2 weeks ago
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Great White singer Brett Carlisle is advancing to the Hollywood round of American Idol after wowing judges with a rendition of the band’s ballad “House of Broken Love.”
The 28-year-old Alabama native and current frontman of the long-running hard-rock group performed the song alongside his bandmates Mark Kendall and Michael Lardie on the Monday episode of the show, unleashing the golden pipes that got him the Great White gig. Judges Carrie Underwood, Lionel Richie, and Luke Bryan were in unanimous agreement, with Richie stating: “Especially when you rock, you’re going to be the poster child for this.”
Underwood like the audition so much that she asked Carlisle and company to perform the Great White hit “Once Bitten, Twice Shy” simply for her entertainment.
Carlisle now has his “golden ticket” to Hollywood to compete with the rest of the advancing contestants. Auditions resume with the February 16th episode on ABC.
“I’ve never been with that many singers at that level before in a room, and it was cool that we all got to nerd out with the time that we had in the waiting rooms and everything else,” Carlisle told Alabama.com. “Some really, really good people, all genres.”
The singer was appreciative of his bandmates backing him during the performance, which appeared to impress Lionel Richie.
“Mark and Michael are legends,” Carlisle said, “and just to be do it with my guys was really cool. Lionel Richie said that I had a machine behind me. I’m like, I know, they’re awesome.”
Added Kendall, a founding member of Great White: “Well, I was personally thrilled for him. But it was such a great experience [on Idol], and it was so fun. They really did a lot with us. They filmed us all doing interviews, and Brett’s doing interviews, and it was really exciting. It was just a really fun day, long day. Like, 12 hours there from six in the morning till six at night. But it was a great experience for Brett, and we really enjoyed ourselves. We don’t want to slow him down for any opportunities or so we were happy to support that.”
Carlisle joined Great White in 2022, becoming the hard rockers’ fourth frontman since parting ways in 2011 with original singer Jack Russell, who later passed away in 2024. The band is currently slated for various US live dates in 2026 alongside glam metallers Slaughter. Get tickets here.
Below you can watch a clip of Brett Carlisle’s American Idol audition.
English (US) · 