Casey James talks about his elimination

Share

Casey James talks to digitalspy.com

to talk about his departure on American Idol. he was this close to make it into the finale. In this interview he talks about Idol judge Kara, what it feels like to be 3rd place and what is he going to do next.



Did you feel surprised that you were going and did you have any conversations with Lee and Crystal before the result?
"I've been prepared at every single round from the beginning of the show. You never know. What will be will be and you have to be prepared either way. Every single time you make it through you are obviously elated and happy, and the other night when I didn't - I kind of knew that was coming - I was more than prepared that night. As far as having conversations, nobody really talked about things as far as that goes because I think that everybody understands that anything can happen and nobody really wants to talk about it. I'm obviously happy for them and I think that everything happens for a reason and I'm exactly where I should be and I'm super happy to be here."

Are you happy with third place?
"I'm the kind of guy that accepts what happens and is always happy about it, so had I got second or first I would be happy, but I can tell you that I'm definitely happy with where I landed. I continue to say it, but it always remains to be true, that everything happens for a reason and you have to roll with it and be happy. I certainly am. I am elated to have landed here and I'm going to make the most of it."

Were you offended when Kara said that your core demographic is women and young girls? Do you think you're more well-rounded as an artist?
"I would like to hope so! But I am definitely not offended. That's her opinion. I know nothing of demographics and my marketing skills are obviously poor or I wouldn't have been doing the same bar gigs for eleven years! I definitely don't take offense to it but I would also like to think I have a few more people out there that like what I'm doing."

What advice would you give to future contestants who are asked to take their shirt off by a judge?!
"Well who's to say I would be here had I not done that?! I think if you feel like you can back yourself up and not be the guy that took his shirt off - because hopefully that's not what I am now - then I would say do what you need to do to get the ball rolling. There's a possibility had I not done that that I wouldn't have made it past that first round. It definitely wasn't something that I thought of or even realized would happen but I'm so thankful that it did. I really had that drive to knock it out the first chance I could and I think I did surprise the judges at that point. It obviously worked out!"

What was it like working with the guest mentors?
"I think everyone will say the same thing. Harry Connick Jr was amazing, all the mentors were really great. When somebody takes the time to do the music - he brought his band, he wrote the music and composed everything, he even came into iTunes and made sure we were okay there. He put a lot of time in and that to me, said a lot about who he is as a person and a musician. The whole situation in general stands out to me. It says, 'This is special.' It was a lot of actual real time that was spent and not just camera time, actual time when I could sit down with him and say, 'What do you think about this? About that?' and get his actual honest opinion. The most wisdom you can gain from somebody is sitting down and talking with them."

Do you have ways of not letting all this go to your head?
"It's really easy. You just keep in mind that if it wasn't you, it would be someone else. It's very situational. I'm very honored and happy and proud of everything that I've accomplished, but keep in mind this will die down and very soon there will be the next person in my situation. I'm just looking forward to trying to keep the audience I have. If I do that, then maybe you will have to deflate my ego later down the line, but right now it's really easy to stay grounded because it is what it is."

How did you handle the demands of the show?
"Any situation in life is difficult and you just do what you can, and that's what I did. It definitely is demanding but the payoff is so [great]. Even if it had been 100th of the audience the payoff would still be a million percent worth it. It is definitely taxing but a lot of people work a lot harder than me for a lot less. You just have to keep that in mind and stay thankful for the opportunity to be where you are at and work as hard as you can. I think that's what everybody in the situation does."

Who will you keep in touch with?
"I think I'll keep in touch with most of them. Obviously the tour is coming up so we'll all be together during that. Everybody will be so busy - especially Lee and Crystal, they'll be super busy. I'm one of those guys who just tends to hang out and chill so we really won't have a lot of time to do that! But I think I'm going to keep in touch with almost everybody."

What do you think are the strengths of Lee and Crystal?
"They both have very unique and standout sounds. I think that pretty says it. You can't say anything else other than that. They are who they are and that's why people are voting for them, and I think that will continue and grow and I think it will be a crazy good show."

What is next for you?
"Next is a record and going and doing music. It's time to get started. The reason for the show is to allow us to do music and that's what I intend on doing because it's what I love and now I have the opportunity to do it. It's go time!"