British Columbia's Tyson Venegas advances to American Idol Top 12

Tyson Venegas performs on American Idol on Monday, April 24. (Image credit: Instagram/tysonvenegas)

Tyson Venegas, a 17-year-old high school student from Port Moody, B.C., is now a member of the Top 12 contestants on American Idol.

It was revealed during Monday night’s episode that the singer had received enough votes from across the U.S. to advance from the Top 20 to the Top 12. That was thanks to his performance of his original song “180” on Sunday, which received rave reviews from judges.

“Thank you everyone for voting for me! Thank you American Idol for this moment,” Venegas posted on Twitter after the episode.

To win hearts—and votes—for the next round of competition, Venegas sang a cover of Elton John’s “Don’t Let the Sun Go Down on Me.” The performance earned him yet another standing ovation from the judges.

A live vote will take place on Sunday to determine who makes it to the Top 10.

The competition is now at its halfway point, which means Venegas is a few weeks away from possibly becoming the first Canadian and one of the youngest singers to win American Idol.

Since American Idol started allowing Canadians compete in Season 18, two fellow British Columbians have gone far on the show.

In 2020, Lauren Spencer-Smith from Nanaimo was the first Canadian to make it to the Top 20, and in 2022, Cameron Whitcomb of Kamloops advanced to the Top 24.