This week, Sanjaya Malakar was voted off AMERICAN IDOL. Which means come next Wednesday, Howard Stern, votefortheworst and the rest of America’s going to need to find something else to talk about.
Yesterday, the kid with a million hairdos was kind enough to take time out of his busy schedule to chat with theTVaddict.com about his IDOL experience, or as he puts it — the most intense learning experience ever.
theTVaddict: Each and every time you stepped on stage you gave America something to talk about? What’s your secret?
Sanjaya: My main goal with each and every performance was to be true to myself and let my personality shine.
Was it frustrating that — at times — your hair got more attention than your singing?
No. At a certain point that kind of became my thing. Everyone looks for something to grab on to with each contestant and my hair was my thing.
What kind of decisions went into each week’s look?
Before the show I always had a clear idea about what I wanted, and the hair stylist would help me execute it. With my clothes, I try and capture my personality and put it out there. The stylist would help me out with it. I had a lot of help, but the ideas were all mine.
Did you find there was more pressure on you compared to the other contestants?
I don’t think so. I think we all had the same amount of pressure and all wanted to win. It’s all about making your music and getting people to feel it. If the audience doesn’t feel your music they’re not going to vote for you.
Did you ever allow yourself to dream that you could actually win?
Everyone wants to win, but I was more focused on the learning aspect of AMERICAN IDOL. I basically saw this as my junior and senior years of high school. This is what I want to do for the rest of my life and I got a lot further than I ever expected.
What did AMERICAN IDOL teach you?
I think I learned not to let any negative negativity get to you. Just keep on trucking and try to find the positive in any negative.
Did you go online to read what people were saying about you on blogs?
I read the blogs, but more to balance myself, as it was kind of impossible not to hear stuff. The negative stuff online would balance out the positive I was feeling and keep me grounded.
The SNL skit they did on me was hilarious. I love to poke fun at myself. It’s really important to have a sense of humor about yourself.
Can you comment on votefortheworst.com
I don’t think votefortheworst or Howard Stern really had enough people voting for me to make a dent in anything. The reason why I’m here is solely because of the support from my fans.
Did you ever consider quitting or dropping out?
Not at all, I was going to stay long as i possibly could, learn as much as I could. I will say that Hollywood week was incredibly intense and scary. Luckily I had my sister there and she really helped me and supported me. After that I just wanted to survive week to week.
Can you talk about a little bit about your family?
I have amazing family support and my mom is such a smart woman. She recognized early on that high school really wasn’t my thing and that I should get my GED and focus on my music.
What’s next?
Broadway, music, modelling, I really want to entertain. I still want to go to college though (Berklee School of Music), but I really feel like now is the time to focus on my career. 