<img src="http://www.joplinglobeonline.com/images/zope/extra.gif" border=0> Asia'h's wild 'Idol' ride <font color="#ff0000">w/ interview video </font>

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March 14, 2008

Anonymous The Joplin Globe Fri Mar 14, 2008, 09:54 AM CDT

By Dustin Shipman

dshipman@joplinglobe.com

Asia’h Epperson came home this week after her run on “American Idol” came to a close.

Epperson, of Joplin, called her time in Hollywood life-changing and said that although she was voted off on March 6, she wouldn’t trade that experience for the world. She also said it is nice to be back in Joplin to relax.

Epperson, 19, said appearing on the popular television show is not all glamour and fun, as it might seem. Instead, she said, it is a lot of hard work. She said her performance on stage was one of the easiest parts of being on “American Idol.”

“It was actually more nerve-racking to do my initial audition with just the judges than it was to get out on the stage and perform,” she said. “That’s just what I love to do. It just feels a lot better to me when there is a whole crowd of people.”

Epperson’s mother, Melissa Weathers, of Webb City, said she was nervous even if her daughter wasn’t.

“She has been singing since the moment she could talk, putting on little shows and having her brothers be the backup singers and dancers,” Weathers said. “The first time I saw her on television, I was freaking out. It was so surreal. It was hard to even get my head around. That was my baby on national TV, and I was so proud of her.”

Epperson said that while she felt at home on the stage in front of millions of viewers, the difficult part was listening to the judges, including the time they told her she was off on a few notes during her performance.

“I am my own worst critic, so I kind of agreed that I could have done this better or could have done that better,” she said. “Paula (Abdul) and Randy (Jackson) actually really liked a lot of the stuff I did, and Simon (Cowell) did, too, in the beginning. But my vocals weren’t perfect, so I sort of agreed with some of the stuff he said.”

Epperson caught the attention of the “American Idol” judges during her audition, when she sang “How Do I Live Without You?” as a tribute to her father, who died only two days before the audition.

Epperson said there might have been a moment of doubt when she considered leaving the show to be with her family, but in the end she knew that following her dream and continuing with the show was something her father would have wanted her to do.

“My family played a big role in me staying with the show,” she said. “There might have been a split second when I thought, ‘Should I?’ But I really don’t remember thinking that. I always just thought this is what he (her father) would have wanted. And my family agreed that I should go on, and that’s what I did.”

Epperson said she wants to continue with her career, and she will be treating her appearance on “American Idol” as a steppingstone to get to the next level. She said she also wants to branch off into other forms of entertainment, such as acting. She said she has been offered a recording contract with a company not affiliated with the television show, but she turned it down to pursue other options.

Epperson said she was happy to be part of the show and glad for the opportunity, but for now, she is glad to be back in the town where she was raised.

“This is my home, so it is nice to be in the country, laid back, and having my friends and family around,” she said. “But I plan on getting back out there soon.”

Voice affected

Asia’h Epperson said she was sick a large part of the time on “American Idol,” and that had an impact on her voice and her performances.

“It affected me a lot, being sick, not just the physical part but the mental part,” she said. “After every commercial break, I was back there spraying my throat, taking this and taking that, so maybe I just totally psyched myself out. I don’t know.”