while the song does cosmic amounts of nothing for me, he's grown exponentially as an onstage performer. It's the kind of eccentric performance that makes him seem like a character from Nashville come to life, and it's pretty fun to watch. Hopefully, he doesn't go around banging Juliette Barnes or finding himself on the wrong end of Jeff Fordham or something.

-Scotty and Ryan have a chat after the performance, and Ryan gets creepy by suggesting J-Lo likes younger guys. She declares "I'm not the only one!," and yeah, the sooner this is over, the better. Scotty talks about his upcoming tour, and we keep things rolling into our next commercial break. We return with a promo for Season 14 auditions.

ALEX PRESTON'S HOMETOWN VISIT

-Alex goes to a radio interview back in his hometown in New Hampshire, and talks about how he never expected to even make it past auditions. He says if he goes home, it's been a good run ("A great run!" the host corrects him), and his family is listening to the interview from home, choked with emotion. "Change of Time" by Josh Ritter plays over all of this, making all of it that much more poignant. Love this song.

-Alex is stunned at how many people have shown up for him, and his family explains that while he's been in Hollywood, he hasn't really been exposed to just how crazy things have gotten back here. He learns that people want to know what kind of toothpaste he uses. Granted, he still doesn't expect that many people to show up for his hometown concert, even after the governor declares May 10th, 2014 Alex Preston Day in the state of New Hampshire. Of course, tons of people DO show up, and are cheering like mad for him to win this thing. And he's utterly overwhelmed by this. He performs "Fairytale," and it sounds like a million bucks. I love that Alex seems to have absolutely no idea what to do with all this adoration, like he truly doesn't understand why anybody likes him. It reminds me of Lee DeWyze's hometown visit, and it's really endearing. Although, one complaint, why the hell is this show splitting the screen to show J-Lo's reaction to the hometown visit? Can we really not go two orange-pulping minutes without the camera having to linger on her for no loving reason?

-After the video, Ryan reveals to Alex that he'll be performing at the finale with...JASON MRAZ! And he's every bit as overwhelmed here as he was by his hometown reception.

CALEB JOHNSON'S HOMETOWN VISIT

-Caleb is so thrilled to be home, talking about the great vibes he's getting from his hometown of Asheville, NC. He stops off at the local Rock Academy to surprise the kids there, because apparently he wasn't getting enough Jack Black comparisons, now he actually has to appear at a School of Rock. He talks about having performed for virtually nobody, yet now he's here and performing for a massive crowd. He's thrilled to finally get to perform with his old bandmates, and his enthusiasm really pours through. As does Asheville's, as one girl in particular loses her mind, talking about how Caleb is the American Idol, and he simply has to win. The mayor declares the day Caleb Johnson Day.

-Caleb performs for a massive crowd of spectators, and then drives around town in the old van he used to drive to all of his old gigs in. Next, he's part of a massive parade in his honor, and it's a genuinely touching moment. More celebratory than emotional, but still a feel-good moment, even if that feel good vibe is in no way reflected by the split-screen of Caleb in the studio (although not everyone has external reactions to things they watch. For instance, you'd never know I love Reign just from reading my expression while watching it).

-After the video, Caleb's brother gets onstage, and their rapport is kind of adorable. Ryan then reveals that Caleb will be performing at the finale with his favorite band...KISS?!?! That's huge! And Caleb is absolutely beside himself, jumping into his much taller "little" brother's arms in celebration. A great moment.

FINAL RESULTS

-Ryan thanks the contestants for what they've done this season, and then it's on to the results...

JENA IRENE advances to the finale!

-Jena becomes the FIRST wildcard contestant to ever make the finale! As they prepare to hear the results, we can hear Alex and Caleb telling each other "I love you." It's time for the final result...

CALEB JOHNSON advances to the finale!

ALEX PRESTON has been eliminated from American Idol 2014!

-Alex seems fine with the result, although I'm kind of shocked. I really did want and expect him to win. He just seemed like a classic Idol winner. Now I'm not sure who I'll vote for to win. But, with that said, I think we're getting a great, deserving winner no matter what. Next week's finale is going to be insane, just for how close I think this season is. Jena could become the first wildcard contestant to win, while Caleb could become only the second winner (after Candice Glover last year) to come back after getting cut in an earlier season and win. Crazy.

-After Alex's farewell video (and he sounds pretty damn good on "Breakaway"), he performs his farewell vocal of "Fairytale," and it's one of his best performances of the entire season. I wonder how much of that has to do with not having a guitar to worry about, as he just holds a microphone and immediately seems far more connected to the performance. Just such an amazing note to go out on, and the judges give him a standing ovation.

-And that's a wrap! What did you think of the result? Did the right contestant go home? Who will win American Idol 2014? SOUND OFF IN THE COMMENTS! Until next week, thanks for hanging out! It's been great, as always.

GOODNIGHT!

Update: Listen and Download Jena Irene 'We Are Young' Coronation Song!