Tonight (March 22) marked Season 10 contestant Haley Reinhart's highly anticipated return to the 'American Idol' stage. She has a new album, 'Listen Up!' on the horizon, set to drop via Interscope on May 22. It was the perfect opportunity for the husky-voiced singer to offer up a live rendering of her new single 'Free.'

Reinhart turned the sexy meter up to 11, thanks to her form-fitting hot pink gown, the piles of curls pushed to one side of her head and the fact that she performed in a lighted birdcage, sauntering inside of the bars as she sang. From her styling to the staging, it was a "Va va va voom!" performance from stem to stern. Haley was, in a word, hot. She has matured so much in the space of a year, coming across like a modern Stevie Nicks, with a little less gypsy and a lot more glam.

'Free' is a mid-tempo, semi-jazzy and totally soulful romp that sounds like it was penned expressly for Haley Reinhart, since it plays to her smoky strengths.

She may not have won the 'Idol' crown in 2011, but Reinhart's career doesn't appear to be hindered by that fact. Tonight's performance made us anxious to 'Listen Up!'

Watch Haley Reinhart Perform 'Free' on 'American Idol'

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