Congrats to Noah Thompson!
Sunday’s season 20 of American Idol wrapped up, and the top three finalists took the stage for the last time hoping to win first place. Once the results were in, it was Noah Thompson who was named the champion over his fellow finalists, HunterGirl and Leah Marlene.
The 20-year-old performed three songs for the finale: “I’m on Fire” as part of the Bruce Spingsteen round, “One Day Tonight” which was his original song, and Rihanna’s “Stay” as his favorite song.
“Oh my God… my heart is beating out of my chest, this is crazy,” Thompson said after learning the news of his win live onstage.
HunterGirl, 23, came in second. She sang “Dancing in the Dark”, her original song “Red Bird, and her reprise of “Riot.” Marlene, 20, came in third, performing “Cover Me” and her original, “Flowers.”
Ryan Seacrest hosted the three-hour finale, which also featured performances by Flo Rida, Melissa Etheridge, Sara Bareilles, Michael Bublé, Ben Platt, James Arthur, Thomas Rhett, Deana Carter, Tai Verdes, Gabby Barrett, and Earth, Wind & Fire, as well as the rest of the top 10 contestants and judges.
Thompson is a construction worker and father from Louisa, Kentucky. He won over Luke Bryan, Katy Perry, and Lionel Richie during his audition when he sang “Giving You Up.”
“As a kid, all I thought about was playing music and being famous. But where I’m from, you don’t really get much opportunities. My family, they believe in me, the guys I work with believe in me, but I’ve just never believed in myself,” he said at the time.
Thompson added, “I would’ve never signed myself up for something like this, I never had that confidence.” So, his best friend went behind his back and signed him up for the show.
Richie then said, “You’ve got a real life storytelling, bada – voice.”
