The Tribune

By LESH

WITH no 'safety card' left, anything is bound to happen on the American Idol stage. Contestant Elise Testone found that out the hard way last week, when she was eliminated from the competition. The 28 year old, rockstar-like lady came up short in viewer votes.

American Idol has been filled with shockers over the past few weeks, from Jessica Sanchez' elimination that never happened and Colton Dixon's surprising exit last week. The elimination of Elise, however, came as no surprise.

Elise was joined in the bottom three with contestants Skylar Laine and Hollie Cavanagh. Her rendition of Queen's "I Want It All," and Jimi Hendrix's "Bold as Love," was not enough to impress American Idol viewers or the judges, Randy Jackson, Jennifer Lopez and Steven Tyler.

After her elimination, the South Carolina native said in an interview with E online, she was surprised when American Idol host Ryan Seacrest told her she would be going home.

"I was a little bit surprised, just because in my heart I didn't feel like it was time for me to go. But also it wasn't a total shock because when you're in the bottom three that many times it's kind of inevitable that it would happen sometime. I guess I just felt sort of like a fighter and that I was going to push through," she said.

According to E online, the AI judges often came down hard on Elise when it came to her song choice, but she was always quick to defend herself.

Speaking about her song choices, Elise said: "Those were the best choices for me, and I felt that and I believed in it. Everyone's definition of what's right is different. I guess they think what's right is what the majority of people are going to take a liking to."

It is not completely over for Elise though, her fans will have plenty of opportunities to see and hear from her again as she is said to join the rest of the finalist on the American Idol tour this Summer.

With only four shows left for the season, this week the hopefuls will take on the theme and perform songs in relation to British music.

Like every week, someone has to be eliminated, so this Thursday, look out for the next contestant that will be heading home, cutting the number down to the top four. British alternative rock band, Cold Play is set to perform this week, as well as former American Idol winner Carrie Underwood.

The Remaining Top 5:

Skylar Laine

Jessica Sanchez

Hollie Cavanagh

Joshua Ledet

Phillip Phillips