LOS ANGELES — Scotty McCreery won the finale of “American Idol” Wednesday night after a record-setting year for the hit TV show, now in its tenth season.
The 17-year-old from Garner, N.C., beat fellow country crooner Lauren Alaina, 16, from Rossville, Ga., and McCreery paid tribute to his fellow finalist after receiving his trophy.
“Me and her have been together since day one and we’re going to stick together,” he said.
“I’ve gotta thank the Lord first — he got me here,” he said, before taking to the “Idol” stage to perform for the last time.
McCreery hugged friends and family as he sang “I Love You This Big,” while the crowd cheered and held up signs — many labeling him “Scotty McHotty.”
There had been fears Alaina may not be able to perform at all on Tuesday night’s episode of the FOX show after requiring medical treatment for a vocal cord injury suffered during rehearsals, but she took to the stage.
The finale featured performances from Lady Gaga, Beyonce, Tom Jones, Marc Anthony and former “Idol” winner Carrie Underwood.
U2’s Bono and The Edge performed a song from “Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark,” the musical for which they wrote the score, with its lead star Reeve Carney.
The No. 1-rated singing contest set a voting record going into Wednesday’s finale, with a record 122.4 million votes cast. It also set a series record for total votes logged, with 730 million.
The show received a shake-up this year, with new judges Jennifer Lopez and Steven Tyler joining Randy Jackson.