Now we know why Syesha Mercado was so hard to warm up to those first Top-whatever weeks on “American Idol” – the girl is a classic workaholic.
In today’s exit interview with reporters, Syesha acknowledged those frosty moments when she sounded great, but emitted all of the heat of an ice cube.
“When I first stepped into the competition, I was really in a little shell,” she said, noting the vocal issues that plagued her during the Hollywood rounds. “I don’t feel I was at my whole potential because of the negative mind frame I was in. It was really harming my performance. When I got my mind right again, like it was during the auditions, I became more comfortable with myself… I just enjoyed myself more every week. I separated that fine line between overworking and doing so much that you’re unfocused and not enjoying yourself, and trusting yourself and letting go and taking it all in. My goal every week was to feel satisfied after every show, and I felt more satisfied the more the weeks went on.”
When asked which of the remaining Davids she prefers, Syehsa was expectedly non-committal, saying that she felt like a “little sister and a big sister” to both of them. But, she said, “David Archuleta has that beautiful smile and that really, really good connection with a younger audience, and David Cook has that connection with the younger audience—girls go crazy over him—and the older audience thinks he’s really, really charming, all of the older women.”
Despite regular appearances in the bottom three, or, as the contest narrowed, the bottom two, Syesha refused to consider that she might be sent packing – so much so that she literally refused to get her stuff in order.
“I never packed my bags,” she said. “They told us, you know what, you’ve got to pack your bags, but I was like, I’m not packing my bags because I don’t want to go home yet! I’m not ready. I think if you want something, it’s gonna happen for you. If you want top three you’re gonna get top 3. If you want to win, you’re going to win. Whoever is the most passionate, they’re gonna win. Every week, I set a goal and I just wasn’t ready to go home.”
After next week’s finale and the “Idol” tour, Syesha already has a detailed list of ambitions to attend to for life post-show.
“I know that whatever goal I set, it can be accomplished whether it’s within a year span or 10 years,” she said. “I want to make an album. I want to star in a film. I want to do Broadway. I want to open up an organic restaurant…it just depends on what comes first, but I have goals and I write them down.”
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