Maddie Poppe Wins ‘American Idol’

Maddie Poppe is your official American Idol winner!

After months of competing against some of the most talented singers in the United States, the singer was crowned the Idol reboot’s first champion. The win was made slightly bittersweet by the announcement just minutes earlier that Caleb Lee Hutchinson and Poppe were dating.

During the nailbiter of a two-night finale, Gabby Barrett, Hutchinson and Poppe performed three songs: a hometown dedication, a repeat of their favorite song of the season, and their winner’s single.

In addition to performances by the three finalists, four past contestants — Jonny Brenns, Catie Turner, Michelle Sussett and Harper Grace — also made their return to the stage to perform an original song medley.

Hutchinson performed hometown dedication song to Dallas, Georgia, “Folsom Prison Blues” by Johnny Cash; his personal choice of “Don’t Close Your Eyes” by Keith Whitley; and his winner’s single, “Johnny Cash Heart.”

Barrett performed her hometown dedication, “Don’t Stop Believin’” by Journey, to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania with a repeat performance of “Little Red Wagon” by Miranda Lambert, and her winner’s single: “Rivers Deep.”

Poppe dedicated “Landslide” by Fleetwood Mac to her hometown of Clarksville, Iowa and took a risk with a repeat of her own original song, “Don’t Ever Let Your Children Grow Up.” Her winner’s circle song, “Going Going Gone,” completed the set.

The win really seemed to exemplify the mission of the ABC reboot, which the judges said would be a more “compassionate” version of the original, but also one that would be able to find talent hiding in plain sight.

During an October interview on Good Morning America, the judges opened up about working on the American Idol revivial, and discussed what they were planning to look for on their journey to find undiscovered talent.

“There’s still talent out there to be discovered,” said judge Katy Perry. “There are still stars and diamonds in the rough and I think the great American Dream — we can revive that in a way and show people that if they have the talent, if they work really hard … maybe we can give them a little platform to just shine.”

Do you think the right person took home the title? Let us know in the comments!

Photo credit: Instagram/American Idol