American Idol season 20 alum Christian Guardino released his debut single, “Higher,” on Friday (May 13).
Guardino, a 21-year-old singer from Long Island, collaborated with producer DannyBoyStyles (Belly, The Weeknd, BANKS) on the song.
“Give a light, give a light / When I’m in the dark / Oooh, place your wanting hand / On my beating heart / Give me a sign that you’re mine / When it gets hard / And I will take the pain and burn these scars / So won’t you hold me / And pull me closer / And take me higher / Tonight / No won’t you hurt me / So bring it further / I’ll take you higher / This time,” Guardino sings on the track.
Guardino said he “fell in love” with the song.
“As soon as I first heard the song ‘Higher’ I knew instantly that that was gonna be the song I chose. I fell in love with the melody, the lyrics, and everything about the song,” he explained.
Guardino caught Idol judges Katy Perry, Lionel Richie, and Luke Bryan’s attention during his audition this season when he sang, Donny Hathaway’s “A Song For You.” His audition earned him the golden ticket to Hollywood and praise from each of the judges.
“This one right here, he is touched by the hands from upstairs that give people voices,” Judge Luke Bryan reacted to Guardino’s audition.“He has all of that magic, and I don’t know if we’ve seen it so naturally this year yet until this one right here,” he said.
Guardino continued to wow the judges on his Idol season 20 run, even bringing Katy Perry to tears when he sang an emotional cover of John Lennon’s song, “Imagine” and shared what it was like for him growing up with a retinal disorder. Guardino underwent an experimental gene therapy as a child, which stopped his impending full-blindness. Now legally blind, he does his best to practice an attitude of gratitude and inspire people with his singing.
Guardino made it to the top 7 in this season’s competition before unfortunately being eliminated on May 8.
Despite not making it into the top 5, Guardino will sing a duet beside Michael Buble during the Idol finale. Buble made a video inviting Guardino to sing with him, which played during last Sunday’s episode (May 8) of Idol.
Guardino previously released “Waiting” in 2019, which is a collaboration with country singer Hunter Hayes.
The America’s Got Talent alum and New York native studied music in school.
American Idol returns on Sunday, May 15, at 8/7c, where Thompson and the rest of the Top 5 will perform their debut singles and receive advice from American Idol alum, Carrie Underwood.
The eight-time GRAMMY award winner and the Top 5 will be live from Underwood’s Las Vegas Residency at Resorts World Theater.
