Julia DeMato and Charles Grigsby, the first two ‘American Idol 2′ hopefuls to make it to the finals, were on CNN’s ‘Connie Chung Tonight’ to talk with Connie about moving on and their experiences with the show’s judges. Read on for a transcript.
CHUNG: The new “American Idol” series is proving to be as big a smash
as its predecessor, maybe an even bigger a hit. Why? Because it gives a
Connecticut cosmetologist and an Ohio supermarket shelf stocker a chance
to be the next overnight sensation. Horatio Alger would be proud.
The first finalist for this year’s “Idol” are Julia DeMato and Charles
Grigsby. And one of the very first perks is the chance to be here with
us tonight.
Thank so much. Congratulations.
JULIA DEMATO, “AMERICAN IDOL”: Thank you.
CHARLES GRIGSBY, “AMERICAN IDOL”: Thank you.
CHUNG: Both of you are so good. I can’t believe it. Really, you are.
And I can’t believe that you don’t have any formal training, neither of
you.
GRIGSBY: No.
DEMATO: No.
CHUNG: It’s incredible. And you’re both in your 20s. And you just sang
it so easily. Honestly.
GRIGSBY: Thank you.
CHUNG: Charles, were you surprised that you made the cut? There were
26 million people watching. And they voted for you.
GRIGSBY: Yes, yes. I was shocked.
CHUNG: Really?
GRIGSBY: Completely shocked, yes.
CHUNG: Julia, you did so well.
DEMATO: Thank you.
CHUNG: You really did. Did you think you were going to make the cut?
DEMATO: It was a surprise. I think everyone was in the same state of mind,
like you just don’t know what to expect. So, I didn’t really think about
it much. I was just kind of like, OK, I’m here, and I’m breathing, and
I’m doing OK.
CHUNG: Are you going to sing the same song? Because I know that there
was some suggestion that maybe that wasn’t the right song for you.
DEMATO: No, I won’t sing that song again.
CHUNG: What do you think? What are you thinking about? What song? Or
are you going to keep it a surprise?
DEMATO: I really haven’t even thought about it yet.
CHUNG: You’re kidding?
DEMATO: No. No. We’ve been so busy.
GRIGSBY: Yes, exactly.
CHUNG: You’ve been running around being stars, right?
GRIGSBY: Definitely. Definitely.
DEMATO: Yes.
CHUNG: All right, Charles, I want us to listen to what the judges said,
OK? Let’s roll this clip.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP, “AMERICAN IDOL”)
RANDY JACKSON, JUDGE: You got a good-sounding voice. I liked it. It
was good. I don’t know if it like was unbelievable for me, but it was good.
PAULA ABDUL, JUDGE: The tone of your voice was velvet smooth, wonderful.
COWELL: But I think, actually, you did very, very good. Well done.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHUNG: That was very nice. Well, Paula Abdul is always so nice anyway.
GRIGSBY: Oh, she’s a sweetheart.
CHUNG: Did Paula Abdul give you something?
GRIGSBY: Yes, she did.
CHUNG: Both of you, actually. GRIGSBY: Yes. She’s adorable. She’s a
sweetheart. She gave all eight of us each a pendant that is a star and
that is significant that says, “When you wish upon a star, you just might
become one.”
CHUNG: Isn’t that nice?
DEMATO: I have mine on, but my turtleneck is covering it.
CHUNG: Isn’t that nice?
GRIGSBY: So, Paula, we’re definitely wearing it with pride. Thank you.
DEMATO: We are. We’re so happy.
CHUNG: So, that will be your good luck.
GRIGSBY: That’s right.
DEMATO: Yes. It is a good luck charm.
CHUNG: You know what? I saw your mother crying. It was so sweet.
GRIGSBY: I know.
CHUNG: Wasn’t it?
GRIGSBY: I know. I know. Tears in her eyes. I have never seen tears
in her eyes.
CHUNG: Really?
GRIGSBY: Yes. Yes.
CHUNG: Did that mean the most to you?
GRIGSBY: Yes. Yes, it did.
CHUNG: Had to.
OK, Julia, let’s listen to the judges after they saw you.
DEMATO: OK.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP, “AMERICAN IDOL”)
ABDUL: You looked so — so much more vibrant. Your voice is wonderful.
Good, good job.
JACKSON: It was nothing special for me. You sang the song. I wasn’t
moved. I don’t know.
COWELL: So, you’ve sung better in previous auditions. I do actually
think you’re one of the better contestants in this competition, though.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHUNG: Thank goodness Simon came in for you, right?
GRIGSBY: That’s right.
CHUNG: What did you think when you heard that?
DEMATO: I was pretty impressed. I was happy, very happy. Yes.
CHUNG: Good for you.
GRIGSBY: Yes.
CHUNG: So, I want to know what you both really want to do.
Julia, do you have true aspirations of being a huge pop singer or would
you really like to do something else?
DEMATO: You know what? I really just don’t think about — I kind of
live for each day as it comes and not try to look into the future too much,
because then, if you expect too much, and you don’t get it, you’re just
setting yourself up.
(CROSSTALK)
DEMATO: Yes. So, that’s how I try to stay at a good state of mind.
CHUNG: Good for you. Good for you.
Now, Charles, none of the judges really thought that you two were going
to be the ones that would move on, right?
GRIGSBY: I know. No.
CHUNG: What do you think convinced the viewers to vote you in?
GRIGSBY: I don’t know. I’m hoping that they saw the talent within us,
not only hear our voice, but also see our personalities. And since no one
has met us yet, you see us on TV, and we really are like this off set and
off camera. We really are friendly people.
CHUNG: Now, if you become a big star, do you think you’re still going
to be a nice person?
GRIGSBY: Oh, definitely. Definitely. Definitely. It gets tougher. But
no one said it was going to be easy, you know?
CHUNG: Are you going to be impossible to work with, Julia, when you’re
a big star?
DEMATO: No. No way.
CHUNG: Promise?
DEMATO: Nothing is going to change me. I’ll always be me.
(CROSSTALK)
DEMATO: Definitely.
GRIGSBY: That’s right. Always be me.
CHUNG: Charles, haven’t you performed before other big performers?
GRIGSBY: I got a chance to actually perform in front of Sisqo for his
birthday. And he was very impressed. And his bodyguard as well was impressed.
CHUNG: That’s great.
GRIGSBY: And previous talent shows and everything back home and everything
like that. So, I kind of did have a little sense of what it is like on
stage, but I’ve never had anything — experience or any preparation for
this.
CHUNG: So when are we going to see you again?
DEMATO: I think March.
GRIGSBY: March, March, I think. I think so, yes.
(CROSSTALK)
CHUNG: OK. Thank you, Charles.
Thank you, Julia.
DEMATO: Thank you.
GRIGSBY: Thank you.
CHUNG: Good luck to both of you.
DEMATO: Thanks.
CHUNG: I’ll be watching.
DEMATO: OK.
GRIGSBY: All right.
CHUNG: Do good.
DEMATO: We will.
GRIGSBY: That’s right. That’s right.