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Latter-day Saint Makes It Into "American Idol" Top 20: "You Really, Really Are Amazing"

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Ashley Hess has been impressing judges since her first moments on American Idol. 

After her audition, pop icon Katy Perry told Hess, “You could win this whole thing."

During the top 40 performances in Hawaii, Ashley Hess sang "Gone Away" by H.E.R., and while the judges didn't feel it was Hess's strongest performance, it was enough to get her through to American Idol's top 20.

"You really, really are amazing when you are in that element," Luke Bryan said of when Hess gets behind a piano. "I think early on we all agreed that we really, truly thought that you were top 10, and unfortunately, I can't guarantee that you will be top 10, but we can guarantee you are top 20."

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From her first moments on American Idol, Hess wowed the judges with her smooth take on the Norah Jones classic “Don’t Know Why."

In fact, the Fremont, California, native impressed judges Luke Bryan, Lionel Ritchie, and Katy Perry so much, that they stopped her mid-performance so they could gather around the piano as she serenaded them again.

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“You could knock this out of the ballpark,” Ritchie told Hess. “It’s fabulous. Fabulous.”

And Perry agreed: "You could win this competition!" 

Hess called her whole experience on American Idol "surreal."

While fellow Latter-day Saint Johanna Jones did not advance to the top 20, viewers across the country and Katy Perry won't forget her touching proposal during Hollywood week.

► You'll also like: Latter-day Saint Shares the Story Behind His Epic Proposal on "American Idol"

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