Behind the Scenes of Lauren Alaina's 'American Idol' Vocal Scare

Just an hour before the show aired on the east coast, it looked like finalist Lauren Alaina might not make it to the "American Idol" season finale. Well, as we found out last night, not only did she make it, but she brought the house down for the judges and many in attendance - including "Idol" rival Scotty McCreery.

Closing the show with the original "Like My Mother Does," all of the judges agreed that Alaina should be declared the next American Idol.

At a press conference after the show, McCreery said, "For me, I was about to cry when she was singing because both of our moms have been here through the whole thing 'cause we're both minors and we had to havre a parent [here]. So that song, it was touching to me and it was touching to her, I'm sure. She was crying, I was about to, I was watering up."

It wasn't an easy road getting there, though. Speaking to Entertainment Weekly, Alaina's music coach, Michael Orland, said that yesterday morning, she was convinced she couldn't sing any of her notes in rehearsal. While Orland was reassuring the judges that she'd be saving her voice to the show, Alaina was in the other room saying, "I don't have anything to save. There's nothing coming out right now."

Luckily, the doctor on site, despite warning her yesterday to not use to vocal chords at all, swooped in with a temporary solution.

"I think he gave her something to un-swell her vocal chords," Orland said, "I don't know [what] exactly. I don't know about the physiological part of it, but whatever he gave her, it just numbs the vocal chords a little bit so she can get through it."

Temporary is really the operative word. At the press conference following the show, Alaina was left writing notes down for McCreery to read. When asked if she had been worried she'd be able to make it through the show, McCreery read from her notepad, "I knew somehow, God would get me through it."

The judges have spoken, but we'll see if the rest of the country agrees tonight at 8/7c.