Carrot-Topped John Off Idol

By Stephen M. Silverman

Thursday April 29, 2004 09:00 AM EDT

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John Stevens, who seemed the likely candidate to get booted on last week's American Idol -- rather than powerhouse Jennifer Hudson -- finally got dumped on Wednesday's edition of the FOX talent show, with a record high of more than 28 million people voting after Tuesday's live episode.

The 16-year-old carrot top from East Amherst, N.Y., let host Ryan Seacrest know he was "somewhat" relieved that his ordeal had come to an end and said he would miss his fellow contestants.

Despite Stevens's gangly look, judge Simon Cowell told the teen throughout Wednesday's show that "he took the bullet like a man." On Tuesday, after Stevens finished his rendition of Gloria Estefan's "Music in My Heart" (Estefan was this week's guest judge), Cowell told him, "You and Latin music go together like chocolate ice cream and an onion."

Seacrest sent Stevens off Wednesday with the words: "John Stevens! A true talent. A true class act."

Sharing the basement ranking with Stevens were George Huff and Jasmine Trias. "Definitely the right bottom three tonight," opined judge Randy Jackson.

Also still in the running for the $1 million recording contract: Diana DeGarmo and last week's divas La Toya London and Fantasia Barrino.

Before Wednesday's show, Cowell, predicted that London and DeGarmo would be the final two in this year's search for a new pop singer, Reuters reports. He also dismissed suggestions that voters were racist (last week's bottom three were African American women) or that the results were rigged.

"I am going to predict La Toya and Diana to be the two finalists," he said. "It's just who I'm guessing America will pick. If it was talent it would be La Toya and Fantasia, but I just don't think it will be those two."

He also gave "a definite no" to the racist charge and added that an independent company audits the votes. "There are a lot of passive viewers who complain about the results but don't pick up the phone or text a message," he insists.