Just on the heels of being crowned winner of season 17 of "American Idol," Laine Hardy stopped by "Good Morning America," where he opened up about his life-changing victory.
The 18-year-old Louisiana native beat Alejandro Aranda Sunday after first appearing on the show last season.
"When Ryan [Seacrest] called my name, my mind blacked out and I didn't know what to do," Hardy told "GMA's" Michael Strahan. "I just forgot everything. When the rest of the top 10 came out, it helped me out a lot ... made me happy."
Hardy performed "Home" by Marc Broussard and "Jambalaya (on the Bayou)" by Hank Williams. Aranda's original tunes included "Millennial Love," "Tonight" and his audition song, "Out Loud."
Hardy performed "Flame" to close the show.
"It's crazy to be able to do this when five years ago I had no idea what was going to happen with my life," Hardy said. "Now I'm doing this."
As for what's next, Hardy said he's excited to reunite with his family.
"I'm going to go home, see my mom -- I miss my mom," he said. "Then I'm going to get straight into working on my music and getting it out to my fans."