17-Year-Old Singer Auditions For American Idol
Season 23 of American Idol kicked off on Sunday, March 9, and we have already met so many talented singers! The auditions continued on Sunday, March 16 in Nashville, Tennessee.
Carrie Underwood joined the show as a judge this season, which marks 20 years since her time on the show as a contestant. She even “re-auditioned” for Idol with the same song she performed for judges Simon Cowell, Randy Jackson, and Paula Abdul, Bonnie Raitt’s “I Can’t Make You Love Me.”
Like Underwood in 2005, all the singers auditioning this year have big dreams of beocming the next American Idol, including 17-year-old high schooler Bryson Quick.
The cowboy boot-wearing teen walked in the audition room with a guitar strapped to him and judge Luke Bryan immediately commented on his good looks. Quick revealed he was from Knoxville, Tennessee and his dad had actually taken Bryan fishing a couple times!
He revealed that he gigs around Knoxville at breweries and other events that let 17-year-olds play. Based on his look and his Southern accent, it was almost certain that this boy was country through and through.
But, Quick threw the judges a curveball when he revealed he would be covering Pink Floyd’s “Time,” a song that was released 35 years before he was born!
This Isn’t The First Time Pink Floyd Has Been Covered By An Unlikely Artist
Pink Floyd is one of the most quintessential classic rock bands of all time. They have some of the most iconic songs and it is hard to believe that anyone outside of the rock genre would even attempt to cover them. But, like Bryan Quick’s American Idol audition, it’s clear that Pink Floyd ahs some great songs that can be crossed over to other genres.
Another song that has been country-fied is their 1975 hit “Wish You Were Here.” The Six-String Soldiers, a component of the United States Army Field Band, stopped by Country Rebel Headquarters in 2018 and proved they, too, could transform a classic rock song into something incredible!
American Idol Judges Give Bryson A Golden Ticket & A Huge Surprise
Lionel Richie, Carrie Underwood, and Luke Bryan were all visibly blown away by his talent.
“I like the fact that you brought yourself into a Pink Floyd song. That was a smart call,” Underwood gished. “And you’re pretty darn cute! It’s not everything, but it helps!”
“You’ve got the storyteller kinda voice. At first I thought we’d never heard this before [because] you don’t fit into that genre of that country voice, but the uniqueness is the part that rings the bell,” Richie said.
Bryan added, “Kinda reminds me of an old friend we had around here a few years ago, ol’ Chayce Beckham.”
Beckham won Idol in 2021 and has found success in country music.
After unanimously voting him through to Hollywood Week, Bryan got on FaceTime with Beckham and asked if Quick could join him on stage that same night at the Grand Ole Opry.
Of course, host Ryan Seacrest was in on it and right when Quick left the audition room, Seacrest asked him, “How would you like to play the Grand Ole Opry stage…tonight?”
“That’d be awesome,” Quick replied before realizing it wasn’t a hypothetical question.
The teen was in disbelief!
Before he knew it, he was walking in the Opry’s iconic Artist Entrance to perform with Beckham.
Beckham and Quick performed the former’s hit song “23,” which hit #1 on country radio and is certified Platinum, selling over a million copies.
Of course, Quick knew all about the history of the Opry and couldn’t believe he was standing on the same stage as some of the greats like Hank Williams, Brooks & Dunn, Blake Shelton, and Carrie Underwood.
Watch his incredible audition and Opry surprise below.
