Alabama’s lone remaining competitor on “American Idol” faced some stiff competition Monday night, as the Top 8 shrank to a Top 7.

Thanks to the episode’s format, fans got to see Triston Harper sing two songs. In addition to a solo round for each competitor, there were duets and a quartet as various groupings of competitors joined up to sing songs made famous by celebrity judges Luke Bryan, Katy Perry and Lionel Richie.

In this case Harper, a 15-year-old from McIntosh, partnered up with 23-year-old Georgian Will Moseley to cover Bryan’s “What Makes You Country.” It was an interesting dynamic: Harper had a more energetic stage presence, while Moseley had a little more grit in his delivery. For better or worse, it was a showcase that let both singers play it safe.

That was harder to do in the solo song selections. Each singer had to pick from a list of three songs chosen by the show’s judges, who were conducting their own little contest to see whose selections would be sung most often.

The song

What Triston Harper sang: Harper’s a Morgan Wallen fan, and when he saw that “Sand in My Boots” was one of his options, he went straight for it. His coaches tried to talk him into trying Tim McGraw’s “Humble and Kind” on for size, but he literally broke down in tears when he did. The bold choice might have been to channel that emotion into a performance, but Harper seemed to feel he was getting a sign from above and went back to his first choice. (Which, it turned out, had been suggested by Lionel Richie.) His performance was solid, though far short of the star turn Abi Carter had ripped on Evanescence’s “Bring Me to Life” earlier in the evening.

What Lionel Richie said: “Let me tell you the real deal. The real deal is very simple, right? You have grown up now right in front of us. You’re a world-class storyteller. … God is the name you use more than anything. And you’re right, it’s God.”

What Katy Perry said: “God sent me a message and it was supposed to be [her song pick] ‘Humble and Kind.’ That’s how I think of you. But you sounded so great, you can sing anything and you’re still humble and kind. I believe in you.”

What Luke Bryan said: “Great job and this is becoming my favorite show of the season, it’s just so fun watching all of you guys come out of your shells and this episode is certainly doing that, great job.”

The Vote:

As host Ryan Seacrest read off the names of the six competitors who got the most votes, Harper was among them – along with Emmy Russell, Jack Blocker, Julia Gagnon, Carter and Moseley. McKenna Faith Breinholt and Kaibrienne didn’t make the initial cut; Perry had won the judges’ contest, so it fell to her to save one of them. She chose Breinholt.

That leads to an interesting dynamic heading for the next episode. The world doesn’t know where Harper and five other competitors ranked in the voting, but everybody, including Breinholt, knows she’s on the hot seat.

What comes next:

The next episode airs Sunday, May 5, and the theme is “Adele night.” Each of the seven competitors will pick a song by the superstar Adele, who’s known for soaring vocals. Among other things, that means Harper and Moseley will have to leave their preferred country music lane – or countrify an Adele hit. Breinholt might not be the only one feeling some pressure. The vote will cut two more singers, leaving a Top 5.

“American Idol” airs at 7 p.m. Central time Sundays and Mondays on ABC. Those without basic cable can still live stream new episodes of American Idol on Sundays with Fubo and DirecTV Stream. New episodes also can be streamed on Hulu beginning the day after they premiere.