The declaration came as a surprise because Adam Lambert has been a strong contender throughout and has enjoyed a lot of popularity with the judges and audience, alike. However the casting of 100 million votes decided Kris’s victory.

The two hour finale show saw the contestants singing duets with well-known recording artists. Allen paired up with renowned country singer Keith Urban, to sing “Kiss a Girl.” Danny Gokey, the third-runner up in Idol performed a medley with Lionel Richie. Alison Iraheta, sang "Time After Time" with Cyndi Lauper.

Lambert teamed up with rock band Kiss to give a stellar performance of their songs "Detroit Rock City" and "I Wanna Rock and Roll All Nite.” All thirteen finalists of Season 8 made an appearance on the show singing "Black Magic Woman" and "Smooth.” Finally, Kris and Lambert matched their vocals with Queen singing "We Are the Champions."

With the Season 8 finale crowning Kris Allen the victor, it remains to be seen whether his popularity would ensure sales of his debut album. Only a handful of previous Idol winners have enjoyed any major musical success.

With everyone gripped by edge-of-the seat suspense, Danny Gokey was finally declared to be the voter’s choice for elimination. This was unfortunate because the 29 -year old has never featured in the bottom three, throughout the past weeks. The noteworthy singer presented his rendition of  Joe Cracker’s You are so Beautiful as his final goodbye to the judges and audience on Idol. Danny is a music teacher and a Church music director and hails from Milwaukee.

The show also featured footage of the three contenders-Danny, Kris Allen and Adam Lambert on their hometown visits(following American Idol tradition).This gave the audience a chance to catch glimpses of Adam in San Diego, Kris in central Arkansas and Danny in Milwaukee.

The audience were also treated to performances by season 6 winner Jordin Sparks, who chose to present the song Battlefield and Katy Perry who gave her version of Waking Up in Vegas. The latter drew attention for her dress which showed Adam Lambert’s name in eye-catching embroidery across the back.

Watch the Two finalists- 23 year old Kris Allen and 27-year old Adam Lambert battle it out for the top spot in American Idol next week.

Danny Gokey was up first singing “Dance Little Sister” chosen for him by Paula. While Randy appreciated his performance, Kara DioGardi was not too impressed with his dancing skills. Paula however drew attention to the fact that she is a dance choreographer, and asserted that his performance was satisfactory. Danny’s second song “You Are So Beautiful” earned him more laurels from the judges.

Next up on stage was Kris Allen, with the song “Apologise”chosen for him by Kara and Randy. Kara felt that his performance was decent enough, but not superlative. Simon Cowell however, was extremely critical of the song choice and Kara and Simon had a dramatic spat. Kris’s second act, singing “Heartless” fared better with the judges, with Kara going to the extent of calling it “fearless and bold.”

Finally Adam Lambert, a favorite with the judges, took the stage to sing “One” by U2. This was picked for him by Simon and was immensely appreciated by the entire team of judges. For his second act, Adam picked the Aerosmith song Cryin’ , delivering another stellar performance. Thus, it came to nobody’s surprise when the judges predicted that Adam would be there in the finals.

Watch out for the results night, to find out who makes it to the season 8 finale.

The theme this week was Rock n Roll. Adam was the first one to take the stage. With his version of “Whole Lot of Love”  he managed to impress both the judges and audience alike. Randy Jackson praised him saying, “You’re a rock star tonight” while Simon Cowell went as far as to say, ”nobody can top that now!”

Allison Iraheta chose to sing Janis Joplin’s song “Cry Baby.” The judges were far from impressed with her choice of song and singing. However, judge Cowell acknowledges that at least her vocal quality is good, while Paula says that she’s fit for the role of Janis Joplin, if any movie is made on her.

The 17-yr old singer’s performance is followed by the first of the night’s duets by Danny Gokey and Kris Allen. The performance was not top-notch stuff, however the judges received it well. Next up was Kris Allen singing “Come Together.” The singer gave a very lukewarm performance, with Kara frankly stating, it was “not a great performance” and Cowell comparing it to eating ice, saying that “it leaves nothing to remember.”

It is Danny’s turn next, however nothing good can be said for his performance. Paula disapproves of his song selection, while Kara said he took the advice to add swagger in his act too seriously. Adam and Iraheta roundup the night singing the duet “Take it Easy.”

Watch out for tomorrow’s result night to know who is eliminated from American Idol this week.

Matt Giruad, who has so far survived due to a wild card entry in the Top 13, and a Judges’ save, found himself in the bottom three again.

Host Ryan Seacrest divided the group into those who were safe and those who were not. Everyone was in for a shock as Kris Allen and Adam Lambert, both of whom have consistently performed well, were declared to be in the bottom three.

Matt, the 23-yr old from Kentucky has never been popular with the voting public. Retaining the element of suspense, Kris was declared safe and Adam and Giraud were left sharing the stage .Finally, 47 million voters decided that Giraud was not Idol-worthy material and he was eliminated from the show.

The show saw a noteworthy performance by soul singer Natalie Cole. One-time "American Idol" winner Taylor Hicks took the stage next. The performances were rounded up by a number from actor/singer Jamie Foxx, who had prepared the five contestants for the performance show this week.

With only 4 contestants left on the popular reality show, the competition is bound to hotten up. Keep watching American Idol to find out who’s on the chopping block next week.

The theme this week was Disco numbers. The Idol wannabes gave an engaging group performance, although it was obvious they were lip-synching. Judge Paula had choreographed the song, and their dancing was better certainly better than ever.

The night also saw David Archuleta, Season 7 runner up giving an impressive performance. Coming to the eliminations, this time Ryan did not follow the show’s usual keep them guessing till the last minute game.

Lil Rounds was the first to know that she was in the bottom three. This came as no surprise to those who had been watching the show religiously. However, the audience was somwhat taken aback when Ryan immediately announced that Lil Rounds will no longer be part of the show. What happened to all the suspense guys?

Subsequently, we saw Kris, Danny and Adam being declared safe. Anoop and Allison found themselves in the bottom three. While many critics would have felt that Allison’s inclusion was undeserved, Anoop’s position was more or less expected.

Finally, Anoop is shown the door and makes his exit after singing "Dim All the Lights" one last time. Thus Alison becomes part of the Top 5 this season.

The Wednesday night show also featured popular Disco legends Harry Wayne "KC" Casey from KC and the Sunshine Band, Thelma Houston and Freda Payne,  performing very memorable disco numbers including "Get Down Tonight," "Don’t Leave Me This Way" and "Band of Gold."

Joining Giraud in the bottom three were Anoop Desai and Lil Rounds. Both names were predictable for anyone who’s been following their performances religiously. However, the two were declared safe, turning the fire onto Giraud.

While the judges Cowell, Paula Abdul, Randy Jackson and Kara DioGuardi spent time discussing, Giraud offered up a not-so-great rendition of Bryan Adams’ hit song, "Have You Ever Really Loved A Woman." The judges however were united in wanting to keep the talented Giraud on the show.

Giraud’s save implies that in the next show, two contestants among the Top 7 will be shown the door. However, the unfortunate part is that no other Idol wannabe will have the chance to be saved by the judges, so it puts additional pressure on the performers.

Before winding up, the show saw the return of former-contestant and Oscar-winner Jennifer Hudson. Hudson has clearly proven to be the most successful person of all who got noticed through the highly popular show.
She performed a song from her recently released album , which was followed by an act from popular singer Miley Cyrus.

Now down to 7 contestants, the theme for this week is ‘Idols at the Movies’. Famous Director Quentin Tarantino served as mentor for the Idol wannabes, directing them in their song selection.

Allison Iraheta gave a good performance, although it was by no means stellar, particularly when compared to her previous acts. The 16-yr-old singer received an enthusiastic response from the audience.

Singing next was Anoop Desai who showed marked improvement with his rendition of Everything I Do, I Do For You. His subtle nuances and held notes were commendable.

Adam Lambert sang well as usual but owing the high expectations everyone has from him, his performance did not appear to be outstanding. Paula Abdul praised him for his experimental style, saying that he was one of the bravest contestants ever.

Matt Giraud accompanied his chosen song- Have You Ever Loved A Woman on the piano. His attempt at falsetto were nothing noteworthy and the judges said so, with Randy saying, "It started out kind of cool but then got pitchy. You feel down in places."

On Danny Gokey’s Endless Love, Simon Cowell commented that while it was a very traditional version that he sang, it was a personal song and he had done it well. Kris Allen’s performance was distinguished from others because of the accompanying violin he played.

Lil Rounds who sang The Rose was compelled to defend her choice of song, when Cowell told her that he was getting frustrated at her inability to deliver performances matching her earlier ones.

While Matt Giraud seems to be the weakest contestant, we will have to wait till the results night to find out who is shown the door. Former Idol contestant Jennifer Hudson and Mily Cyrus will from a part of the American Idol’s Wednesday night show.

Rapper Flo Rida, received great response for singing "Right Round" and Kellie Pickler who had been sixth in Season 5 of American Idol also sang decently, although her shouting was bit of a turn-off.
The group song sung this time, was undoubtedly live, as was obvious from the off-key notes.

Coming to the contestants, the bottom three consisted of Anoop Desai, Scott Macintyre and Lil Rounds. Lil who featured first in the bottom three for the first time, was also the first one to be sent back to the safety seat.

Fans of Desai had to wait with baited breath, until their favorite was declared safe. Ryan Seacrest added to the drama of the night, when he stated that only 30,000 votes separated Desai from Mr.Macintyre.

To keep alive the element of suspense, the judges declared they were split on the decision of whether or not to save Scott. Simon placed what the audience felt in a nutshell when he said they they like Scott, “but are there people on the couch more talented than he?” Since the judges can only use their veto power once during the show, they ultimately decided that Scott wasn’t going to be the one. Thus it was the end of the road for the 23-yr-old from Arizona. While the results weren’t much of a surprise, Scott did get a warm goodbye from the judges.

Paula particularly heaped praise in him saying "Scott, you’re an inspiration to the entire world," she says. "You’re a classy gentleman, and we love you."

With 34 million votes being cast this week, there are now seven finalists left on this immensely popular show-Adam Lambert, Danny Gokey, Allison Iraheta, Kris Allen, Matt Giraud, Anoop Desai and Lil Rounds.

In an attempt to heighten the element of suspense, no contestant was told whether he or she was safe until the second half hour of the show. The drama on the show reached its heights when Megan Joy was bluntly told that her song would be her last performance in American Idol. In exact words, judge Simon Cowell said, "Megan, with the greatest respect, when you said that you don’t care—nor do we,"  "So I’m not going to pretend that we’re even going to contemplate saving you."

While Megan made a lot of effort to redeem herself, including doing bird impressions, she failed to impress viewers. Her ouster came in as no surprise since she had been seen struggling since the beginning of Season 8. The 20-yr-old sang her own rendition of "Turn Your Lights Down Low" before exiting the show.

Meanwhile, Allison Iraheta found herself stuck in the bottom three again, indicating that her rock based singing offers is isn’t going down well with the viewers. She also drew attention and comments for her wacky hairdo and costume. The trio was made complete by Anoop Desai, who was in for the first time. His Usher impersonation had not been met with much enthusiasm.

The theme for American Idol this week was the good old country music. Contestants performed music from the Grand Ole Opry, most of them choosing to perform the best-known songs of the genre.  TV Viewers should watch out for next week’s performance when the top eight will perform songs from the year they were born in.