‘American Idol’ Promises ‘TV History’ When Live Rounds Begin Amid Coronavirus Pandemic

American Idol will be entering uncharted territory when the Top 20 officially kicks off. With production and live shows shutting down due to the coronavirus pandemic, ABC needed to get creative in determining a practical way of wrapping up the current season without pushing it off for months.

It seems the show has followed through on earlier reports suggesting that they would resort to having contestants perform from their own homes. With the second of a two-part “This Is Me” series wrapping up on Sunday that aired a more detailed looked at the remaining contestants, American Idol shared the news of their plan moving forward. With Ryan Seacrest delivering the message, it was revealed that the competition will kick back up on Sunday, April 26.

“During this uncertain time, we’re committed to bringing some sense of normalcy and some sense of community and hope through the stories of our contestants and their journey is about to take a historic turn,” Seacrest began. “Next Sunday, this competition will continue as the Top 20 compete for your vote with epic performances. Be here as we come to you from our contestants, our judges and my home in 25 different locations across North America as you witness television history.”

The official schedule has yet to announced, but viewers can expect these live episodes that will feature the contestants performing from their homes to last at least into June. Echoing a similar sentiment to Seacrest, Luke Bryan insisted this will be something exciting and something no one has seen. Katy Perry also joked about the opportunity of being able to host from her house while wearing sweatpants.

American Idol is currently in its 18th season and its third on ABC. This will be the first time ever the competition has done performances not in Hollywood. When she first revealed how production would need to get creative in finding a way to finish the competition amid quarantine, Perry explained that it definitely will be something unique. “Well, I think that we’re all gonna have to be very creative. I know that we’re going to get really creative and you’ll just have to be tuning into that creativity that we are probably going to create from our individual homes,” she explained. “We’ll see how this goes.”