'Idol' dream comes crashing down

Bayside — When 16-year-old Grace Hussey won a "Dream Ticket" that guaranteed her a special spot in line for the "American Idol" auditions in Milwaukee, she viewed it as her ticket to success.

So, Grace - like thousands of aspiring singers - headed to the Bradley Center last week for her chance at stardom. "This means pretty much everything to me," she said just days before the tryouts.

But her dream of going to Hollywood was quickly cut short after she was shot down in the first round of the competition. Nevertheless, the chance to compete for the hit TV show is something she'll never forget.

"It was a great experience, I am glad I did it," she said afterward. "I am really proud of what I did accomplish."

Started at Disney World

Grace's quest started in Orlando, Fla., when the Nicolet High School student competed in the American Idol Experience at the Walt Disney World Resort and won a "Dream Ticket" that allowed her to get to the front of the line on the day of the Milwaukee auditions.

"The first time I heard Grace sing in public, I had tears in my eyes," her father, Matt Hussey, said about Grace's performance at Disney World.

"It is really a comfortable atmosphere there," added Grace. "Everything is really friendly and really Disney."

However, her nerves may have gotten the best of her when it came time for real "Idol" audition in Milwaukee. And Graced acknowledged that the experience was a bit scary because she was performing in front of a huge crowd.

Early interest in music

Even as a child, Grace was always bursting into song - and sometimes would do some dancing, friends and family say.

When friends Samantha Foran and Alexandra Cohen tell her to shut up, Grace just keeps on singing. Samatha said she was surprised Grace didn't make the cut in the "Idol" auditions because she has so much talent.

"I remember the first time I heard her sing, we were freshmen … and she just burst out with this amazing voice and I thought she was so talented," Samantha said.

An avid theater and choir student at Nicolet, where she is about to enter her senior year, Hussey only recently started taking singing lessons. But music has long been part of her life.

"She was always singing. She would position everyone in the family room and would say, 'I am going to sing for you now,' " recalled her mom, Jackie Hussey. "She could barely talk … and she would be singing songs and entertaining us."

What's ahead?

After the unsuccessful Milwaukee audition, the Hussey family talked about having Grace try out for the TV show at auditions in other cities. But it's unlikely that's going to happen.

No matter what her future brings, Hussey plans on attending college for theater or vocal performance.

"Even if this doesn't work ("American Idol"), I will be attending college," she said.

As far as her parents are concerned, music has been - and always will be - a part of who Grace is.

"What you want for your child is for them to find their niché in life," her dad said. "And I think she has found hers."