Jersey girl Jax found out early on Wednesday night's "American Idol" that she made the show's Top 8 during Kelly Clarkson Night, which featured a twist in the voting.

East Brunswick's Jax performs Kelly Clarkson's "Beautiful Disaster" on "American Idol"
East Brunswick's Jax performs Kelly Clarkson's "Beautiful Disaster" on "American Idol" (YouTube)
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The 18-year-old from East Brunswick seemed to be awed by Clarkson, whom she remembers watching when she was a little girl. Clarkson praised Jax's past "Idol" performances as "quirky and I like it." The comments floored an excited Jax.

"Kelly Clarkson just called me good," she squealed.

Jax picked "Beautiful Disaster," an album cut from the first "American Idol" champion's debut album from 2004.

Clarkson called Jax "an artist" after a run through of the song and had no notes for her.

"Honestly, just do it like that and if anyone says anything tell them Kelly Clarkson says you're wrong," Clarkson said.

Wearing a black dress with a flowing black cape for her performance, the ballad didn't get the Jax treatment. Instead, she did the song much like Clarkson does in concert. The Idol champion said she likes the song so much she included it on two of her albums.

Judge Jennifer Lopez called it a "pure" version of Jax that she found to be "beautiful"  but "wanted the arrangement to go somewhere a little more." Harry Connick Jr. said he had only heard Clarkson's "highly produced" version but "really loved" Jax's rendition. Keith Urban said he is holding Jax to a higher standard and saw some "great artistry."

Season mentor CEO Scott Borchetta from Big Machine Label Group called Jax "America's punk pop princess," who will take it to the next level with a performance he predicted would show her "vulnerable" side.

The show's last contestants, Rayvon Owen and Daniel Seavey, were the first to put the "Fan Save" to the test. The new voting method that allows Twitter users to save one of the bottom two finalists by sending the most number of tweets in a five-minute period. Seavey was sent home by the end of the show.

Former "Idol" champion Ruben Studdard also made an appearance, delivering the voting results to Ryan Seacrest at the start of the show.

There are three ways left to vote for Jax by noon on Tuesday.

  • Super Vote via the American Idol app
  • Facebook
  • Search “American Idol Vote” on Google

Next week's show will be Billboard week allowing the contestants to select any current charting song. The country duo Florida-Georgia Line and Jason Durulo will both be mentors. Iggy Azalea and Jennifer Hudson, another "Idol" alum, will perform "Trouble."

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