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Live blogging today’s reporter’s conference call with Naima Adedapo and Thia Megia

After the Jump!

Thia Megia is first

• Thia recalls getting up on a coffee table at 5 to sing for her family. She realized her passion for singing then.
• Thia did not know what to expect Thursday night. She was feeling a mixture of emotions. She prepared herself for whatever happened–there are so many talented singers. She’s so happy for Paul and everyone. She can’t wait to go on tour. “Such wicked flattery” – all the people who voted for her.
• Three – four hours of school a day–she feels she didn’t get enough rehearsal time. But at the same time, school was an escape from the stress.  She loved bonding with the other minors.
• She enjoyed every bit of the competition. That’s what made it hard to say goodbye.  She’s looking forward to seeing her fellow contestants in a few weeks. She’s grown a lot as an artist, singer and person throughout the competition.
• She realizes that more females watch the show, and that they probably vote for the guys. But, the guys are also incredibly talented, but the girls did worry about that a little.
• She’s done many Anthems at big supporting events. She gets nervous for every performance beforehand. But goes into “show mode” wants she starts to perform. When the music starts playing she’s no longer nervous.
• Adele and Jason Mraz are her musical inspirations–their lyrics are beautiful and complex.  Billie Holiday and other old artists.
• She wishes she had performed more upbeat songs. But she does NOT regret “Daniel”, which she dedicated to her big brother. She poured all her emotion into that song. She hopes America knows she’s capable of more.
• Thia is very excited for the future.

Naima Adedapo

• About the boys getting more votes than the girls, Naima says that the reality is more than 50 percent of the audience is teenage girls. Once they have a crush, “we’re done.”  She just accepted that when the “teenyboppers” fell in love, that was it.  Her fans are a little bit older, and maybe not as technology savvy. She’s meet people who would say things like,  “I voted for you 3 times!”
• What did she say to Lauren after the show. “She cried it out a little bit. It’s alright to do that. I’ve been a mother figure to her, but Thia was her ace. They were really really close. It’s like losing a big friend. ” It was hard for her to say goodbye to Jacob. You get attached. It hurts to see people go.
• She’s going to miss SHOPPING. Performing is everything, but she loved the styling.  It was her release time. Co-creating things with the stylist was so much fun. She really knew her style.
• Naima was part of many dance troupes. She did hip-hop and African dance.”Dancing has always been a part of my life.”  She got a BFA in dance.  She coulda tacked on a little ballet, but it would have been a little weird.  She always planned to incorporate dance into her Idol performances. “You have to dance you have to move you have to be physically engaged to connect to the audience.”
• Fourth generation entertainer – Chicago is a beautiful city rich with culture. Her mom was a story teller. “I was always around artists.”  Chicago is full of entertainers.  It was the early shaping of her artistry.
• She wanted to show every piece of her. She wanted to go “roots reggaie” because it’s a big part of her. She’s about staying true to herself. “I have no regrets about anything I’ve done on the show.”
• Sometimes people didn’t know where to place her. “Maybe they didn’t understand me sometimes.”   “I don’t know about you, but I like you…I struck people in a different kind of way. Because it was hard to place me in a category, that did have an affect on how people voted, perceived me.”