Jennifer Lopez on Heejun Han's 'Idol' Exit

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Jennifer Lopez was visibly teary last night when it was announced that American Idol contestant Heejun Han had been eliminated. Today she opened up to Ryan Seacrest about his departure and why she thinks the judges saw a different side of Han than the rest of America.

"I loved him from the first moment he walked in," Jennifer told Ryan. "First of all, he shocked me the moment he came in. He came in and, you know, just the way he looked I didn't expect that voice to come out of his mouth. And when it came out it was just like something…'Is this as special as I think it is?' and it really was."

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The actress and music superstar said unlike some contestants who peak early and then fail to progress further, Han actually kept getting better and better. Then in the live shows, she said his "jokester/prankster" side was exposed. "This other person, and I don’t feel like America got a chance to connect with his part the way we did in the beginning. We saw a more vulnerable, heartfelt side to him that America never got to see until that last performance that he did."

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When Ryan asks Jennifer how long she foresees staying on with Idol as a judge, she says that for now she's just going with the flow. "When something is just meant to be it just starts happening. I kind of go with that flow for everything in my life. I know that this is what I am meant to do. I just don’t know what the next thing is going to be."

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Listen to the rest of the interview to hear Jennifer comment on rumors that Nicki Minaj might join the judging panel and to hear about her latest musical collaboration with producer RedOne and Pitbull.