Kris Allen, a 23-year-old guitar-strumming folk crooner from Conway, Arkansas, was crowned American Idol 2009 on Wednesday night’s eighth Idol Finale on FOX.

Kris managed to edge out judge favorite Adam Lambert — and eleven other finalists — for this season’s win. Tonight’s two-hour finale included performances by the Black Eyed Peas, Cyndi Lauper, Carlos Santana, and Rod Stewart. Adam performed with KISS while Kris — a student — dueted with country star Keith Urban. Before the announcement, the two finalists performed “We Are The Champions” with legendary rock band Queen.

According to American Idol host Ryan Seacrest, more than 100 million votes were cast after Tuesday’s singing showdown between Allen and the San Diego-born Lambert. A record-setting 624 million votes were cast over the course of the season.