I’ve been wanting this all of my life, so it feels great,” a beaming Candice Glover told The Hollywood Reporter after “American Idol’s” top three results show on Thursday.
Still, the 23-year-old St. Helena Island, South Carolina native said she’d spent weeks “practicing my songs for when I get cut. … Just because you have a good week, doesn’t mean nobody else did. You can’t just be, like, ‘I did good — I’m going through.”
But Glover had a very good week, giving another performance that will likely go down in “Idol” history as one of the best ever. [Scroll down to watch.] Glover, Angie Miller and Kree Harrison had to perform three songs each – a judge’s choice, Jimmy Iovine’s selection and a song chosen by producers. Glover was solid on all three, but it was her rendition of producer’s choice “Somewhere” that brought the house down. Judge Keith Urban said whoever doesn’t vote for Candice after that performance doesn’t have a pulse.
In fact, Candice – her own worst critic – may have been the only person with a pulse who was not impressed by her performance.
“I didn’t like any of them, to be honest,” she told reporters after the broadcast. “I’m a perfectionist and I can always find something that I could’ve done better.”
It made for a somber, reflective Thursday morning, as Glover explained: “I woke up and I was, like, ‘Today is a crucial day, but no matter what, you got to the top three. That’s not bad. So make sure you don’t be crawling all over the stage crying if you go home tonight. It’s OK.’ I gave myself the talk, if you go home, it’s all right. … So I was definitely surprised. Did you see me run?”
At the same time, Glover says she was equally thrown to learn that Angie Miller was being sent home. “I was shocked because I was going through this whole thing, like, ‘Angie is going to win. She has an amazing voice, she has the personality.’ … I’m gonna miss her so much because she brought the sunshine. She’s taught me how to be more energetic and more into what I’m doing. She’s super talented and will be at the top of the charts by next year.”
Glover had equally warm things to say about Kree Harrison, who she said was “also amazing.”
Less than a week from the finale, Glover is planning to dive into her songs for the big season closer. “I’m mentally and musically preparing myself and digging deep into my songs,” she said. But first: “I need eight hours of sleep.”
