'American Idol' Castoff Alex Lambert To Join 'If I Can Dream'
That was fast. After being dumped from "American Idol" before making the top 12 -- which inspired a [article id="1633969"]spirited online petition[/article] demanding his return -- shy guy singer Alex Lambert will be back on TV this week. Sort of.
While the campaign to bring him back to "Idol" after his [article id="1633813"]surprise ouster[/article] gained more than 20,000 signatures, it failed to sway the show's producers. But one former "Idol" producer was impressed enough. According to
s-web-series/" target="_blank">People, on Thursday Lambert will move into the reality house on [article id="1632172"]"If I Can Dream,"[/article] the moderately successful Web reality show launched earlier this year by ex-"Idol" honcho Simon Fuller. The show is documenting the star dreams of a group of unknowns -- among Lambert's new roommates will be Miley Cyrus' ex-boyfriend Justin Gaston, aspiring model Giglianne Braga and wannabe actors Kara Killmer, Amanda Phillips and Ben Elliott.
Lambert, 19, who admitted to the magazine that he has trimmed his signature mullet and that he took three years of swing dancing lessons with his mom, said he's not nearly as shy as he appeared to be on "Idol."
"I don't think I'm too shy," he said of the personality trait that appeared to usher in his demise on the show. "At home I'm not really shy, it's just that this whole experience is so new to me. Once I get more confident I don't think I'll be shy at all." Lambert appears to have taken to heart judge Kara DioGuardi's advice to get more experience by playing club shows, which he'll likely do while on "Dream," which follows the aspiring stars as they try to break into the entertainment biz.
He said he plans to decorate his room in the house with pictures of people who inspire him, including Bob Marley, Elvis, the Beatles and (aw) his grandfather. Though he has a girlfriend named Raylee who he serenades with his original tunes because he's too broke to take her out on dates, Lambert said he also keeps in touch with his former "Idol" homie Siobhan Magnus. "We text every once in a while," he said.
"She was one of my best friends on the show. Everyone else was spastic and crazy and always wanted to do something, and me and Siobhan would sit and eat for like three hours."
When launching the show, Fuller promised that new faces would be added as it progressed, and it appears that one bedroom in the "Dream" house will still be available after Lambert moves in.
