New song is music to American Idol's ears

Spoiler alert: This story features the results of Wednesday's American Idol finale.

LOS ANGELES — Beautiful Life led to a beautiful night for the newest American Idol.

The Idol's first single release, sung on the final competition night, has tripped up some past contestants. Nick Fradiani's performance of his original song, Beautiful Life, sent him soaring to American Idol's Season 14 crown.

"As soon as I heard it, I knew it was good song. As a musician, if it takes you a long time to figure it out, it might not be as catchy as you want it to be. I heard it twice and I knew it. I knew the words, I knew all the melodies. It was really cool," Fradiani tells Paste BN during an interview shortly after his victory on Wednesday.

Host Ryan Seacrest announced Fradiani as the winner of the Fox singing competition at the end of Wednesday's two-hour show. Clark Beckham, 22, of White House, Tenn., is Season 14's runner-up.

Beautiful Life, which is now available at americanidol.com and iTunes, should give fans an idea of what the 29-year-old Guilford, Conn., native has in store for his first album, which he will work on with Idol mentor Scott Borchetta and his Big Machine Label Group.

In coming up with the single, "They listened to a lot of the original music that I did before Idol. I think they kept it true to what I was trying to do," Fradiani says. "I think the genre will be pretty much what the single was: rock, pop, with a little bit of folky-type feel to it."

He didn't like how he was performing when the Top 12 started the finals.

"When it was eight people left, I finally felt comfortable. I never thought I would win, but I was comfortable. When it got down to four, to three, I started saying, 'Wow, this is a real shot,' " he says. On Tuesday, "when I ended the show and sang my original, I said, 'Man, that felt the best of any performance I had done. Maybe you can pull this off.' "

Borchetta, famed for his work with singer-songwriter Taylor Swift, says he likes that Fradiani is "ready to go to work tomorrow" and that he enjoys working with singers who write songs, which the new Idol does. He also was impressed with the way Fradiani handled Beautiful Life, since he had little time to prepare the new song.

"I think that won him the competition. Nick sang that original song like he'd been singing it for years," Borchetta says. "That's a sign of a great artist. We've got to find more songs like that."

Beckham was upbeat after the finale, saying he remains committed to music. "I'm addicted to hard work. I think that's what's got me this far," he says. "I'm just going to keep working as hard as I can, because that's what I want to do."

Fradiani, who is part of a band, says he has been working a long time to achieve his music goals. "I've been grinding over a decade. When you start getting to be 26, 25, people are like, 'You're a musician. That's what you're going to do? When are you going to get a real job?' I never gave up. I really felt like I could do this. I'm ready to work."

The Idol victory gives Fradiani the opportunity to work with Big Machine and other players in the music business, something he has long wanted. "I always said that if I could get the right team behind me, I could do something specially musically – and now I've got it. Now, it's up to me to produce."

He's hoping to enjoy some of the success that earlier Idols have had and he praises the show, a one-time super-hit whose declining ratings influenced the decision to end it after next season. "What a run! It's really incredible what they've done," he says. "They changed pop culture and created so many stars. There will never be another American Idol."

Fradiani has an immediate post-Idol media blitz and he's ready to dive into working on the album. He will be in Washington, D.C., on Memorial Day to sing the national anthem at the U.S. Capitol, "which is going to be incredible. That's something I never would have envisioned doing in my life."

Somewhere in there, he says, "I actually get a full day off. I'm going to cherish the amount of sleep I get that day."