Appearing on 'Showbiz Tonight', the former vocal instructor admits he's shocked and left disappointed that he was disqualified from the FOX singing competition.
- Mar 16, 2012
AceShowbiz - Jermaine Jones has spoken up for the first time since he was officially ousted from "American Idol" on Wednesday, March 14. The 25-year-old singing hopeful appeared on HLN's "Showbiz Tonight" where he claimed that he had no clue what was going to happen to him when the show's honchos invited him for a sitdown on Tuesday.
"[Security] just let me know that production wanted to speak to me and that was that," the former vocal instructor said. "I thought they were bringing it to my attention. Letting me know that now they are aware of, you know, this, that and the third. I didn't know what was going to happen, but..."
"Until they said it, I had no clue what was going to happen," Jermaine went on sharing. Speaking about his feelings when executive producers Nigel Lythgoe and Ken Warwick gave him the bad news, he admitted, "I was shocked, but I can't really express what my emotions were at that time."
Though he does feel "a great disappointment" because he trusted them, the New Jersey guy saw his stint on "Idol" as a very humbling experience. When asked if the show televised the confrontation to boost ratings, he refused to speculate on that matter.
During the interview, Jermaine explained how "Idol" bosses found out about his criminal past. "I know that when I filled out my application I circled 'yes' that I was previously arrested," so he claimed. "They did a background check on me and there was some information that I had to obtain a lawyer to take care of before I could even be on the show."
Detailing the charges he got, the so-called "gentle giant" revealed, "There were a few minor, small infractions back when I was younger. Two of giving a false name and then there was an allegation of a fight, which was not true. It was not actually a fight. And then one for driving suspended and things like that..." However, to the extent of his knowledge, there were no warrants for his arrest.
Jermaine was confronted by Nigel and Ken on Tuesday, March 13. His dismissal was later addressed during the Wednesday performance show. Responding to the shocking exit, the other "Idol" finalists said they only found out why Jermaine was booted from the show when America did.
