 Matt Giraud was voted off "American Idol" this week.
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Matt Giraud is ready for what's next.
The Michigan singer, who was booted from "American Idol" on
Wednesday night by a season-high viewer vote of 47 million says
he's looking forward to a quick trip home, a return to Los Angeles
for the season finale, touring North America with "American Idols
Live!" and getting to work on an album.
"I'd actually like to get more into rock, soulful rock, maybe, with
a twist of blues on it," Giraud told Billboard.com during a
conference call with reporters on Thursday. "I'd love to see myself
as the lead man with a piano and a band around me, touring and
doing good music...And I'd love to get on the road and maybe open
for a band after the (Idol) tour, maybe the Fray or Gavin Degraw
(and) just pay my dues in the music industry."
Giraud, who was one of the Idol's wild-card selections as well as
the beneficiary of the first-ever judges' save two weeks ago ("I
can't wait to see my name on a trivia card," he quipped), expressed
disappointment with Wednesday's decision but says that after a
couple of previous times in the bottom two or three he was
"preparing myself mentally for such a hard thing to deal
with."
"It was a sad night," Giraud says. "We went to do an 'Idol Extra'
thing and went home, had to pack up all my stuff -- that took
forever -- packed all my boxes and got to sleep just in time to get
up two hours later. It was kind of (an) emotional night, but I
think I handled it well, and I'm moving on."
Giraud was surprised to have "Idol" front-runner Adam Lambert with
him in the night's bottom three and says that he and Kris Allen
"kind of played with him backstage." But Giraud also feels that
being part of the final five contestants makes him a winner,
too.
"At this point it's more popularity than talent, of course -- we
all know that," he says. "Everyone in the Top 5 is talented;
someone's got to go home every week. It's whoever can rub America
the right way, I guess. I'm not kicking myself 'cause I'm not
winning. We've seen lots of past Idols who go home in fourth,
fifth, sixth placed do better than (the winners), so all hope is
not lost."
Giraud is set to appear Monday on "Ellen" and "Regis and Kelly,"
and on Wednesday's on NBC's "Today" show.
