"Number one, I know the results so I know she was never a frontrunner," Nigel said at the callback auditions for his other show "So You Think You Can Dance" in Las Vegas on April 8. He quickly added that he "was pretty upset" and "angry" upon learning that Pia was eliminated, "but the more I've sort of thought about it, the more I've calmed down, I've realized that at the end of the day, this is going to happen every week now because the talent is so strong."
Nigel further elaborated why Pia was kicked out of the show, "The fact of the matter is that it appears that Pia didn't connect with the audience as much as we maybe think she did. And she wasn't voted through. That's the fact of the matter." On why people did not take the elimination easily, he explained, "It appears that it's this huge drop because [Pia] has never been in the bottom three before, but neither was Casey [Abrams], neither was Paul [McDonald] last week. So every week it's going to happen that a really good singer goes."
On the same occasion, Nigel also defended judges' decision to use The Save for Casey two weeks before. "I agree with the judges saving Casey. I think Casey is unique, and really good for 'Idol', and doesn't just give us the same old singer every time; he gives us something totally different. I'm all for that," he stated.
Pia Toscano was dumped from "American Idol" during the live result show that revealed who were going to enter the top 8. The elimination of one of the best contestants quickly triggered comments from celebrities who watched the show like "Idol" alums Jennifer Hudson and Kimberly Caldwell.
She was recently reported to have signed to Interscope Records, but her representative has denied it, saying that no deal has been sealed as of now. The Texan native has said she is "looking forward" to the upcoming "Idol" tour.