While Jason Castro says he is glad to be out from under the pressure of competing on “American Idol” he says he really did want to win.

“I was as happy last night as I was when I made the top 24,” he told reporters in a telephone news conference today.

“But I also wanted to win.”

The 20-year-old novice singer with impressive dreadlocks says he had been struggling with his performances ever since the contestants were required to sing two songs.

He says it was hard to focus on two songs and he was beginning to fear having to face three songs next week in addition to taping a hometown visit for the show’s finale episodes.

“I loved the time I was on the show but really felt relieved that the pressure was off,” he says.

Castro, an inexperienced performer from Rockwell, Texas, got the least number of votes in the weekly viewer’s poll after botching Bob Marley and Bob Dylan songs on Tuesday night’s performance show. He forgot the lyrics to “Tambourine Man.”

“How could I forget such a popular line that’s written on your soul?” he says.

Castro says he didn’t botch the line on purpose. There had been speculation among fans that he wanted to get out of the competition and some viewers thought he mouthed the words “don’t vote” during the program.

He says that what he mouthed was “Vote. Vote.”

Castro, who didn’t start performing until his freshman year in college, says the longest set he had played prior to “Idol” was 30 minutes. “I learned some songs but never a song all the way through,” he says.

He adds that going into the competition, he never thought that he would win.  He just enjoyed the ride. And as the show progressed and he was still there, he began to think that he might win.

“I learned that I could do a lot more than I thought I could,” he says.  He believes that he survived as long as he did because of his uniqueness. “In many ways I am different and I think that catches the eye and the ear a little faster,” he says. “Just being me was an advantage.”

He knows that he “is about as raw as it gets” but he got through the auditions because the judges saw the potential.

He also says he is a goofy and an awkward conversationalist. “All my friends loved it because what you see is what you get and I didn’t change coming out here,” he says.

He says he would like to go home and visit and he will miss working this summer with his father who constructs swimming pools.

“I’m very mellow and grounded,” he adds. “Nothing comes as a surprise if you don’t expect anything.”

He says he struggled learning new songs and had a hard time committing to songs that he didn’t know in such a short time.

About the infamous night when “Idol” judge Paula Abdul rated his second performance before it happened, he laughs and says it was an honest mistake that really didn’t affect his second performance.

His goal for the future is “to be singing some music somewhere” but he’s just not certain what’s ahead.

“I think I did the best I could given the circumstances,” he says.