Last night, Simon Cowell described the competition as "shaping up to be 'The Battle of The Divas.'" All of America, or so we thought, expected the three divas, Fantasia Barrino, LaToya London and Jennifer Hudson, to be the final three standing. So it came as quite a shock when host, Ryan Seacrest announced that "Diana, Jasmine, John and George are safe." After last night's nationwide vote, Barrino, London and Hudson received the fewest votes in America. Instead of the three divas battling to become the American Idol, the three were standing in "Group A" battling to survive.

Randy Jackson summed up the shock of the evening best. He said, "This is definitely not a popularity contest. This is the greatest talent show ever in American history. And as a proud American, I hope that America is out there listening and watching. We want to be proud of whomever wins this. Ruben's in the house tonight. We were proud when he won. We were proud when Kelly won. We are proud that Clay came in because they were the greatest talents we could find."

Simon was gracious in recognizing the quality of Diana DeGarmo and Jasmine Trias' performance last night.

In this household (out of five "American" votes), only our six year-old guessed one of the three who ended up in the "Bottom Three."

After practicing with the contestants all week, Barry Manilow said, "In my catalog of songs, it really requires that you, Jennifer, have range. I could really not do what Jennifer is doing. It goes to another place."

Last night she sang Manilow's A Weekend in New England.

Last Night's Reaction of The Judges (to reinforce our shock):

Randy: "Wow! Yo Yo! Jennifer, you just get better every week."
Barry: "I have nothing to say. You took us all the way."
Paula: "It looks like you are staying on that path. And not looking back. Way to go!"
Simon: "Why I'm happy for you and why you've suddenly gotten it together is...you're creating something that we've never had on this competition is 'The Battle of the Divas'." When he asked how she thought she was doing, she responded, "I feel like I'm getting to be me now. This is 'Jenny's World'!"

Seacrest first announced that Oakland California's LaToya London is also safe. Before Ryan announced whether Fantasia or Jennifer was gone, we learned that the person leaving tonight had the highest number of votes in a previous show. Tonight, she had the fewest.

As it turns out, Jennifer Hudson will have to start "Jenny's World" without the support of Fox.

When Fantasia heard that she was safe, she hugged Jennifer, told her she loves her and shouted, "You are my American Idol."

AI's Tribute to Jennifer Hudson in Her Words

When I got the call for the Wildcard, I was overjoyed. I was so grateful, so excited that I would get to come back a third time when this is a one chance type of business.

I am a very outspoken type of person. I feel what I think. You'll see it through my clothes. You'll see it through my personality. And there's nothing I can do about it.

This show is about versatility. It's been a struggle. It hasn't been easy. But if it's not worth working hard for, it's not worth it at all. So, I'm proud of the struggle that I've been going through. And I'm making it.

I'm a survivor.

Amen, sister!

Other American Idol Stories Published by RuggedElegantLiving.com:

04/20/04, "American Idol III Sings Barry Manilow Hits Customized for Each Finalist by the Legend, Himself"

04/20/04, "American Idol III Contestants Perform The Music of Barry Manilow"

04/15/04, "American Idol III's Jon Peter Lewis Gets The Death Penalty After Singing 'Jailhouse Rock'"

04/14/04, "American Idol III Finalists Sing Movie-Themed Songs with Quentin Tarantino As Guest Judge"

04/08/04, "American Idol III Three Sings Elton John Classics; Camile Velasco Sings 'Goodbye..."

03/18/04, "American Idol III Top Twelve Finalists Narrow to Eleven"

03/17/04, "American Idol Offers Two Hours of Soul Singing As The Competition Heats Up"

02/11/04, "American Idol's Barrino, DeGarmo, Hudson, Lynche, Metzger, Thomas, Walcott, Webber (and Ryan Seacrest as Will Hung)"

02/05/04, "One American Family's Favorite Contestants from "American Idol III's" Top Thirty-Two"