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'Idol' Rejects Have No Regrets

FOX

Jorge Nunez and Jasmine Murray get bad news from 'Idol' host Ryan Seacrest.

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By WALT BELCHER | The Tampa Tribune

Published: March 12, 2009

They were obviously shaken and emotionally drained Wednesday night but the two young singers who didn't make the cut on "American Idol" have no regrets about their brief time on the popular Fox series.

Sixteen-year-old wild-card finalist Jasmine Murray and Jorge Nuñez, 20, from Puerto Rico, received the lowest viewer votes and were sent packing Wednesday.

In telephone news conferences today both said they are grateful for the opportunity and they have no ill will for the judges who didn't appreciate their interpretations of Michael Jackson songs.

Nunez said "This show is so amazing …I have no regrets because I think I did good performance."

Murray said that after the show, the judges encouraged her and Jorge to keep singing and pursuing their dreams.

She says the biggest thrill for her was to be able to perform on the "Idol" stage before millions of people.

"I am so happy to know that I had fans and that people actually liked to hear me sing and voted for me," she says.

Murray, a high school student from Starkville, Miss., sang "I'll Be There" on Tuesday's Michael Jackson-themed performance show. The judges liked her vocal ability but thought she lacked personality.

A second chance to impress the judges on Wednesday night (a new loop hole for judges to save a singer with a low vote) didn't save her.

"I understand that they know what they want and maybe they wanted to use that save later," she says. She said she picked the song because it was a hit for The Jackson 5 when they were young like her. "I think it's a beautiful song with a great message," she says.

Nunez faced harsh criticism from the judges Tuesday, especially Simon Cowell, who hated his version of Jackson's "Never Can Say Goodbye."

Nunez says he picked the song because he wanted to do something different and not just sing ballads. He said the song allowed him to move around the stage and have some fun.

His biggest challenge was picking songs because the choices were not the kind of music he is used to in Puerto Rico. "Even though Puerto Rico is part of the United States, we are out there by ourselves and we listen to different music," he says.

He adds that he didn't think that being from Puerto Rico was a handicap. "It doesn't matter where you are from; it just matters how well you do on the show," he says.

Nunez, who is a law student, says he is going to finish college but "music is my priority now."
He says he learned to "stay true to who you are because the artist is the person who must believe in himself."

Nunez says Cowell is the kind of person who is fast with a witty, funny remark but he didn't appreciate the comments Cowell made his performance. "That is the first time he told me something like that," he says. "And I know that he likes me in someway."

"The important thing I have now is God and I know things are going to be great," he says.

Murray says she plans to finish high school and pursue singing and writing music.

Reporter Walt Belcher can be reached at (813) 259-7654.

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