Tyler Lewis eliminated from Canadian Idol

From a CTV media release:

And Then There Were Two: Eva Avila and Craig Sharpe to Compete for Canadian Idol Crown as Tyler Lewis is Eliminated

— Chantal Kreviazuk and Raine Maida co-write new Canadian Idol
winner’s single “Meant to Fly,” to be unveiled on next week’s show —

It’s Eva versus Craig and the last one standing will be Canada’s next Canadian Idol, it was revealed tonight on CTV. With the elimination of Saskatchewan’s Tyler Lewis, 20, tonight, the stage is now set for next week’s dramatic Canadian Idol showdown. Gatineau’s Eva Avila, 19, will go head-to-head with Newfoundland’s Craig Sharpe, 16, for the Canadian Idol crown as they both perform the new Canadian Idol single “Meant to Fly,” co-written by Chantal Kreviazuk and Raine Maida. It’s the second year in a row that Newfoundland has delivered a Top 2 finalist and it’s the first time ever that Quebec will see one of its own perform in the biggest music face-off on television.

It was another record-breaking night for Canadian Idol with 4.37 million votes cast – the most ever in the history of the series – following last night’s salute to the music of Tony Bennett. In all, a grand total of 32,379,698 votes have been received so far this season with the biggest and most important vote of the season scheduled for next Monday night.

Avila and Sharpe’s performance next Monday, Sept. 11 at 8 p.m. ET/PT on CTV is their last chance to convince voters that they deserve the Canadian Idol title. On the show, each competitor will sing three songs each: a new selection of their own choosing, their favourite song that they have previously sung this season; and the new Canadian Idol winner’s single “Meant to Fly,” which will be released to radio stations just hours after the next Canadian Idol is crowned by SONY BMG MUSIC (CANADA) INC.

“Meant to Fly” is a soaring ballad written by Chantal Kreviazuk, Raine Maida and Gaby Moreno. Kreviazuk, who recently released her new CD “Ghost Stories,” has written for Kelly Clarkson, Avril Lavigne and Cheyenne along with husband and co-writer Maida. Last year’s single, Melissa O’Neil’s “Alive,” debuted at the top of the Singles Chart and remained Number One for seven weeks in a row. In the end, the single went Four Times-Platinum and continues to chart high even one year later.

Following Monday’s performance episode, Canadians take to the phones to elect their next Canadian Idol. Then, the suspense builds toward the announcement of the winner a full six days later on the Canadian Idol season finale, airing live on Sunday, September 17 at 7 p.m. ET on CTV.

In tonight’s broadcast, legendary crooner Tony Bennett performed live for the first time on any Idol stage in the world, opening the show with “I Got Rhythm” accompanied by his famous quartet. The quartet then accompanied the remaining three finalists as they saluted Bennett with two of his best known songs, “Just in Time” and “The Best is Yet to Come.” Bennett later took the stage to perform once again, this time singing his classic “The Good Life.”

Tonight’s expanded hour-long results show was jam-packed with music, with each of the final three competitors performing a reprise from last night’s show in tribute to Bennett. Rockglen, Saskatchewan’s Tyler Lewis performed “It Had to be You;” Ottawa-Gatineau’s Eva Avila performed “God Bless The Child;” and the pride of Upper Island Cover, NL – Craig Sharpe – performed “The Way You Look Tonight.”

Tonight’s episode also featured highlights from the 2006 eTalk Media Idol finals which saw 10 members of the media flown to Toronto from across the country to perform on stage in front of the Canadian Idol judges. After more than 80 journalists from coast-to-coast competed in regional auditions, $10,000 was raised for local charities, courtesy of Canadian Idol. After the 10 regional winners competed in Toronto, Shannon Tyler from Edmonton’s Big Earl 96.3 FM walked away with the trophy and bragging rights as Canada’s first-ever Media Idol.

Then it was time to reveal the name of the eliminated competitor. After grouping the three singers together at centre stage, host Ben Mulroney announced that Lewis had become the eighth competitor to be eliminated from the competition. Lewis closed the show with a reprise of Tony Bennett’s “Just a Gigolo / Ain’t Got Nobody,” which he had performed on last night’s show.

Tomorrow, Lewis will be seen live on CTV’s Canada AM at 7:40 a.m. ET and then later on MTV’s MTV Live at 6:30 p.m. ET.

Lewis returns to Canadian Idol on Sunday, September 17 to perform with the seven other eliminated competitors from the Top 10 in the 90-minute grand finale.