Image Credit: Disney Jamal Roberts was crowned the season 23 winner of American Idol. His road to victory was, of course, nowhere near easy, but he wowed the judges during his audition when he sang Rick James' "Mary Jane." After Ryan Seacrest announced his name as the victor, Jamal celebrated with runner-up John Foster and his other Idol friends. "I'm still trying to process this ... God is so good," Jamal captioned an Instagram post during the May 2025 season finale.