She was an afterthought when the Season 10 American Idol finals began. One of the female contestants sure to be here and gone before we really knew who she was.
But Haley Reinhart turned out to be a survivor rather than cannon fodder, pulling off one of the most remarkable turn-arounds in Idol’s 10 years.
The Girl with a Growl couldn’t topple the Girl with the Giggle, though.
And when Haley sang her farewell song Thursday night, she was going home in third place, one spot shy of the glory that goes with competing in the Idol finale.
On Friday, Haley talked about Idol and her future with the media.
* She says she reads tweets on Twitter and was pleased to have the support of the likes of Adam Lambert, who was always so amazing on the Idol stage.
* Two of her favorite covers were “Bennie and the Jets” and “Beautiful” because of the way she was able to change them around.
* Haley credits her parents with teaching her the rules of the stage since she was 8. She says she got to play the International Tattoo Festival on her 9th birthday and treated the audience to a rendition of LeAnn Rimes’ “Blue.”
* She says she thought it would always be an honor to perform with her parents if she got on a big stage. She got to perform with her parents band on her trip home. Then got to perform with the Led Zeppelin song with her dad playing guitar this week. That’s a memory no one can take away, she said.
* She said the judges’ criticism of her could cut both ways. She said she truly thinks they were trying to push her and get her fired up. “As far as whether it’s hindered anything, I got to the top three. That’s amazing. That’s more than I could imagine.”
* The only thing she said she can conclude about the judges’ criticism “is that they were trying to push my buttons” and “see what they can get out of me.”
* Haley said she’s looking forward to performing on stage on tour and not being judged.
* She draws strength from the fact that two other former contestants from the Chicago area, Jennifer Hudson and Crystal Bowersox, have done well post-Idol. She said she admires Jennifer’s strength and was thrilled to meet Crystal and see that she’s been able to record the type of music she wanted post-Idol.
* Haley said she and Casey Abrams laughed when rumors started about them dating. She says it started when she and Casey started bonding more because of their unique musical connection. “Obviously, we have a really, really strong relationship. Maybe not dating, but the musicality between us and everything else has just been wonderful.”
* She says she would love to do a sultry-bluesy-rock album post-album and work in some jazz as the opportunity arises.
* Haley said she’s “really excited” to see what the finale produces and can see why “young America is capivated” with Scotty McCreery and Lauren Alaina. She, of course, declined to say who she thinks will win, just stating that “it’s close.”
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