Michael Johns' American Idol ouster was indeed a shocker, especially to Michael Johns.
"I'd be lying if I said I wasn't surprised," Johns told reporters Friday. "I'd never been in the bottom three. I thought my strongest performances were the last two weeks.
"Nothing has sunk in yet."
Johns was eliminated Thursday amid the continuing hoopla of the Idol Gives Back fundraiser. Once considered a frontrunner, or at least a top challenger to David Archuleta, he ended up placing eighth.
Johns failed to generate enough votes for his performance of Aerosmith's "Dream On." He defended the song as appropriate for Tuesday's inspirational theme night, saying the classic rocker was about struggles and, as its title suggests, dreams: "I've done a lot of that over the last 10 years."
Johns said there were no hard feelings about how Idol host Ryan Seacrest seemed to suggest that Johns wouldn't be offed because, after all, no one was offed during last year's Idol Gives Back event.
"I get the television aspect of this competition," Johns said. "I mean, it was tough, and then they did [hint] that maybe I'm not going home."
The hint, of course, was a tease. Johns was going home. "Ryan gave me a look, like, I am so sorry," he said.
The 29-year-old ascot-wearing Aussie, who once fronted a band, the Rising, signed to Madonna's label, deflected questions about whether his Aussie-ness, his professional background or even his ascot cost him votes, and reiterated this season's Idol talking point: the depth of talent in the top 12.
"There was no laughingstock. There were no jokers...They wanted it to be a singing competition instead of a TV show with the controversy of Sanjaya," Johns said, invoking the name of the show's most notorious finalist.
Johns said he's received encouraging words from Dolly Parton—he was a hit with her "It's All Wrong, but It's All Right" last week—and fellow Aussie Nicole Kidman and her husband Keith Urban.
He said the new plan was to stay in the States and make a new record. The old plan was to sing Mariah Carey's "Vision of Love" on next week's Idol.
"And it was [going to be] hot, too," Johns said. "I'm a little bummed."