Who Will Win 'American Idol' 2023? After Watching Every Episode, Here Are Our Predictions

The Top 5 finalists for American Idol 2023 were revealed last Sunday night and they include Iam Tongi, Wé Ani, Megan Danielle, Zachariah Smith and Colin Stough. It’s a nice mixture of genres and talents, but odds are that one of the men will walk away with the recording contract.

So, who will win American Idol 2023?

It seems as if it is getting harder and harder for a woman to win American Idol. Out of the 21 seasons the series has been on the air, only seven women have won. And it looks as if this season, it will happen again. The woman who should win American Idol 2023—Wé Ani—will come in second or third and a man—Iam Tongi—will win.

Don’t get me wrong, I am not saying that Iam isn’t talented—and from the few times I’ve talked to him—he seems to be a great guy, which could be what America is picking up on. They are embracing his story. But what he does is so much more limited than Wé, who has a broader range and can sing more styles of music. Of course, Wé also has more experience, especially having competed on The Voice in 2016 when she was 16, but under the surname McDonald. She finished in third place on season 11 on Team Alicia Keys and now she looks primed to make the Top 3 on Idol as well.

Related: Why American Idol's Iam Tongi Is 'Scared' About Tonight's Top 8 Performance

The other contestant that looks to make it to Top 3 is Megan Danielle, who like Wé, also competed on The Voice. She was only 17 when she competed in 2020 on Team Kelly Clarkson and finished in ninth place. At that time, Megan’s genre of choice was pop-rock, but she has since switched to being a Christian singer, which has made her a fan favorite this season on Idol.

Zachariah Smith, it goes without saying, is a more energetic singer, leaning toward rock, and truth be told, it is surprising that he has made it this far as he had very little experience and no polish when he began the competition. But his infectious personality and his strong commitment to his performances has won over voters.

And finally, there’s Colin Stough, who is pure country and a cutie. So much so that Katy Perry called him the “Brad Pitt of country music.” Like last season’s Noah Thompson, Colin could be a sleeper and wind-up taking home the prize. It remains to be seen if he makes Top 3. He's had a couple of surprise performances—Robyn's "Dancing On My Own" and Alanis Morissette's "Hand in My Pocket"—that have kept him in the game.

Related: American Idol Judge Katy Perry Calls Colin Stough 'The Brad Pitt of Country'

In looking back over Idol’s many seasons, it appears that the first six seasons were much better ones for women with Kelly Clarkson (season 1), Fantasia Barrino (season 3), Carrie Underwood (season 4), and Jordin Sparks (season 6) all winning their seasons, but that was the era before social media when people actually had to phone in their votes. And while there hasn’t been a study to see the effect of voting through the app, by text or online, it feels as if the voters these days are younger and women, and women who are voting for men.

Another interesting aspect of this season is that by the time we got to the Top 8, there wasn’t a single Platinum Ticket winner left in the competition. Tyson Venegas, who received the first ticket of the season, was the last one standing and he was voted out by America.

Elijah McCormick was voted out the second night in Hawaii, and what was surprising about that is he was America’s Platinum Ticket, not a choice of the judges. Then there was Cam Allen, who was eliminated on the second night of Showstoppers by the judges. That wasn’t as big a surprise as Cam had let his nerves get the best of him during his performance. Kaylin Hedges was the final Platinum Ticket holder, and she was eliminated during Hollywood Week.

So, what does that say about the relevance of the Platinum Ticket, which did much better last season when HunterGirl, who was one of three recipients, finished in second place.

“I like it,” Idol executive producer/showrunner Megan Wolflick told Parade when asked if due to the failure of the Platinum Ticket holders to place this season, the bestowing of them would be discontinued next year.

Related: Who Went Home and Who Made It Through to the Top 5 Last Night on American Idol

“It’s always an element of surprise and I like that last year you had two that made it very, very far [HunterGirl finished second, Jay Copeland made it top 7, and Kenedi Anderson dropped out],” she continued. “And this year, none. But I think it just keeps people guessing, it’s another element. It’s real time when the judges give them away, so they’re just feeling something in the moment. It’s not like we go back at the end and review everybody, it’s literally like, ‘I feel it, I’m going to go for it.’ I like that spontaneity, and sometimes you’re right and sometimes you’re wrong.”

And more than that, Katy Perry says a little bit of luck goes along with that.

“We can only do so much,” the Idol judge says. “There’s a combination of things that have to align. And one third of those things, the ingredients, is luck. So, it can be talent, hard work and timing, that’s all that’s got to align for you to have that moment, and sometimes luck isn’t in our hands.”

American Idol returns for the semifinals on Sunday, May 14 at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT on ABC when the Top 3 will be revealed. Then on Sunday, May 21, the winner will be announced.

Next, Make Your Vote Count! How to Vote Online or By Text on American Idol 2023