Does he think he peaked too early?
DG: Absolutely. I felt like I had so much on me in the beginning of the show that I had to outdo myself every week, and the things for me ... here's another battle for me on the show. Just internally, I was like, 'Man, I'm still growing as a musician, yet people expect this to come out of me,' and I felt like at times I was just wasn't there yet. Maybe at times people got disappointed like, man. 'Dude, I thought you were better than that.' I'm like, 'No, hold up, man.' At times, I was in the room, and my mentor, man, they just wanted more. 'What do I do? What do I do?' And I try. I gave it a really good try.

Is there a lot of pressure to change up every song?
DG: It's funny because there were some songs that I wanted to do that I had prepared and I had changed up that I never got to do because it just, you know -- there were a few times where I picked a song, and I tried putting a different arrangement on it, and it just didn't work. It's really people want to see a creative element. They want to see an old song made fresh again. I think Idol from this point on, ever since last year, you can't go on singing the same arrangement of a song. You'll get bashed.

Did Simon's plea for fans to vote for Adam upset him?
DG: You know, it is what it is. I've got to be honest. It doesn't make me mad. It doesn't disappoint me. That's [who] he believes is going to make the most money. I hope people take what I say with a grain of salt because I don't want people to misquote me. But I didn't get in this thing for the money. I didn't get into it so I can live this glamorous lifestyle. Does that come with this kind of career? It will. Things will come. I feel like my goal is so different, and maybe it didn't line up with the goals of what they see as a pop star. But the thing is, I'm okay with that because I want to have a moment in my music. I And the thing is, I love Simon. I can't hate on him. I just love the guy.

Was the "Dream On" scream his downfall?
DG: Who knows? I just, I really wanted to have a big song that week, and so I took a risk. I never did rock and I think it could have been one of the variables, and being so late in the competition, you don't want to have a performance like that. The thing is, everything in that performance was good up to that point, and I rehearsed that scream so much that I really hurt my vocal cords. It takes a lot to hurt them, and that one did it because I was sore on my home visit, and I'm still kind of sore this week. I thought it was funny, though.

Did he know he was out when Ryan announced Kris as a finalist?
DG: Yes, I knew it was it for me. I was very confident in the fact that it was it for me. Actually, the whole day, I kind of thought it was it for me. Did I want it to be it for me? No. Looking back, would I have done things different? Absolutely. But the one thing I can say is I'm proud of my accomplishments, my accomplishment from where I came from ten months ago from losing my wife to where I am today. You know, it wasn't just a show I was on. I was battling different things. Not only in this competition did I keep my head up and did I put my, at the time, what I thought was my very best out there, but I also had to deal with, you know, with that whole end of the spectrum losing my wife. And I saw a strength in me that I didn't know I had.

What do Kris and Adam need to do to win?
DG: Kris, obviously he's really artistic, and Adam has a way on the show of capturing the audience. Here's what I think, and I'm going to say it like this. People need to vote. Don't have your assumptions. If you want some person to win, you've got to vote. I'm telling you. This competition is not over yet. I have a feeling it's going to be a very tight race this next week.

What are Kris and Adam like off stage?
DG: One thing I admire about Kris is that he's very mellow, and that's always one character trait I've always wanted. I'm an intense personality at times. Adam, he's just an all around great guy. I really can't fault him on anything. Adam is who he is onstage and who he is offstage. He's very creative. He lives creative. He dresses creatively. He talks from that perspective. Do you know what I mean?

What were Paula and Simon doing on Tuesday night that cracked him up?
DG: Every time I looked at the camera, it was showing it, but he was like suffocating her, which was the funniest thing. And he was like on the ground. He had his hand over her mouth, and I talked to her after the show. She was like, 'Man, I couldn't breathe. I really couldn't breathe.' To me, it was just the funniest thing because I've just never seen that. They were kind of like wrestling almost in the chair.

Is there really a funny side of him?
DG: I'm a jokester. I love joking around all the time because I just think it's funny. I heard that kids laugh like 200 times a day, and an adult laughs like six times a day. That goes to show you, there's a reason why children enjoy life a lot more because they know how to laugh, and they know how to take it lightly. So, to enjoy life, I like to laugh, and I make this farting noise out of my mouth. I'll do it, and people will give the funniest looks, and I crack up all the time. Ask every contestant on American Idol. That's what I do. I joke around a lot. It feels good.