American Idol: Katy Perry wipes away tears after bonding with young father Cecil Ray as Top 24 set

Katy Perry wiped away tears Monday when a young father made American Idol’s Top 24.

Cecil Ray, a 20-year-old machine operator from Cameron, Texas, said he just wanted to provide for his baby daughter Amelia Jade after a lifetime of struggle himself.

‘I have a lot riding on this,’ he said in a pre-taped video. ‘I definitely want to show my daughter that dreams are never too far to chase ’em.’

During his Idol audition, Cecil revealed the heartbreak of growing up in a small town where he lived in run-down government housing and had three loved ones commit suicide.

He’d bonded with new mom Katy, 36, who marveled that he’d even managed to make auditions since his daughter was just six weeks old.

Daisy Dove, her daughter with actor Orlando Bloom, 44, was barely 11 weeks at the time.

On the second Showstoppers episode, Cecil hoped that singing Leon Bridges’ Beyond would secure his spot in the next round.

His soulful tone had Katy mouthing ‘Wow’ as she listened, and garnered him a standing ovation from the judges, who said they saw ‘very, very interesting things’ in him.

Cecil hardly seemed able to believe that he’d gone through, sitting completely silent as the news washed over him and shouting ‘Woo!’ as it finally set in moments later.

He’d never had much confidence in himself, and cried as he acknowledged how huge just getting to the Top 24 would be for him.

‘That really changed his life,’ Luke affirmed, as Katy’s eyes filled with tears at Cecil’s joy.

Cecil had been the last contestant to make the show’s Top 24, and won out over fellow singer Drake McCain, a 19-year-old substitute teacher from Spring City, Tennessee.

Two other singers sat side-by-side as the episode began, learning their fate and ending a cliffhanger that concluded the show on Sunday evening.

In the face-off between college student Alanis Sophia, 19, from Dade City, Florida, and high-schooler Casey Bishop, 15, from Estero, Florida, both girls ended up making the show.

‘You’re going through to the Top 24,’ Luke Bryan, 44, said as both teens cried with relief.

After that, Willie Spence, a 21-year-old caretaker from Douglas, Georgia, got the show off to a rousing start with his cover of Beyoncé’s I Was Here.

Lionel Richie, 71, previously called Willie an ‘undeniable star,’ and he looked like one as he leaned into the chorus in his black suit, garnering applause and cheers from the judges.

Just being on the stage was emotional for Willie, who had struggled with his weight so much he thought he might be near death over the last year.

The choice of song seemed to have special resonance for him and in the judging room, Luke told Willie, ‘We really, really feel like your life is going to change in amazing ways.’

‘This is the crossroads for your life,’ Katy echoed, as Willie was sent through. ‘You’ve got it.’

Anilee List, a 20-year-old college student from Los Angeles, sang Rufus and Chaka Khan’s Ain’t Nobody and was reportedly saved after Benson Boone, 18, withdrew after making Top 24.

The TikTok heartthrob has since been seen making music with Imagine Dragons and recording singles of his own, though Idol has not yet confirmed that Anilee took his spot.

Mary Jo Young, a 19-year-old real estate sales associate from Cleveland, put her heart into James Bay’s Us, aware that she had ‘no more free passes’ after fudging previous songs.

‘I feel the nerves going away a little bit more each time,’ she told the judges, who said she needed to own the stage more but had enough ‘magic’ to make it through.

Hunter Metts, a 22-year-old software developer from Franklin, Tennessee, had always loved music but feared failure after seeing his parents struggle with their musical careers.

Aware that he needed a big moment to make it through, he covered Noah Cyrus’ July, which had the judges smiling delightedly as they watched him.

Like Cecil, Hunter teared up as he learned he was going through and nodded when Luke urged him not to change the essence of who he was.

Grace Kinstler, a 20-year-old college student from Chicago, mixed quiet emotion and operatic moments in Demi Lovato’s Father, which she dedicated to her own late dad.

‘Take all that pain and use it,’ Katy urged Grace as she also went through. ‘Sing it out.’

Deshawn Goncalves, a 19-year-old college student from Cleveland, impressed the judges by debuting a delicate, soaring version of Judy Garland’s Somewhere Over The Rainbow.

‘Your journey has brought tears to my eyes,’ Lionel told Deshawn, whose mom had been 13 when she gave birth to him.

The teen jumped up and down when he learned he had made it.

The next contestant was former boy bander Colin Jamieson, who’d once sung in a group named Kik-It and even had a website dedicated to his ‘booty.’

Ahead of Colin’s appearance Luke danced to 1988’s The Right Stuff by boy band New Kids on the Block, which led Katy to crack, ‘You’re gonna slip a disc, bro.’

Colin, a 22-year-old wedding singer from Boxford, Massachusetts, wisely let his voice steal the show as he sang Fall Out Boy’s Sugar We’re Going Down, which got Katy dancing in her seat.

‘Before last night, you weren’t totally on everybody’s radar,’ she told Colin as he made the Top 24. ‘We fought over you. We did. And you won.’

High schooler Ava August, 15, from Laguna Niguel, California, went through with an original called Ghost Of You that made it hard to believe she was the show’s youngest competitor.

Liahona Olayan, a 16-year-old high school student from Wahiawa, Hawaii, overcame being chastised by Katy for acting defeated during duet rounds, after her brother was cut.

To prove her mettle she did a peppy cover of Meghan Trainor’s Me Too that had the judges wondering where all that personality had been before—and she, too, went through.

Madison Watkins, a 25-year-old hair model from Fayetteville, Arkansas, sang a cover of James Brown’s It’s a Man’s Man’s World that was as bold and winning as her massive ‘do.

Alana Sherman, a 22-year-old food delivery driver from Lakewood Ranch, Florida, unleashed a saucy rendition of Jazmine Sullivan’s Bust Your Windows that won her a top spot.

Among those who were eliminated, Althea Grace, 21, a musician from Algonquin, Illinois, failed to make it despite her strong cover of The Beatles’ We Can Work It Out.

Throughout the show, Althea had been concerned about her baby daughter Lennon, who’d always encountered health challenges and ended up in the ER during Idol’s duets round.

Katy told Althea she was the kind of mom who would lift a car to save her daughter’s life, but admitted that her latest performance lacked enough ‘soul’ to go forward.

‘I’m sorry that I have to let you go home,’ Katy said. ‘But I think that you’ve found a new level, just like when you became a mother. You found something inside of you that you didn’t ever think you could do.’

‘I didn’t think I ever could do it,’ Katy added, ‘and now I’m a better person for it. I have not stopped dreaming because of it, so I hope you never start dreaming for the sake of your daughter.’

‘Lift those cars, girl,’ she finished.

Other contestants ending their Idol journey on Monday included music teacher Funke, 28, from Baltimore, Ronda Felton, 19, from Milwaukee, voice teacher Lizzy O’Very, 20, from Ephraim, Utah, and server Caroline Lamb, 22, from Pass Christian, Mississippi.

Three high school students also said goodbye to Idol: Laila Mach, 15, from New Paltz, New York, Emisunshine, 16, from Madisonville, Tennessee, and Nia Renée, 17, from Little Rock, Arkansas.

American Idol will return with celebrity duets next week on ABC.