The Sunday, April 20, episode of American Idol featured an emotional performance from contestant John Foster. After finding out that he made the top 20, John took the stage to sing an original song called “Tell That Angel I Love Her.”

At the end of the song, John was noticeably emotional, and wiped away tears as the judges gave him their thoughts. Carrie Underwood asked what he was going through, and he explained that the song was a tribute to his late friend, high school cheerleader Maggie Dunn, who died suddenly in 2022 along with Caroline Gill.

Underwood offered John some comforting words and told him, “There’s something so wonderfully throwback about your voice, about your style. I think it’s something that’s lacking in country music today, to be honest. We have a lot of outlaw country, we have a lot of new country, and I love that you keep it very traditional. I feel like that’s who you are. I love that in this song we go to hear a sweet, tender side of your voice that honestly I didn’t know you had.”

Maggie and Caroline were killed in a police chase on New Year’s Eve in Lousiana.. An officer hit the girls’ car while speeding amid a chase of a suspect with a stolen car, according to WAFB. The officer was reportedly driving at 86 miles per hour and ran a red light when he hit the car Maggie was driving (Caroline was in the passenger seat.) Maggie’s brother, who was riding in the backseat, was also left seriously injured after the accident.

The officer resigned from the police department and eventually pled guilty to two counts of manslaughter, according to Associated Press. He was sentenced to 32 years in prison with 22 years suspended.

American Idol, Sundays and Mondays, 8/7c, ABC