Scotty McCreery and Fellow ‘American Idol’ Contestants Ring NASDAQ Closing Bell

With a thunderous applause, Scotty McCreery brought the NASDAQ trading day to an end on Monday, August 22, ringing the closing bell at precisely 4PM ET. The 'American Idol' winner was flanked by a number of his tourmates, and a couple dozen young kids and teenagers. Everyone was very excited to see the stock exchange finish with a modest 3.54 point gain. McCreery has made numerous publicity stops during his reign as 'American Idol' champion. He looked somewhat out of place in khaki shorts and a T-shirt, although most of his tourmates were similarly dressed. Only Thia Megia wore an outfit more appropriate for a business setting.

After being introduced, Jacob Lusk, Megia, Casey Abrams, Paul McDonald and Naima Adedapo took a moment to thank the dozens of viewers watching at home on CNBC or on the web. "I love life and I love music. Thanks everyone," Abrams said to the delight of an off-screen audience.

The group smiled for a few photos, and then the group of children came pouring in from all sides of the camera shot. The webcast didn't explain who these kids were, but each one seemed to be excited to be around the 'American Idol' stars. More pictures were taken, and finally the countdown to the trading day's end began.

Ringing the NASDAQ closing bell is somewhat of a tradition for 'American Idol' contestants. Representatives from each of the last five season's have done the honor.