The backdrop certainly won’t be familiar, but the face you might see in San Diego this weekend will be. You see, after coming into your living room on television weekly for nearly 2½ months and about 6 months of “American Idol” captivity, Tierrasanta’s (a San Diego suburb) Avalon Young, who was eliminated from the show Thursday night, is out on her own now.

“Well, I wouldn’t exactly put it that way,” she said with a laugh Friday morning from her Los Angeles apartment. “Idol has been my entire life since I tried out in October in San Francisco. I don’t think I’ll have a hard time adjusting back to a normal life at all. It’s been a wonderful experience that I wouldn’t trade for anything.”

Young, 21, is a Serra High graduate, who successfully advanced her dream of a music career with a Top 8 finish in “American Idol’s” 15th and final season. She had tried out once before when she was 17 but didn’t make it beyond the “cattle call” or initial audition.

Two of the final eight contestants were dropped Thursday. The bottom-three vote-getters of the viewers were then judged by the show’s judging panel – Keith Urban, Jennifer Lopez and Harry Connick, Jr. One of the three finalists was saved, but it wasn’t Young.

Here is part of the critique she received:

Urban: “It’s confusing to me that you always do such a good job connecting with everyone here (in the live audience) and you wind up in the bottom three There must be a connection thing missing between you and the people at home. Your voice and your coolness, that box is checked.”

Lopez: “You are a natural performer. You do what you do. The question is, why did you wind up in the bottom three two weeks in a row when it seems like everyone loves you. If you make it through next week, try to step out of your comfort zone, maybe the audience at home wants to see what else you are capable of.”

Connick, Jr.: “That’s good advice. It would be nice to hear you sing something like a ballad, like completely different. Keith said it, you got the cool factor, your voice is incredible.”

In the end, when she wasn’t “saved” by the judges, Young realized one thing for sure. “I’ll miss the other contestants more than anything,” she admitted. “We made friendships that will last forever.”

She said good-bye on stage and went out to dinner with her family. She is planning a homecoming this weekend.

Whether or not the Top 10 finalists will be invited back to perform during the show’s two-night finale (April 6-7) or if there will be one final Top 10 Summer Tour remains to be seen.

Is it back to another restaurant job, or maybe a tryout for “The Voice” now?

“Oh, no. No restaurant work. And as far as The Voice. I don’t think television is for me. I just want to perform and play my music. This whole experience just proved to me that music can work for me as a career. If I work hard at it. And I will.”

So, will we see her perform at, say, the Belly-Up in Solana Beach, one day?

“You will,” she said, “I promise.”

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