Here’s a round-up of exit interviews with eliminated contestant, Gina Glocksen.
Gina is proud of her performance Tuesday night, and even though Simon dissed her performance, Gina says she will “still stand by him.”
She’d love to play Elphaba in the musical, Wicked.
Click on the jump to read her interviews with American Idol Extra, MTV and Entertainment Weekly.
American Idol Extra interview with host JD Roberto:
- What did Gina think of her performance Tuesday night? I thought it went great, I went out there, and sang my heart out. During dress rehearsal I wasn’t feeling it…but I asked my nana and she said my grandfather used to sing that to her every night before she went to bed…I put every ounce of her into me and I just sang that song like I was singing it from her to him.
- Paula and Randy really liked her performance. What about Simon? Did Gina feel she had been outsung like he said? I feel like I’ve been outsung every week. There’s always going to be LaKisha, Jordin and Melinda…I mean I’m not them, not even close, but, they’re not me, not even close. We’re all different. There are so many unique voices.
- Did she feel like the theme did her in this week? I don’t like to think that, ’cause, as an artist, as a performer, you have to be able to kinda cover every genre…that’s what I thought made me unique…I could do that…I’m not just a rocker girl, I can actually do Tony Bennett songs. I can sing Jennifer Lopez.
- Does she still like Simon? Yes. I’ll stand by his side all the time, I think he’s honest and he tells the truth…I learn from it…Simon has helped me out so much from Top 24 to now. Like, he told me when he was worried about me losing my edge…before I sang Evanescence…and I put my tongue ring back in and I punked up my hair and wore different kinds of clothes, he helped me…I was more “edgy” as he says…
- Was she close to the cast? Who? Everybody. Every week, more and more we all learned something more about each other…we’re each other’s family now.
- About being in the bottom 2 with Haley Scarnato: Well, me and Haley we just really get along really well for obvious reasons…we’re always together all the time…she’s like my third sister.
- This was Gina’s fourth time auditioning for Idol, why the perseverance? I’m just one of those people…I don’t stop until I get what I want.
- Would she change anything? I could look you straight in the eye and tell you that I wouldn’t change anything. Everything happens for a reason.
- Was it helpful to work with a stylist? The team was great. Miles assistant Art dressed me, he was cool.
- What is Gina’s dream job? To star in the musical Wicked. I would love to be Elphaba (the wicked witch of the west)
- Which elimination was harder–when she was eliminated from Hollywood last year, or being eliminated from the finals? Hollywood. I made it so far and got cut and didn’t get to experience America voting for me…not getting to know any of my fans…I get to meet all these people screaming my name…that’s amazing.
- What is that transition like moving into the big theater? I had a hard time for the Top 24 when it’s a small setting…I can’t feel it…when it’s a lot more people I feel like I can open up a lot more…
From Entertainment Weekly:
- What happened this week? I had two really strong performances in the past two weeks and I think my fans were like, ”All right. We know Gina is safe. We’re going to vote for someone else because they deserve it too.”
- Does she wish you’d gone more rocker girl? I don’t know. What Tony Bennett song could I actually rock to? Also, I knew from the minute they said it was Tony Bennett week that I would sing ”Smile, ” because it’s from My Girl 2 and I loved that movie.
- Was it hard to sing those lyrics (”Smile, though your heart is aching…”) after she got kicked off? No–what a great song to sing when you get kicked off. It should be the new ”I’m Going Home.”
- Did the label “rocker girl” hurt Gina? No. I actually thought being known as the rocker would work to my benefit, at least to get me into the top five. But…whoops!
- About talking back to Simon when he said she’d been outsung:
It was scary. I’ve been holding my tongue a lot. I don’t want America to think I’m cocky when I talk back, but I just really wanted to get that out. It really bugged me when he said that. Of course I don’t sound like Melinda. Of course I don’t sound like Jordin. But ‘ and I wish I’d said this ‘ they don’t sound like me, either. - When Ryan put her in a group with Haley and Phil, did Gina realize she was not safe? Yeah, right before Ryan went to commercial break, Haley, Phil, and I looked at each other and started laughing. Like, do we really need to wait until after the commercial to know which group is bottom three? We just knew.
- Was she surprised to go instead of Haley? I had no idea what was going to happen. I had hopes, but I didn’t know what to think. It was really hard.
- Which contestants was Gina closets to? My roommate was LaKisha, but I bonded with everyone on the same level. They’re all like my children.
- What was Gina going to sing next week (During the Jennifer Lopez-coached Latin music week)? I was going to do ”Everlasting Love” by Gloria Estefan.
- Is Gina relieved not to have to sing Latin music? No, I’m really not. I wish I was there. Plus I’m a quarter Mexican so I would have been happy to show my Mexican side.
From MTV
- How did Gina feel when the crowd booed after Ryan eliminated her? It made me feel so blessed and very much loved. You never know how many people love you. It’s hard to see all the signs that say “LaKisha” or “Jordin” or “Melinda, you’re my Idol, ” and there were like two or three that said, “Gina, you rock!” And I treasure those signs and posters, but to have the crowd in that uproar of booing ‘ it was bittersweet, because I’m great friends with Haley, and I’m glad to see her still there, but I wish I was still there.
- What did the judges say to her after Wednesday’s show? Randy, he said, “If you woulda sang [‘Smile’] like that last night, you’d be through!” And Paula, she said, “I’m a fan. You’re a star. You’re gonna go far.” And Simon was like, “Gina, you know, I really, really like you.” He said he’s glad I went back to my rocker image.
- Which guest mentor offered the best advice? Probably Diana Ross. It wasn’t even anything [about my voice]. It was her telling me, “In this industry, you’re gonna have so many people talking to you, telling you what to wear, how to do your hair, what song choices to do, how to present yourself, how to present a song.” And she said that’s why you choose one: Choose one person, trust them, give them everything you have. They won’t steer you wrong.
- Was there a song she really wanted to sing, but didn’t get the chance to? I wanted to sing “Who Knew” by Pink, but she doesn’t clear her songs.
- Was it hard for Gina to see Sanjaya place higher? It’s tough that all the other eight people did–it’s not just Sanjaya. He’s just different. It’s not that he’s better or worse–he’s Sanjaya. And Jordin’s Jordin, and Blake is Blake. America was through with me, and I’m fine with it. I’m going on tour!
- How does the rest of the cast feel about Sanjaya? I’m friends with Sanjaya, so they know that if they’re going to badmouth him, they shouldn’t do it in front of me.
- What is Sanjaya like? He’s exactly what you see on TV. He doesn’t care what anyone thinks, he does his thing, and he’s proud of himself. And I love that self-confidence.
- What did it feel like to sing “Smile, ” during her singout? As I was singing it, it kind of clicked after the first couple lines that I sang, “Wow, I’m actually singing about myself.” And I kind of changed one of the words: “When there are clouds in the sky, I’ll get by” instead of “you’ll get by.” Because I know there’s always tomorrow. That song is definitely going to be a very special song for me for the rest of my life now.
- About the living life in the “American Idol” bubble: I love it, although when I get down on myself, wondering if I made the right choice, I wish I could take my body home for just 10 minutes. But I never second-guess anything. This is what I signed up for. … If you think about it, it’s only six months out of your whole life, and it’s an amazing experience, so I wouldn’t regret anything.
- What’s next for Gina? After the tour, I want to move to L.A. and try to get a record deal and make music–my own music, since I’ve been doing covers for so long–and try to sell albums.
