American Idol (season 7)
Order Contestant Song ( original artist when applicable ) Result
1 Jason Castro Forever in Blue Jeans Safe
2 David Cook I 'm Alive Safe
3 Brooke White I 'm a Believer ( The Monkees ) Eliminated
4 David Archuleta Sweet Caroline Safe
5 Syesha Mercado Hello Again Safe
6 Jason Castro September Morn Safe
7 David Cook All I Really Need Is You Safe
8 Brooke White I Am ... I Said Eliminated
9 David Archuleta America Safe
10 Syesha Mercado Thank the Lord for the Night Time Safe
Finals -- Top 5 – Neil Diamond
Mentor : Neil Diamond Each contestant sang two songs .
The seventh season of American Idol, the annual reality show and singing competition, began on January 15, 2008, and concluded on May 21, 2008. Ryan Seacrest continued to host the show with Simon Cowell, Paula Abdul, and Randy Jackson returning as judges. David Cook was announced the winner of the competition on May 21, 2008, defeating runner-up David Archuleta by a margin of roughly 12 million votes out of over 97 million, which was at that time the highest recorded vote total in the show's history. The split was 56 to 44%. The seventh season was the first season during which neither the winner nor the runner-up was ever in the bottom group during any week before the finale on May 21, 2008. It was also the second season during which both the winner and the runner-up were male contestants, with the second season being the first.