We didn't get a chance to hear much of your backstory -- the basic idea I got was that you were a runaway when you were 15, and that you turned your life around, and nowadays you're a store manager in Nashville?
Ashton: Well, yeah. I had a lot things that went on in my life when I was younger. My father that I knew from birth passed away when I was 14, and I just had some crazy things going on and left home. And I was gone for probably over two and a half years, and it was life-changing. And when I finally got back to my family, I got saved, became a Christian and turned my life around. And I immediately started doing more positive things. And just from that experience it's made me a stronger person.

A lot was made of your song choice, but "When You Tell Me That You Love Me" is really not as obscure as some of the other songs the contestants chose. If you could go back, would you have chosen a different Diana Ross song?
Ashton: At first I was like, "I shouldn't have chosen that song." But as I look back at it now and I start to think, I chose that song for a reason. I listened to all of Diana Ross' songs, and that one, for some reason, spoke to me. It ministered to me in a way that I related it to my life and my experiences and my faith and the love that I have around me. And for Jimmy Iovine and Rodney Jerkins to turn it into such a current R&B song -- I just thought it was amazing. So I couldn't wait to get on the stage. And America really didn't feel it like I did, but hopefully now that it's on iTunes and they're able to download it, it'll begin to touch them like it touched me.

You were the first person voted off. Is there any stigma to that?
Ashton: I think it's not always a bad thing to be the first person. It could be a good thing, because everything that I went through on the show -- now I'm going to take it and put it toward my career. And I don't think anything is going to stop me, I feel like it was all in God's timing, and he has something better for me. I'm not saying American Idol was not, but something great is what I feel in my spirit right now, and I can't wait to see what's going to happen.

It seemed pretty unlikely that the judges were going to use the judges' save during the very first week of the finals, so what was going through your head once Ryan revealed you were the low vote getter?
Ashton: I felt it in my spirit that it was time to go. I did. I really did. That's why I went to the hair and makeup ladies, and I said, "You know what? I want a Mohawk today." I'm usually in dresses, usually looking with my hair poofed out, and I said, "You know what? Pin my hair up. I'm going to have a good time. Whatever happens, if I get kicked off, I'm going to go out with a bang. I'm going to go out here and do the group number, have a great time, watch the concert." And that's what I did, and I had a wonderful, wonderful time.

As everybody knows, being a finalist doesn't necessarily mean you're going to have a flourishing career. What do you think it takes to find that success after the show?
Ashton: When I got on the show I always had to remind myself that some of the greatest that didn't even win are doing well, and very comfortable in their careers, and millionaires -- doing great, awesome. And that's kept me sane and kept me driven. I'm not on the show anymore, but I'm still driven because I know that. And, like said before, I have a wonderful feeling that there's something, and I'm going to be able to do exactly what my goal was. I want to buy my mom a house; I want my family to never have to worry about anything. And I just want to have an amazing career in music, because I love to do it. I don't want to go back to working jobs that I don't want to work. I don't want to struggle anymore. I don't want to feel pain anymore. I just want to show the world who I am and spread the love, spread the faith, and let everybody know. And that's the biggest thing. It's not about winning. You have to feel like you're already a winner.

Where do you see yourself in about two to five years?
Ashton: I really see myself performing. I see myself going overseas performing. I see myself helping my mom out with her businesses that she wants to do. I see myself continuing to be a songwriter and a motivator and someone that has grown in her faith.

Do you see yourself winning a Grammy?
Ashton: It's possible. It's very possible. You can't really say, "Oh yeah, I'm going to do that." But I'm a big, firm believer in speaking everything into existence. If you speak stuff in yourself, if you constantly tell yourself, "No. You're not going home" or, "No. You're not going to lose. You're going to be a winner, regardless if you do go home" or, "Yes. You're going to get a Grammy" if I speak that in my spirit every day, it's going to happen, because when you speak it, you're constantly driving yourself. And I believe that. I believe that with all my heart. So yes. The answer to your question is yes. I believe that I'm going to have a Grammy. I believe that something great is going to come out of this experience that I've had.

Are you going back to your store job in Nashville, or are you going full time into music?
Ashton: No, I'm not. I left it there, and I left it there to stay. I've worked all my life, and now it's time for me to be the artist and the performer that God put in me a long time ago. And I've just got to go on further in my career, and hopefully, opportunities are there waiting for me, so I'm very excited about what's to come. I have no idea what's going to happen, but I feel it in my spirit that it's something great.

What was the best piece of advice that you received from one of the judges and ...
Ashton: Steven and Randy told me some great things, but Jennifer always had something real to say that came straight from her spirit. And I knew it was from her spirit. She told me, she said, "You know, it's all about the songs in the music business." She said, "Even when you get that first record, make sure it's a hit before you put it out, because that's what America is going to notice. They're going to remember those great songs and they're never going to go away." So it was the best advice that she could give.

If you could describe Steven Tyler in one word, what would it be.
Ashton: Fabulous. He was fabulous, from his clothes, to his shoes, from -- everything. And what he said, he did not care. He didn't care what people thought. He said exactly what he felt, and for the most part everything was true and he was just amazing. And behind the scenes he was the most humble and sweet person.

Had you given any thought to what song you would have sung next week for the songs from the year you were born?
Ashton: Oh man. There was a Whitney Houston. There was Janet Jackson. Those hit songs. Probably would have done a Diana Ross song that everyone knows -- one of the hit songs. I would've of course chosen the absolute hits. And I think that would've won the crowd over and kept me there. But it's okay. I don't want to look at the past, be depressed and say, "Oh I should have done this. I should have done that." Now it's time to take everything that I learned, everything that I've done, and move forward in my life, and grow as an artist.

What are people saying about your favorite shows and stars right now? Find out with Talk Without Pity, the social media site for real TV fans. See Tweets and Facebook comments in real time and add your own -- all without leaving TWoP. Join the conversation now!