Jermaine Jones (left) and Phillip Phillips
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The contestants on American Idol are generally a tight-knit family. So, it's no surprise that this season's remaining singers reacted with shock and dismay at the dramatic exit of Jermaine Jones."It was sad to see somebody go like that, with an awesome voice. It sucks," Phillip Phillips said of Jones, who was kicked off the show Wednesday for having outstanding arrest warrants.
"We found out what happened when you guys did," added Colton Dixon. "We were shocked, but at the same time, he's such a great guy. We all love him to death. He's truly the gentle giant. He handled himself so well, I'm proud of him."
Shannon Magrane said Jones "always has that great fun spirit, and he has always kept us laughing. He is so funny, we miss him already."
Hollie Cavanagh sees a bright future for Jones despite this setback. "He's going to do huge things in music regardless of if he's on the show or not," she said. "It's just a little bump in the road. He'll prevail, and he'll do big things."
Heejun Han was the lone contestant to admit that Jones exit wasn't all bad news for the remaining singers. "It's a competition," he said. "I really want to be honest about it. I'm not like, 'Oh, please don't go, please don't' go!' "