Lee DeWyze Wins American Idol | Fans In Mount Prospect Go Crazy

Hollywood - Lee DeWyze is the newest American Idol.

The 24-year-old paint store salesman from Mount Prospect beat Crystal Bowersox to pull ahead in Wednesday night's "American Idol" finale.

The win was a bit of a surprise for DeWyze, especially after Tuesday's show, during which Bowersox soaked up most of the judge's love.

Watch our first interview with newly-crowned American Idol Lee DeWyze:

Watch our first interview with Crystal Bowersox and Lee DeWyze:

"You took [Black Velvet] and you absolutely nailed it," Simon Cowell told Bowersox on Tuesday night. "Since this is becoming a bit of a lovefest tonight, I thought that was by far the best performance and the song of the night. And since this is going to be the final critique I'm ever gonna give, I would just like to say that was outstanding."

In contrast, DeWyze seemed to disappoint all the judges except for Ellen DeGeneres with his first song, Simon and Garfunkel's "The Boxer."

"Lee, I couldn't be prouder if I birthed you myself," said DeGeneres.

"You sounded nice doing it," Randy Jackson said. "But, c'mon, man, pick it up, pick it up ... Get some more energy going."

"I genuinely wish the best for you," Cowell told DeWyze. "You're a great guy."

DeWyze's first single will be "Beautiful Day." He's already released two independent albums: So I'm Told (2007) and Slumberland (2010).

The DeWyze family lived in a modest home in Mount Prospect for most of Lee's childhood.

"There's never been a time when Lee walked around without a guitar," sister Sarah DeWyze said before the finale.

"When we would just sit around in the garage and watch him play it, after playing basketball or something, we'd wonder 'how come he isn't somewhere?' because he's soooo good!" brother Mike DeWyze said late last week.

"They're a humble family," said Brad Schroeder, the family's former next-door neighbor. "Lee's dad is a postman and his mom worked at a hospital so they never had a ton of money."

As a teenager, Lee started working at the paint store down the street. For some strange reason he became a fan of an orange-colored paint called "Tangelo," recommending it to customers all the time. And then, he would unload trucks, tint and mix paint, and yes, play his guitar while people shopped, according to Mout Prospect Paint manager Mike Binek.

For a little over three years, Lee attended Prospect High School. When asked if he was an "A", "B", or perhaps a "D" student, three of his former teachers and deans at the school say, "Depends. All of the above."

"He was always tapping on desks and moving around--things like that," said Julie Stoker, one of Lee's former teachers.

But she and others say Lee's musical dreams were lost on them.

"We knew he had the vocals back then, we just didn't know he was a singer," said Mark Taylor, a dean of students at Prospect High. "We knew about his yelling through the hallways, but not any kind of tune we knew."

Source: www.myfoxchicago.com