The Winner of American Idol Season 22 is Announced
This, is your new American Idol winner: Abi Carter.
During the season 22 finale of the ABC reality competition series May 19, host Ryan Seacrest announced that Abi beat out Will Moseley—as well as Jack Blocker, who was eliminated earlier in the night—to win the coveted title.
The new winner was crowned after a star-studded lineup of performers, including Jon Bon Jovi, who also served as guest mentor to the finalists.
The finale also marked Katy Perry‘s last episode as an Idol judge alongside Lionel Richie and Luke Bryan.
“I mean I love Idol so much,” Katy, who shares 3-year-old daughter Daisy Dove with fiancé Orlando Bloom, said on Jimmy Kimmel Live! in February. “It’s connected me with like the heart of America, but I feel like I need to go out and feel that pulse, that pulse to my own beat.”
Despite her departure, the “Firework” singer will always hold those seven seasons of Idol memories close to her heart.