‘American Idol’ Winner Noah Thompson Shares Disbelief Over Win

Country singer Noah Thompson has been named the new winner of American Idol. He stopped by Good Morning America along with the show’s runner-up, HunterGirl, to discuss his journey getting onto the show and his feelings after being declared the winner. Thompson, 20, said he was in disbelief to hear his name and, “truthfully, I came into this competition not thinking I would even get a golden ticket.”

As we learned from Thompson’s appearance on the show, he was initially unwilling to apply, and only got on when his friend Arthur didn’t take his refusal seriously and submitted an application on his behalf. Thompson said of his friend, “Arthur’s the one that believed in me throughout this whole process when I couldn’t believe in myself.”

HunterGirl said her American Idol highlight was, “getting to sing with Carrie Underwood,” and said the year filming the show was “the best year of my life.”

Thompson wowed the panel of judges from his first time in the audition room with his raw talent and approachable, laid-back country attitude. However, Thompson told USA Today that during his audition, he was so nervous, “I couldn’t even look at the judges.” Despite these nerves, Thompson came into his own as a confident country crooner to the delight of Idol fans.

You can watch Thompson cover “I’m On Fire” by Bruce Springsteen here: