David Cook is an American Idol

After a grueling season that saw a ton of talent and heart from all of the contestants, David Cook has been crowned the newest American Idol.

During last night’s season finale (which included performances from the likes of Carrie Underwood and the Jonas Brothers) at the Nokia Theatre in Los Angeles, California, the 25-year-old Blue Springs, Mo bartender was revealed as the victor, having garnered 12 million more votes than his competitor, 17-year-old David Archuleta (there were over 97 million votes cast).

Upon hearing the news, Cook exclaimed, “I started this season — much to Simon’s chagrin — as the word nerd and I’m absolutely at a loss for words. Thank you guys. This is amazing. Thank you.”

Last week, the infamous Simon Cowell actually predicted Cook’s win, saying, “He’s done more to deserve it over the eleven weeks. He’s taken more risks, he’s done things with certain songs that have been more interesting.”

And last night, Simon was uncharacteristically humble, stating, “I want to congratulate both of you. It wasn’t quite so clear as we called it. In fact, David [Cook], I will take this opportunity to apologize because I think I was verging on disrespectful with you and I don’t think you deserve that.”

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