In his day-after exit interview, former 'American Idol' contestant Chris Sligh revealed he almost dropped out of the competition two weeks ago because of artistic differences.

"I never came into this wanting to win it. I come from an indie / alternative rock kind of background," Sligh told TV reporters during a conference call. "For me, I think winning would hurt what I was really going for."

After the judges criticized his arrangement of the Diana Ross classic "Endless Love," said Sligh: "I went to the guy from 19 [Entertainment] and said, 'If I drop out, can I still go on tour?' And they were like, 'No, you have to get voted out.' So I was like, 'Well, we'll see what happens.'"