American Idol 4, Breaking News: Mario Vazquez Out, Nikko Smith In.

American Idol fans are reeling from the news that Mario Vazquez has withdrawn from the competition after having made it into the top 12 last Wednesday. 27-year-old Vazquez, who is from New York, had been considered one of the favorites. Variety.com is reporting that Fox released a statement Sunday afternoon stating that he has "has withdrawn from the competition for personal reasons." Mario’s picture has been moved from the page of the finalists and placed in the “Best of the Rest” section. A caption underneath his photo reads, “Withdrew 3/13/05.”

Vazquez has been replaced by 22-year-old Ozzie “Nikko” Smith of Town and Country, MO, a suburb of St. Louis. Smith, who is the son of baseball great Ozzie Smith, was eliminated last Wednesday. Although American Idol does not release actual voting results, it would appear that Nikko must have gotten the second lowest number of votes, which would make him next in line for a spot in the finals.

This is the first time in four seasons of the show that a contestant has withdrawn after having made it to the finals. Earlier this season, Marlea Stroman of Syracuse, NY became the first person ever to withdraw after making it as far as the Hollywood rounds. During season two, finalist Corey Clark was disqualified when it was discovered that he had a pending legal matter. That same year, Frenchie Davis, was disqualified after making it to the semi-finals for having appeared on a questionable website.

In season three, Donnie Williams was disqualified after having been involved in a drunk driving incident. His spot in the semi-finals was filled by George Huff who went on to finish fifth in the competition.

Vazquez had impressed fans from his first audition and also seemed to be a favorite among the judges. Many speculated that he had the potential to win the competition, becoming the first Latino to do so. Vazquez was a member of the City Kids Repertory Group, and his Idol bio stated that he “worked with emerging artists.”

Last week, Nikko Smith’s elimination surprised many viewers, especially after two very good performances in the semi-finals. His rendition of “Georgia on my Mind” was particularly strong, and his “Let’s Get it On” made Paula Abdul melt!

In an interview with the St. Louis Post-Dispatch the day after his elimination, Smith was philosophical. He said that as soon as he heard his name read, he thought, “What's the next step? What do I do from here? Where do I go?” He claims not to have been terribly disappointed, but instead, was grateful for the exposure. “Millions and millions of people watch the show, and hopefully somebody saw me and liked what they saw," he said.

He talked about his song choices, and said that he chose “Let’s Get it On” because it was a song that he had sung with his former group, Team 11. However, "Georgia on My Mind" was not his first choice for last week’s performance. He was going to do Boyz II Men's “On Bended Knee," but changed his mind because the song didn’t feel right. “You only have a minute and 30 seconds, and it's hard to squeeze in a verse, hook and bridge,” he said.

Since his son’s elimination, Ozzie Senior has been complaining publicly about the show’s voting procedures and urging Fox to release the actual vote totals each week. But Ozzie Junior was positive about his experience on the show, and said that he would miss all the contestants, but especially his roommate, Bo Bice. Now, in a strange turn of events, Nikko will return to take his place with the top 12. As for Mario, we wish him the best and hopefully, the exposure that he has already had on the show will serve him well in his future endeavors.

Donna Reynolds is an Assistant Editor for the RealityNewsOnline family of websites and a freelance writer based in Syracuse, NY. She is also the creator of “That’s Entertainment,” a weblog on syracuse.com. Whether you agree or disagree, Donna welcomes your comments, and you can email her at foxydonna@earthlink.net.

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