CeCe Winans and Roman Collins brought American Idol to church with their rousing rendition of “Come Jesus Come”! American Idol’s April 2025 gospel episode had many powerful performances, and Winans really hit the mark with her emotional take on the worship song. The passion with which she and Collins sang really touched a deep place, making judge Katy Perry tear up as they performed.
Winans has such a power and conviction in her voice, which really made her “Come Jesus Come” performance take flight. She impressed with delicate moments in the verses, but also knew how to let her voice soar to take the main hook to the next level. The Music Man readers will definitely want to tune in to the 2:30 mark, where both Winans and Collins open the vocal floodgates, making for a magnificent conclusion with the help of the talented choir.
Winans and Collins’ performance got a warm welcome online, and it has passed one million views in the four weeks since its upload on April 21, 2025. Viewers loved seeing gospel music celebrated on prime time national TV, and added comments such as “This will go down in American Idol history as the best episode ever” and “Cece Winans is one of the great gospel singers of this generation. Great respect to her, God bless her.”
2025 wasn’t the first time Winans and Collins brought worship music to American Idol. The pair sang “Goodness of God” on the American Idol finale in 2024, producing a three-million-view performance. This performance featured plenty of great runs from Winans, but also gave more airtime to Collins, who sang the second verse and then dual lead vocals throughout the second half of the song.
Winans released “Come Jesus Come” in 2024 as the third single from her live album More Than This. Along with the second single from the album, “That’s My King,” “Come Jesus Come” topped the US Gospel chart.
“Come Jesus Come” was written by Louisville, Kentucky songwriter Stephen McWhirter, who released his version in 2020. In an interview with K-Love, McWhirter spoke about the origin of “Come Jesus Come,” saying he was inspired to write it at the beginning of the pandemic as he sat at home at his piano with the Bible open. He noted that the title was inspired by a line in Revelation that reads “The Spirit and the bride say come.”