James Durbin couldn't hold back his tears

Shock waves flowed when host Ryan Seacrest announced the elimination of James Durbin from the American Idol. The 22-year-old singer, who was a favourite with the judges, looked visibly upset and couldn't hold back his tears.

“Man, I worked so damn hard to get here. And ... God, I was really hoping to get there, but I had a feeling today. ... I did so much stuff that's never been done on this show before. ... In my eyes, in my mind and what I believe is that I did what I came here to do, and that was to give metal a chance," he said, his voice cracking, his face wet with tears. "And to bring it and give 110 percent every week!," MTV quoted Durbin as saying.

He took to the stage one last time my singing Paul Mccartney's track “Maybe I'm Amazed". He thanked the audience for being so good to him. He had one of the most emotional sendoffs in American Idol. Judge Jennifer Lopez even cried while giving him a standing ovation.

The departure of James Durbin has now left Scott McCreery, Lauren Alaina and Haley Reinhart in the fray for the American Idol title.