Well, this certainly isn't going to dispel those rumors about American Idol being fixed. Apparently, judge Luke Bryan was rooting for Abi Carter to win the show for some time now. However, before you break out those pitchforks and torches, Bryan admitted that this was the first time his favorite actually won in all the years he's been judging.
Speaking with Us Weekly, Carter said that Bryan approached her after she won American Idol and explained that the judges had secretly been rooting for her all along. "He came up to me last night [after the finale] and he was like, 'I think this is the first time the person that we thought was gonna be the winner actually was,'" Carter told the outlet. "And I was like, I can't believe that just in that first audition, they had that idea of me and that amount of high hopes, I guess."
Carter also opened up about what it's actually like to win American Idol. She called the moment a lot of disbelief because she didn't think it would actually be here. She said, "I remember when it got down to it, and [host Ryan Seacrest] was like, 'And the winner of American Idol season 22 [is],' I was like, 'Will Moseley, Will Moseley, Will Moseley.' Like, it was just ringing in my head. There was no possible outcome in this. There was no scenario that I thought where it would be my name called at the end."
'American Idol' Judges Praised Abi Carter
It's not the first time that the judges have express their fondness for Carter. Previously, the trio were wowed by Carter on American Idol. Judge Katy Perry said, "Thank you for being an example of singing from your heart. What were you made for? You were made for this 100 percent." Likewise, Bryan said, "That may be the winner of American Idol."
"You're definitely one of the front-runners and one of the favorites," Bryan also said.
Carter is overjoyed by her recent win on American Idol.
"To win Katy's last season is just insane. What do you even say to that?" Carter told the outlet. "She has been so wonderful throughout this whole process. Honestly, all three of the judges have been so wonderful and they kind of pushed me to step out of my box that I put myself in. They've pushed me to be better and greater and bigger and yeah. So, to see them be emotional last night, it was like, 'Woo!'"
