America has spoken. The finalists are the mother, Crystal Bowersox and the paint salesman, Lee DeWyze. They will face off for the 2010 American Idol title next Tuesday night.

Construction worker, Casey James, the Texas kid was voted off the show. He said he was happy to have made it into the top three. He had not expected to climb that far in the series.

Wednesday May 19, 2010 was a teary night for American Idol contestants Bowersox and DeWyze, especially when they saw the hometown visits footage and the outpouring of love from their fans.

Host Ryan Seacrest announces the judges, introduces the top three and then begins to chat with them about their experiences on the show. James admits that he had no expectations of even getting past the stadium. He says the experience became real for him when he visited his hometown and was greeted by so many cheering people.

DeWyze says the experience was “totally different than I ever thought it would have been and it’s made me a better person.”

Bowersox says “from the outside, you don’t see how much work goes into this.”

When Seacrest asks if they ever pictured winning the competition James admits that he didn’t. “It’s so much more than I ever imagined,” he says. While Bowersox has envisioned it she is just cool with whatever the results may be. “I’ve never wanted to win more than I do right now. You feel it. You’re so close, and you want to win,” DeWyze says.

Seacrest asks judge Randy Jackson his views on the top three. He notes that he’s happy DeWyze came out of his shell and thinks Bowersox may have done some of the same. “She was the kind of artist we thought would never try out for a show like this. I think she’s grown immensely as an artist.” DeWyze says he has appreciated all the advice given by the judges, positive and negative. Casey laughs noting that not all the comments were useable.