Jermaine Jones is being bounced from "American Idol," apparently because he lied to producers about his past, according to a TMZ report.
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| "Gentle Giant" Jermaine Jones reportedly lied to "American Idol" producers. (Getty Images Photo) |
The 25-year-old vocal instructor from Pine Hill, N.J., tweeted Tuesday night that he no longer would be on the Fox singing contest. He wrote on his official "Idol" Twitter account: "Awww I will no longer b on the show," but the post was later deleted.
A Fox spokeswoman declined to comment on the matter or confirm his tweet.
But TMZ reported that his hasty exit, to be announced during the show Wednesday night, was sealed after producers learned he concealed the fact that he was arrested twice last year and has outstanding warrants.
"We're told one of the incidents involved violence, which was particularly troublesome to producers," TMZ reported. "He also lied to cops by giving them fake names both times he was arrested."
The so-called "gentle giant" was among the show's viewer-selected top 13 finalists after the judges gave him a last-minute spot among the 11th season's top 13 male semifinalists.
He was among the bottom three vote-getters last week after performing Stevie Wonder's "Knocks Me Off My Feet" but advanced to the group of top 12 singers.
"Idol" contestants have been asked or forced to leave in the past when the show deems that their work or personal history is an issue.
Corey Clark was disqualified for concealing his arrest record during the second season in 2003. Frenchie Davis was also dropped from "Idol" that year because of her previous appearance on an adult website.
During the eighth season in 2009, Joanna Pacitti was shown advancing to the top 36 semifinalists after "Hollywood Week" but was replaced later. Pacitti released an album in 2006 and had ties to 19 Entertainment, which produces "Idol" with FremantleMedia North America.
Chris Golightly was dropped from the top 24 semifinalists in the ninth season in 2010 because he didn't disclose that he had a previous record contract.
In contrast, the singing competition allowed past finalists such as the sixth season's Antonella Barba and the seventh season's David Hernandez to stay on after racy photos that appeared to be Barba leaked online and Hernandez was revealed as having once worked as a nightclub stripper.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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