American Idol Loser's Bold Prediction

Apparently, nice guys do finish last. How else to explain viewers' decision to vote off American Idol's sweet-natured Charles Grigsby over rebel without a cause Corey Clark. "That's definitely a reality check," concedes the 24-year-old supermarket stockboy, who rang up TV Guide Online from his home in Ohio and gave us the scoop on meeting Angela Bassett, performing during wartime and who he thinks will go the distance on Idol.

TV Guide Online: How ironic was it that after you got the boot last week, you had to sing a song titled, "You Can't Win."
Charles Grigsby: It was [ironic]. My family was saying that, too.

TVGO: What did you do afterwards?
Grigsby: Partied.

TVGO: Vanessa spent the night of her dismissal drinking alone in her hotel room. Please tell me you didn't do the same.
Grigsby: After Vanessa got voted off, we all supported her in every way possible. And when I got voted off, everyone supported me as well. But she stayed to herself, partied with herself. Some people take situations differently. For her, she just felt like being alone. Me, on the other hand, I wanted the support, because I realized that it was going to be a while until I see them again.

TVGO: Where was the party?
Grigsby: We went to the Hard Rock Caf&#233. A [large contingent] of fans came too. I don't know how they found out we were going to be there. I got a chance to meet them and sign autographs...

TVGO: Did Simon, Paula or Randy show up?
Grigsby: No, none of the judges.

TVGO: Who are you going to miss most from the group?
Grigsby: I bonded with everybody. That's my family. But to be honest, the ones I grew closest to [came from] my first group of eight, which is Kimberly, Trenyce and Julia.

TVGO: Who do you think is going to win?
Grigsby: I don't know who's going to win, [but] I'm really rooting for Trenyce and Ruben, even though I love Clay. They've been consistent throughout the whole competition. I love Clay; he's awesome. When it gets down to the top three or four, it's going to be real tough. I can already see it.

TVGO: Was it tough to focus on the competition last week with the war going on?
Grigsby: Definitely. When we all heard that we were about to go to war, we put [everything] on hold. American Idol wasn't even on our minds. We were watching [all the news coverage] on the big screen on the stage.

TVGO: What are you going to do next?
Grigsby: I have all kinds of things lined up. Since the Oscars were in town, I got a chance to talk with and meet celebrities, movie directors, record producers, people wanting me to endorse products and commercials...

TVGO: Where did you meet these folks?
Grigsby: The hotel I was staying at in [Los Angeles], most of the celebrities were staying there too...

TVGO: Who did you meet?
Grigsby: Angela Bassett, Tarji P. Henson from the movie Baby Boy, [rap bigwig] Russell Simmons...

TVGO: Angela Bassett watches American Idol?
Grigsby: Yeah.

TVGO: What did she say to you?
Grigsby: She just gave me a big hug and said, "Baby, you were robbed. You didn't deserve to get voted off. I loved you from the beginning." She was wishing me all the best. It's funny, because everyone I've run into and networked with said I should move to L.A.

TVGO: Are you going to take their advice?
Grigsby: Definitely. If Angela Bassett says I should move out there, I'd be stupid not to.