For those that thought 'American Idol' was losing it's steam after the departure of Simon Cowell, here's some reassuring news that the show is still as popular.

According to Zap2It, the show was up significantly from last year's finale, with FOX averaging 29.3 million viewers, compared to 24.2 million in 2010. Furthermore, according to Ryan Seacrest, more than 120 million votes were cast for the two finalists.

I'm not sure if there is a connection, but this was also the first time that we saw two country singers battle it out at the end, 17 year old Scotty McCreery and 16 year old Laruen Alaina. It also looks like America is standing behind their votes, as McCreery's first single 'I Love You This Big' is already the No. 1 downloaded song on iTunes, with Alaina's debut at No. 3.

Country Music has seen several great artists come out of American Idol to enjoy success on Country Radio. Click here to check out our list of the Top 10 Country Music singers from American Idol.

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