- For more on his biography/career, see Colton Dixon/Personal.
Michael Colton Dixon (born October 19, 1991) was a contestant on Season 10 and Season 11 of American Idol.
Season 10 Audition[]
Colton's Nashville audition was not televised, but it is known that he auditioned with his sister, Schyler Dixon, where they each sang "What About Now?" by Daughtry. It's implied that at least two out of three judges said "yes".
Season 10 Hollywood Round[]
Colton was shown during the second part of Hollywood Week, in a group called "Nashville Stars", along with his sister Schyler, as well as Matt Dillard and 2 others, singing "Just the Way You Are" by Bruno Mars. He was the only member of his group to advance, thus eliminating his sister. (Although, they did not mention her during the episode.) On the third round of Hollywood Week, he sang an encore of "What About Now?" by Daughtry, while playing the keyboard. Afterwards, he was placed in the fourth (and most populous) deliberation room, along with Naima Adedapo, Paul McDonald, Lauren Turner, Tim Halperin, Thia Megia, Scotty McCreery, Rachel Zevita, John Wayne Schulz, Ta-Tynisa Wilson, Tiwan Strong, Brittany Mazur, Melinda Ademi, Stefano Langone, Chelsea Sorrell, DeAndre Brackensick, Sophia Shorai, Julie Zorrilla, Jovany Barreto, Hollie Cavanagh, Jimmie Allen, Symphony Howlett, Jessica Cunningham, Jordan Dorsey, Molly DeWolf Swensen, Carson Higgins, Karen Rodriguez, and Ashthon Jones, where it was revealed that everyone in the room had advanced.[1]
Season 10 Las Vegas Round[]
For The Beatles stage, Colton was only seen briefly, and later confirmed to be in a group with Jimmie Allen and Chelsea Sorrell, singing "Yesterday".[2] All three contestants advanced. For his final solo performance, Colton sang "Decode" by Paramore. At the Final Judgment, he was called up with Brett Loewenstern and Jacee Badeaux. The judges told Brett that he did enough to become a Top 24 semifinalist, whereas Colton and Jacee did not—and were both simultaneously eliminated.
Season 11 Audition[]
Colton attended the auditions in Savannah, accompanying his sister, Schyler Dixon, on piano while she auditioned, successfully. Initially he did not intend to audition himself, but was coerced by judges to do so as well. He sang an impromptu a cappella rendition of "Permanent" by David Cook. All three judges voted "yes", sending him to the next round along with her.
Season 11 Hollywood Round[]
Colton was seen in a montage during the first part of Hollywood Week, singing "Only Hope" by Switchfoot, amongst the 'Lines of Ten'. He advanced to the group rounds, but was not seen performing during this stage. Colton then, once again, sang "What About Now?" by Daughtry for his third round solo performance. Afterwards, he was placed in the first deliberation room, along with Joshua Ledet, Candice Glover, Creighton Fraker, Chase Likens, Lauren Gray, Devan Jones, Tenna Torres, Johnny Keyser, Aaron Marcellus, Erika Van Pelt; David Leathers, Jr.; Amber Holcomb, Jermaine Jones, Jen Hirsh, Elise Testone, Adam Lee Decker, Naomi Gillies, Cortez Shaw, Adam Brock, Hallie Day, and Scott Dangerfield, where it was revealed that everyone in the room had advanced.[3]
Season 11 Las Vegas Round[]
For the 1950s stage, Colton was shown in a group with Chase Likens, Skylar Laine, and Cari Quoyeser, singing "Dedicated to the One I Love" by The "5" Royales. Everyone in the group, with the exception of Cari, advanced. Afterward, in a controversial decision, the judges decided to whittle the amount of contestants advancing to Final Judgment down further. This resulted in his sister, Schyler, being eliminated once again, to which he was seen reacting emotionally. For Colton's final solo performance, he sang "Fix You" by Coldplay. At the Final Judgment, the judges told him that he did enough to become a Top 25 finalist.
Top 25[]
Colton sang "Decode" by Paramore in the semifinals. He received enough votes to place amongst the Top 5 Boys, making him a Top 13 finalist.
Top 13[]
For the Stevie Wonder/Whitney Houston theme, Colton sang "Lately" by Wonder. On results night, it was revealed that he received enough votes from America and was declared "safe" for that week.
Top 11[]
For the Year You Were Born theme, Colton sang "Broken Heart" by White Lion. On results night, it was revealed that he received enough votes from America and was declared "safe" for that week.
Top 10[]
For the Billy Joel theme, Colton sang "Piano Man". On results night, it was revealed that he received enough votes from America and was declared "safe" for that week.
Top 9[]
For the Personal Idols theme, Colton sang "Everything" by his idol, Lifehouse. He, Phillip Phillips, and Elise Testone also performed a medley as a trio, in a tribute to Stevie Nicks (originally from Fleetwood Mac, who also served as guest mentor for that week), singing: "Landslide", "Edge of Seventeen (Just Like the White-Winged Dove)", and "Don't Stop". On results night, it was revealed that he received enough votes from America and was declared "safe" for that week.
Top 8[]
For the 1980s theme, Colton sang "Time After Time" by Cyndi Lauper. He also did a duet with Skylar Laine, singing "Islands in the Stream" by Dolly Parton and Kenny Rogers. On results night, it was revealed that he received enough votes from America and was declared "safe" for that week.
Top 7[]
For the 2010s theme, Colton sang "Love the Way You Lie (Part III)" by Skylar Grey—the original demo rendition of the Eminem & Rihanna song. He also did another duet with Skylar Laine, singing "Don't You Wanna Stay?" by Jason Aldean and Kelly Clarkson. On results night, it was revealed that he received enough votes from America and was declared "safe" for that week. Due to the Judges' Save being utilized on Jessica Sanchez, the Top 7 remained intact for another week.
Top 7 Redux[]
For the Now & Then theme, Colton sang "Bad Romance" by Lady Gaga as his song for the former; and "September" by Earth, Wind, & Fire as his song for the latter. On results night, it was revealed that he did not receive enough votes from America that week; and as a consequence of Jessica's save the week prior, Colton was eliminated in seventh place.
List of Performances[]
| Stage | Song | Artist | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| Audition | "What About Now?" (w/ Schyler Dixon) | Daughtry | Advanced |
| Hollywood | Not Shown On Television | Advanced | |
| "Just the Way You Are" (w/ Matt Dillard, Schyler Dixon, et al.) | Bruno Mars | Advanced | |
| "What About Now?" | Daughtry | Advanced | |
| Las Vegas | "Yesterday" (w/ Jimmie Allen & Chelsea Sorrell) [N/A]* | The Beatles | Advanced |
| Final Judgment | "Decode" | Paramore | Eliminated |
| Stage | Song | Artist | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| Audition | "Permanent" | David Cook | Advanced |
| Hollywood | "Only Hope" | Switchfoot | Advanced |
| Not Shown On Television | Advanced | ||
| "What About Now?" | Daughtry | Advanced | |
| Las Vegas | "Dedicated to the One I Love" (w/ Chase Likens, Cari Quoyeser, & Skylar Laine) |
The "5" Royales | Advanced |
| Final Judgment | "Fix You" | Coldplay | Top 25 |
| Top 25 (Boys) | "Decode" | Paramore | Top 13 |
| Top 13 | "Lately" | Stevie Wonder | Safe |
| Top 11 | "Broken Heart" | White Lion | Safe |
| Top 10 | "Piano Man" | Billy Joel | Safe |
| Top 9 | "Everything" | Lifehouse | Safe |
| "Landslide" / "Edge of Seventeen (Just Like the White-Winged Dove)" / "Don't Stop" [medley] (w/ Elise Testone & Phillip Phillips) |
Stevie Nicks / Fleetwood Mac | ||
| Top 8 | "Islands in the Stream" (w/ Skylar Laine) |
Dolly Parton & Kenny Rogers |
Safe |
| "Time After Time" | Cyndi Lauper | ||
| Top 7A | "Love the Way You Lie (Part III)" | Skylar Grey | Safe |
| "Don't You Wanna Stay?" (w/ Skylar Laine) |
Jason Aldean w/ Kelly Clarkson | ||
| Top 7B | "Bad Romance" | Lady Gaga | Eliminated |
| "September" | Earth, Wind, & Fire | ||
Trivia[]
- Colton said that Lifehouse's "Everything", which he performed Top 9 night (plus as his swan song), is his "favorite worship song".
- He is the older brother of Schyler Dixon.
- Colton has released five studio albums, which have reached #1 on CCM charts—including several singles which charted to varying degrees.[4]
- Colton returned as a guest performer during Season 22, along with Melinda Doolittle and Danny Gokey, to sing the gospel-pop song, "Shackles (Praise You)" by Mary Mary (as a trio). They were paying tribute to Mandisa, who had just passed away two weeks prior from a sudden death. Like Mandisa, Colton was both a born Tennessean and a Christian-based artist.
Quick Links[]
- Colton Dixon's Website
- Colton Dixon on Vevo (via YouTube)
- Colton Dixon on YouTube (Videos)
- Colton Dixon on Spotify
- Colton Dixon on Facebook
- Colton Dixon on Twitter (X)
- Colton Dixon on Instagram
- Colton Dixon on TikTok
- Colton Dixon on Apple Music
| Season 11 |
| Finalists |
| ·Phillip Phillips ·Jessica Sanchez ·Joshua Ledet ·Hollie Cavanagh ·Skylar Laine ·Elise Testone ·Colton Dixon ·DeAndre Brackensick ·Heejun Han ·Erika Van Pelt ·Shannon Magrane ·Jermaine Jones ·Jeremy Rosado |
| Semifinalists |
| ·Reed Grimm ·Jen Hirsh ·Brielle Von Hugel —— ·Adam Brock ·Baylie Brown ·Hallie Day ·Creighton Fraker ·Eben Franckewitz ·Haley Johnsen ·Chase Likens ·Aaron Marcellus ·Chelsea Sorrell |