Idol Chatter & Voice Views

So, is Katie Stevens going to go country after her ouster from American Idol?

Don’t count on it.

Simon Cowell might think it would be a good idea. But Kara DioGuardi doesn’t.

And neither does Katie Stevens.

When she records an album, the 17-year-old from Middlebury, Conn., envisions music that’s “pop with R&B leanings.”

“I would like to record things like Kelly Clarkson, where she has a soulful voice —

kind of R&B,soul pop with a rock background,” Katie said Thursday afternoon, fresh off

her Wednesday night elimination. “I hope to record that kind of album soon.”

And, if anything, her experience on Idol reinforced the fact that she should sing what feels most comfortable to her.

“I think where I went at fault in the start of the competition, during top 24 — that was when I was trying to please the judges and wasn’t pleasing myself and doing (music) I love.

“I decided going into top 12, I was just going to be myself. Everything I did at that point was what I loved to do. And I think that kind of showed.”

The result: Better comments from the judges, a top eight finish and a spot on the American Idol summer tour.

Katie said she’s looking forward to that tour, even if it means she might have to miss the prom and graduation back at Pomperaug High School. Rehearsals for the tour start at about the same time.

And if she seemed upset at the end of Wednesday’s results show, Katie said her Mom helped put the night in perspective by asking a simple question.

“She said, ‘If you started out and you were at the stadium and they told you, ‘All right, Katie, we’re going to let you be on the show, but you’re only going to make it to the eighth spot,’ would you have done it?’ And I said, ‘Absolutely.'”

Then there’s this: Remember when we first met Katie? Back in the Boston audition episode?

We also met her grandmother — the woman who helped raise Katie while her parents worked during the day — the grandmother who had been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease.

“She’s been to every performance that I’ve ever been in and she really inspired me to follow my dreams,” Katie said. “I wanted to do something great that she could see while she still remembers me.

“I’ve accomplished my goal.”

Editor’s Note: Check back later for the exit interview with Andrew Garcia.