Deep-voiced country singer Scotty McCreery won the tenth season of American Idol on Wednesday, defeating rival Lauren Alaina who had been dubbed the frontrunner by the show’s judges heading into the night.
McCreery, 17, hugged the other Idol contestants from the season and his family after host Ryan Seacrest proclaimed him the winner of the television singing competition.
“Never in my wildest dreams. I got to thank the Lord first. He got me here,” McCreery said. A grocery store clerk from Garner, North Carolina, McCreery sang what will become his first single before a packed audience on the live broadcast — and then tried to catch the confetti raining down on him in his mouth.
A record 122 million votes were cast by phone, text message and online after McCreery and Alaina — both country singers — each gave their final performances on Tuesday, bringing the season’s vote total to nearly 730 million.
Alaina, 16, emerged as the judges’ favourite on Tuesday after overcoming a blown out vocal chord to deliver an emotional performance dedicated to her mother.
But some predicted that McCreery, 17, would be the winner based on Idol viewer responses on Twitter.
The results were announced following a two-hour star-studded live broadcast that included performances from Lady Gaga, Beyonce, Judas Priest and even new judges Jennifer Lopez and Aerosmith frontman Steven Tyler.
McCreery won over audiences during the season with his deep voice and a poise onstage that belies his youth. He is the first country music champion since Carrie Underwood took the title in 2005 and went on to become the top Idol earner in terms of record sales and tours. McCreery’s win marked the fourth straight year that a male contestant has won the competition.
As the new “American Idol”, McCreery wins a record contract with a Universal Music Group record label. Now in its 10th year, American Idol has been a ratings juggernaut for Fox and the nation’s most-watched TV show for the last seven years.
—Reuters