Fil-am Thia Megia eliminated from American Idol

The youngest contestant to make it to American Idol's top 13 has left the show. Sixteen-year-old Filipino-American Thia Megia was eliminated from American Idol on Thursday night (Friday morning in Manila) after her rendition of "Daniel" was not well-received by television viewers. She got the lowest votes together with Naima Adepapo, who was also eliminated from the show.

Megia landed a spot in the top 13 with her cover of Irene Cara's "Out Here on My Own" from "Fame" and was praised for her perfect pitch. However, judges had said they would like to see her step out of the box. Last week, Megia's version of Martha and the Vandellas' "(Love is Like A) Heatwave" was lauded by the judges and wowed America, but it was not enough to keep her in the show after her less than stellar performance of "Daniel," an Elton John hit. "When you find the right song, the voice appears," said Steven Tyler. "You internalized it and that was a beautiful moment for you," said fellow judge Jennifer Lopez. "It showed a very relaxed side of you and people could hear your beautiful voice," said Randy Jackson, the third judge. Though the comments were kind, it seems America was looking for more than Megia's beautiful voice. Megia also performed Vanessa Williams' "Colors of the Wind" and Michael Jackson's "Smile" in American Idol's tenth season. Megia was previously seen on the fourth season of America's Got Talent, where she was cut in the Top 40 round of the quarterfinals. - Carmela G. Lapeña/YA, GMA News