Is Nicki Minaj going to leave American Idol? During the show's elimination episode on Thursday, March 14, the 30-year-old judge threatened to quit if contestant Curtis Finch Jr. was sent home -- and as it turned out, he later was.
The "Starships" rapper was distraught when Finch. Jr. landed in the bottom two with Devin Velez. "If you go home, I go home," she said.
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Minaj's threat came as a bit of a surprise given that she missed Finch Jr.'s performance Wednesday because she arrived late to the live show. Minaj missed the first 13 minutes due to "some congestion on the 405" and missed Finch Jr.'s first performance of the night, host Ryan Seacrest explained.
Despite Minaj's threat to leave the show, the judges decided not to use their saving vote on Finch Jr. and he was sent home.
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Would he have supported Minaj's decision to walk off American Idol?
"That's mind-blowing to me. When she said it I was like whoa, make your coins!" Finch Jr. told reporters after his elimination. "Get your check! Stay around because that will make me tune in because I have really transitioned from a contestant now to an American person that's watching the show. I want to see her when I turn on American Idol, so I'm glad she didn't walk off."
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The eliminee harbors no ill will towards Minaj. "I think Nicki is great, but I also think the other judges are great as well," he said. "So by her not being there for my performance, I don't think really it would have changed today. It is what it is and so we just have to look forward to me doing great things like I've been trying to do on American Idol."
This article originally appeared on Usmagazine.com: American Idol: Curtis Finch Jr. Eliminated First, Nicki Minaj Arrives on Time and Threatens to Quit
