Tyler native Fritz Hager performs Sunday at The Foundry Coffee House during a watch party for his “American Idol” audition. Hager received a golden ticket to head to Hollywood.

“American Idol” contestant Fritz Hager III will head into the next round of competition this weekend, but he hasn’t forgotten the people back home in Tyler.

Last week Hager advanced as one of the show’s top 24 contestants.

Now, Hager is set to perform in the public voting portion of the competition. The two-night Top 24 performances on Sunday and Monday will allow America to vote for their favorites. During this portion of the competition, the 24 contestants are being treated to a trip at Disney’s Aulani Resort in Hawaii.

As Hager gets ready to perform in Hawaii, he hopes everyone back home will tune in for the episodes.

“Traveling is fun, but there’s nothing quite like home,” Hager said. “Thanks to everyone in the community that has sent love my way, I truly am so thankful for that. Only love.”

Hager said this phase of the competition is a little overwhelming because he knows it is now up to the viewers.

“It is kind of nerve wracking, because it is completely out of our hands now,” he said.

Hager said even with his success so far, he is taking the competition one day at a time.

“I am taking this competition day by day. I don’t like planning too far ahead, so for now my goal is to get through the next round, and then hopefully the next one after that,” Hager said. “I truly just want to make the most of this experience for as long as America wants me on that stage.”

He said making it this far into the competition was something he never expected.

“It really is a dream come true being in the top 24. Honestly when I first started this whole process I didn’t think I would make it past Hollywood Week,” Hager said. “So making it this far has really helped me believe in myself a little more.

“Final judgment was really hard. I was sitting in the holding area watching some of my best friends either get through or get sent home, so there were waves of pure joy and sadness,” Hager continued. “And after such a grueling week physically and emotionally, I was feeling every extreme at every moment. It was pretty overwhelming.”

Hager, 21, performed an original song on Monday night’s episode which featured contestants in the “Showstoppers” round.

The song, “Inconsequential Love,” was written for Hager’s younger sister, Lucy.

Hager explained he felt performing the song was a “now or never” situation and felt strongly about playing the song for his sister in front of such a large audience.

“I had ‘Inconsequential Love’ in my back pocket since my first audition. I see myself as a songwriter first, so I knew that I wanted to perform an original on the show, and this particular song meant a lot to me,” Hager said. “And with Showstoppers being the last performance in Hollywood, I knew that if I was going to perform an original it would have to be now or else I would never get the chance again.”

“That performance was such a special moment. Sometimes it’s hard to speak to people and have them truly listen, and I just wanted to tell my sister I loved her,” he said. “I tell her all the time but I understand it can be difficult to really believe it. So I went on TV and played that song for millions of people to hear, so that I could give my sister the biggest ‘I love you’ possible.”

Lucy said she originally didn’t even know the song was for her.

“It meant so much. It’s funny because when I found out he sang that song I didn’t even know he wrote a song for me. When I heard it for the first time, I was in awe almost as to how well he was able to put it into words,” she said. “And now that so many people have heard it, it’s been so incredible to see how it’s impacting other people.”

She said she could not be more proud of her older brother.

“I am so proud of him, it’s insane. I know how long he’s been wanting this and I’m so happy that it’s happening,” she said. “He honestly deserves every bit of success that he’s gotten so far and so much more, and it makes me so happy that other people are seeing what I’ve seen for years.”

Hager said the change of pace going from Texas to Los Angeles was a crazy ride and he was glad he got to enjoy some time with family before moving on.

“It was a crazy change of pace! L.A. is so different, and living in the ‘Idol’ world for a week sometimes felt like a different planet,” he said. “I was really glad to come back home so that I had some time to ground myself before things got crazy again.”

“American Idol” will air on ABC this Sunday and Monday at 7 p.m.

1. Go to americanidol.com/vote

2. In the American Idol App

3. Text (Hager’s voting number) to 21523 …. Hager’s voting number will be on screen during his performance.

You can vote up to 10 times on each voting method.