Lisa Tucker was the first top ten finalist eliminated from American Idol 5 -- despite the fact that Simon Cowell told her during auditions that she was the best sixteen year old he had ever seen on the show. During Lisa's conference with the media on Thursday, I asked the singer if Simon's compliment made her feel even more pressure going into the competition.

"My first inkling was 'Oh my god, Thank you so much,'" Lisa told me. "But I definitely knew that there were going to be expectations and everything. But regardless of if he said it or not, I would have had expectations for myself. I'm probably my biggest critic."

And was there a rivalry between Lisa and Paris Bennett, the other outstanding sixteen-year-old in the competition? "No, not at all!" Lisa laughed.

More Links:

Lisa Tucker's Photo Gallery

Predicting The Music Careers of American Idol 5 Finalists

Photo courtesy of Fox.