With most of America expecting a David versus David finale on American Idol, even Syesha Mercado wasn't surprised by her elimination on Wednesday (May 14) night's episode.

"I got too many bad comments from the judges to keep me there," Mercado tells reporters the morning after. "Like, at this point in the game, you couldn't have that many bad comments and be there. So I expected what was and I moved on and I made peace with it. And, you know, I couldn't be happier right now. I don't feel defeated. I don't feel like I failed."

Indeed, Mercado received mixed reviews from the judges on Tuesday night, particularly for her second performance ("Fever") and her closing number, the unlikely producers' choice of "Hit Me Up" from the Happy Feet soundtrack.

"I think my nieces and nephews like it, because I know they like that movie, Happy Movie," Mercado says. "I'd heard it before on Happy Feet, because they watch it over and over and over again. You know, it's not like I could change it, so I had to make the best of it. You know, I'm very optimistic and positive and whenever something kind of comes in my way that's gonna be like, 'Oh that's just terrible. That's not gonna work,' I just block it all out and I'm like, 'You know what? What can I do to turn this into something positive? What can I do to make the best of it?'"

Despite getting the boot just one week short of the finale, optimism is a major theme in Mercado's exit interview. The Florida-based aspiring actress has been a regular figure in each week's bottom group, skirting elimination over and over and over again. While Kristy Lee Cook began to show signs of Bottom Three fatigue when she played a similar role earlier in the season, Mercado has remained upbeat.

"Every week is new and I never packed my bag," she says. "They told us, 'You know what? You've gotta pack your bags.' I'm like, 'I'm not packing my bags, because I don't want to go home yet. I'm not ready.' I think if you want something, it's gonna happen for you."

Mercado's personal struggles, especially her father's battle with drug and alcohol abuse, have been background stories this season and  the performer has never shied sharing her experiences.

"I think every family has its struggle and the reason I even I even brought up my struggle at my first audition is because my past doesn't determine who I am and I don't feel shameful of telling encouraging, uplifting stories to people," she says.

One of the charges Mercado has had to face all season long is that she's a performer, but she hasn't showcased who she actually is as a person. Mercado isn't worried.

"I like pop and I like R&B and like like the old school musical thing, so I'm growing as an artist," she says. "I'm evolving. I'm glad that I did do American Idol because people were able to see that transition that I went through and I'm still learning more about myself every day and I think that's the beauty of doing this competition, you just learn so much. People will know who I am. You'll know who I am once I put out that album. You'll know."

And she isn't limiting herself just to music.

"I tell people I want to do everything and I'm really goal-oriented, so I know that whatever goal I set, it can be accomplished, whether it's within a year's span or whatever, 10 years. So I want to make an album. I want to star in a film. I want to do Broadway. I want to open up an organic restaurant... It just depends on what comes first."

Other highlights from Mercado's exit interview:

On the most important lesson she learned on her journey: "I learned that there's a fine line between over-rehearsal, like overworking, and then just doing what you need to do and trusting in yourself and just letting go and letting it be the way it is, because I worked so every week to the point where I wasn't really able to enjoy myself. So I learned how to relax and what to do, whether it's talking to somebody really close to me, someone I confide in, or whether it's reading a book that's really uplifting. I learned ways to deal with stress."

Handicapping the season's Top Two: "David Archuleta has that beautiful smile and he has that really, really good connection with the kids, the younger audience. And David Cook has that connection the younger audience, the girls go crazy over him, and the older audience too, think he's really charming, like all the older women. I feel like I'm a little sister and a big sister to both the Davids and once everybody was gone we really had the chance to really really have a more intimate relationship and just have fun and that brotherly sisterly love."

Clarifying her personal connection to "A Change Is Gonna Come": "It's a signature song for the Civil Rights Movement, but for me it meant something different. Like, I know it meant that for everybody, but for me it took on a totally different meaning and that's why I brought that up, because it touched me. When I was listening to it, I was thinking all those things, the Civil Rights Movement, and then I was I thinking about 'Well what does this song mean to me?' That, it came out during a transitional time in history and for me, this is a transitional time for me in my life and it took on a different meaning for me. You know, I'm the last female standing, I'm still here and I feel like I changed a lot for the better and people got to see that. I think that has a connection."