Well, American Idol season 11 officially has its first scandal!
The Fox hit series made headlines last night when it was reported that 25-year-old contestant Jermaine Jones had been booted from the competition for concealing his alleged criminal past. Jones spoke out on the issue via his Twitter account, but the message, which read "Awww I will no longer b on the show," was soon deleted, as was his account.
E! News caught up with Jones, and the rest of the Top 12, yesterday just hours before news of his exit from the competition hit the web. So what did Jones have to say?
That he was excited for tonight's show. Awkward alert!
In the interview, Jones jokes about the challenges of finding the right song for the "Year You Were Born Theme," saying, "The only music I could find was on eight tracks!" Still, Jones seemed confident about his chances in the competition. "I think the song I did choose for this week; it fits my voice very well. I made it my own and it really feels good to me," he said. "I feel good about this week." Wah wah.
A rep for Fox declined to comment on Jones' ousting, but TMZ says the singer was disqualified for lying to producers about his alleged criminal past. In 2011, the singer was reportedly charged with two crimes; Jones allegedly gave a fake name to the cops during both arrests.
Jones also talked about working with guest mentor Will.i.am, whom he said complimented his voice during their session. "He liked my voice. He actually told me it was very refreshing. I take that as a huge compliment," Jones gushed. "He's such an amazing producer and an amazing artist."
Idol viewers will never know what Jones was planning on performing as the singer was seen landing in Philadelphia late last night. However, Jones was reportedly confronted about the situation on-camera and the footage will be shown during tonight's performance show.
American Idol airs tonight at 8 p.m. on Fox.
To hear from the rest of the Top 12, including Phillip Phillips on how he's feeling after last week's health scare, watch our interviews with them above!
Were you surprised to hear of Jones' disqualification? Sound off in the comments!