After months of auditions, miles of travel and millions of votes, Medicine Hat's Kalan Porter emerged triumphant as Canada's next Canadian Idol.

As revealed on Thursday night's live broadcast, the 18-year-old grabbed the most votes out of the 3.6 million cast after Wednesday's musical showdown in which he went head to head with Saskatoon's Theresa Sokyrka.

The shy singer with the booming set of pipes spoke with a shaky voice as he addressed the viewers after being proclaimed winner of the nationwide singing competition.

""I just want to say a big thank you to my parents and my family, the judges, everyone…and thank you to these guys [Idols] who are back here,"" Porter said as Ben Mulroney removed confetti from the singer's hair.

Launching into his new role, Porter sang Awake in a Dream, his first single as a Canadian Idol that will immediately be put into rotation across radio stations Friday morning.

Before the climactic results were revealed, Porter shared the stage with Sokyrka as the