It took three hours on an emotional and pulsating finale.

Not to mention an endless string of performances by a number of aspiring and talented artists.

But American Idol finally crowned its latest champion on Sunday night.

With finalists Jack Blocker, Abi Carter and Will Moseley all giving it their all to close out Season 22, the votes were tallied to finish off the aforementioned finale and the winner was announced as…

… ABI CARTER!

Abi took to the stage several times during Sunday’s episode, truly cementing her victory with her final performance in which she sang her original tune, as well as a rendition of Bon Jovi’s “Bed of Roses.”

Moseley finished second and Blocker came in third.

“I think I didn’t feel real until coming on this carpet and then talking with people has made me feel real again,” Carter told Entertainment Tonight after learning the amazing news.

“This has meant the world to me.”

The finale featured performances by such huge names as Jon Bon Jovi, Fantasia Barrino, Jason Mraz, Wynonna Judd, Seal and New Kids on the Block.

In a pre-recorded video, Billie Eilish even appearance sans said the following to Carter:

“I wish you nothing but the best. I’m here to support you, and I love ya.”

Carter then fell to the floor in shock, which is pretty much how we’d react if Eilish ever sent us a similar video.

This episode, meanwhile, also marked the end of Katy Perry’s run as an American Idol judge.

As we hold out hope that Jelly Roll takes her place, the pop singer has sounded ready to move on for a little while now.

“I mean I love Idol so much,” Perry, who shares three-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.”

Perry has also big a huge fan of Carter’s throughout the winner’s journey, prompting Abi to say after the concluding show:

“Katy Perry has just taken me under her wing in a little way, and I felt so honored.

“She’s such a legend and to have somebody that has so much experience in this industry be able to look at me and be like, ‘I have faith in you,’ that’s amazing!”

Congratulations to Abi Carter and all of this year’s contestants!

American Idol Season 22: Was the Right Champion Crowned? was originally published on The Hollywood Gossip.