Although the moderator for today's conference call warned reporters not to "stray too far from the subject," less they be cut off, David Hernandez did address his controversial former job as a dancer at Dick's Cabaret.
"I'm not ashamed of anything I've done in my past," he said, later confirming that the show knew about the gig. "If they weren't comfortable with it, I wouldn't have been on the show. Everything was totally out in the open."
Does he think voters decided not to back him because of his past? "No, I really don't think so," he said. "I actually believe it was based on song selection.
"I think adversity is my best friend, to be completely honest," he said to another reporter. "It inspires me and makes me work harder. I don't have anything to say to people who try to bring me down or count me out; I say count me back in. If this is the worst thing people say about me in my career, I think I'll be OK."
David's goals for the future include recording an album within the next year; he said this many times during the interview. He admitted to being "genuinely shocked" by his eviction, but is grateful for the experience and the friends he's made.
The other contestants were "really like a family," he said, adding that they rallied around him in the Red Room when the news of his former job broke. As did Jim Carrey, who told him to "stay off the TV, and don't get on the Internet."
Speaking of other contestants, one reporter asked about the rumor that David Archuleta and his dad were having conflicts.
"I'm not really here to talk about any other contestants," David replied. "If you want to ask anything pertaining to my career, that's totally fine."
So what is he looking forward to as he emerges from the Idol bubble?
"Eating pork-flavored Ramen noodles and having a deep, deep breath away from the paparazzi," he said with a laugh. "I'm definitely excited about that. I want to go to my mom's house and lay on the couch wiht her cats for 48 hours and watch nonsense TV."
Reality TV? "No, I'l stay away from reality TV for awhile," he said. "I'll watch reruns of Friends or something."
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Comments
Posted by Althea @ 10:55 PM Thu, Mar 13, 2008
I agree with David Hernandez. It was the song choice. You have to have a song that always highlights all the facets of your voice, a "wow" song. He is a much better talent than at least six others on the show. I think that Amanda, the biker nurse, has no talent. She sounds hoarse and screams all the time. She should not have even been in the top 12. An idol should be able to sing different genres of music. That is why Taylor Hicks has not been as succesful as Katherine McPhee. He was more personality than talent.
Posted by Darla Atlas
@ 1:36 AM Fri, Mar 14, 2008
Excellent points, Althea. When Taylor Hicks was on his way to winning the competition, I recall a former editor betting that he'd sell fewer records than any other Idol. I scoffed. No, he's great! What a fun guy! Now I see the light. As you put it, he was more personality than talent. Not that he doesn't have talent, but the personality was what wooed us.
Posted by Juanita @ 8:07 AM Fri, Mar 14, 2008
It's really time for Jason Castro to go back to the folk singing days and go home. He is boring. The only one who is really an Idol is Carly, and the blonde rock singer should be last standing as Idols.
Posted by Donna @ 11:04 AM Fri, Mar 14, 2008
I also don't like Amanda's style. She belongs in a biker club singing to a small biker crowd. Don't like her voice. I agreed with Simon that I cannot understand what she is singing and she screams alot to cover her lack of singing ability! I am a fan of Carly and the blond nanny that played the piano. I was glad to see David and Danny Noriega go! Just didn't like their voices, nothing to do with sexual orientation!!!
Posted by Teresa @ 5:53 PM Fri, Mar 14, 2008
OUCH!! Don't be hating on Taylor!!! The problem with his first post-AI cd was that Clive Davis chose the songs. He has no clue who Taylor is (and Taylor's a lot like James Taylor!!). If you can find a download of Taylor singing his own composition, "West Texas Wind," do so. It is truly great. I'm glad he's left Clive Davis and is moving on. He needs a producer who understands his music and how to promote him.
Posted by goosy @ 10:00 AM Sat, Mar 15, 2008
I really think that David H. got enough votes to go ahead in the contest, but I think that his past was a reason for his elimination. Because there are other contestants that have performed very bad since the beginning and they're still there.