'Idol' contestant swaps "she" for "he" during performance 'in a small moment of maybe defiance to the norm'

Celebrity duets continued on American Idol Monday night as the other half of the top 24 took the stage.

While the stacked performances continued to impress viewers, one of the standout moments of the night was when quirky crooner Beane, who teamed up with classical superstar Josh Groban for a performance of "Angels" by Robbie Williams, subtly attempted to flip the script.

"In a small moment of maybe defiance to the norm, I guess, I'm just gonna switch the word 'she' out for 'he.' And we're gonna let it rock," Beane told Groban.

While a pronoun swap in a song may not seem like a big deal, on a historically conservative show like Idol, it was significant even in 2021. It wasn't until Season 13 that Idol featured an openly gay contestant discussing her sexuality, and Just Sam became the show's first LGBTQ+ champion just last year.

As for the performance, viewers absolutely loved Beane and Groban's duet. One person even tweeted that Beane was holding his own next to Groban, which is a huge compliment.

Meanwhile, Beane's change up from the word "she" to "he" did not go unnoticed by Idol judge Lionel Richie, who commended him in the same subtlety by saying, "First of all, Beane, you made us turn around on every note to say, "Hey, I'm here," and we noticed exactly what you were doing."