American Idol University is in session, and they’ve already found their token class clowns.
Last night, January 26, marked the season 24 premiere of American Idol on ABC, with returning judges Luke Bryan, Carrie Underwood, and Lionel Richie spearheading a brand new theme: ‘American Idol University’. What better place to launch a school-themed season than Belmont University in the heart of Nashville?
Home to one of the top music and performing arts programs in the country, Belmont has produced a long list of familiar names in country music, including Russell Dickerson, Tyler Hubbard, Ashley Cooke, Lee Ann Womack, Trisha Yearwood, Josh Turner, and acclaimed songwriter Ashley Gorley. While the alumni roster could go on forever, one of its most notable graduates is triple Grammy winner Brad Paisley.
Last night, the “Mud on the Tires”s singer popped into his alma mater to help ring in the new class, with a few pranks of course. Following the episode, American Idol shared a clip of the antics on Instagram. The goal of Bryan and Paisley’s scheme? To mess with fellow judge and American Idol Season 4 winner Carrie Underwood. Underwood even foreshadowed Paisley’s involvement when she glanced around the audition room and read the plaque aloud: “I just saw that we’re in the Brad Paisley and Kimberly Williams-Paisley Ballroom.”
Luke Bryan escapes from the desk for a second to mysteriously “go to the bathroom” for 20 minutes, during which he meets up with his fellow country music pal to get wired up. Bryan is fitted with an earpiece while Paisley wears the corresponding microphone, allowing him to feed Luke lines in real time, Impractical Jokers style.
Host of 24 years, Ryan Seacrest details the plan backstage, “Now you are gonna wind Luke up a little bit to get Carrie, right? So we’re putting an earpiece in Luke’s ear.”
Paisley adds, “Basically, I’m gonna try and make Luke say ridiculously awkward stuff.” To which Seacrest reassures him, “We’re not ruining someone’s audition, so you can really have some fun with it.” To which fake contestant Dylan Holmes pops out, guitar in hand, ready to play the part of an eager auditioner.
Of course, like any good ploy, there needs to be some sort of code in case things go awry. Oddly enough, the two singers decide on a safe word of no other than… hot chicken. Because that’s always easy enough to work into a normal conversation? Paisley affirms, “Don’t chicken out! Don’t hot chicken out!” before Bryan sneakily returns to his seat.
Paisley’s first back-stage request for his idol puppet is to turn to Carrie and ask, “Carrie, how much can I bench press?” Confused, she gives Luke a weary “I don’t know, what kind of question is that?” He replies (via Paisley’s suggestion), “165 (lbs) Carrie, 165.” The poor contestant stands awkwardly as Luke doubles down, asking Carrie what she can bench and adding, “You’re in all these fitness ads these days.”
Luke finally addresses Dylan by bluntly asking, “Who are you?” Dylan replies, “Dylan Holmes from Spring Lake, Michigan.” That’s when Paisley feeds Luke another line: “I can’t stand Michigan.” Richie and Underwood immediately react with shocked disapproval. “We just lost all of Michigan,” Richie quips.
The chaos continues as Luke adds, “I don’t even like Illinois.” Underwood fires back, “Well, there’s two states, you can only tour in 48 now. Did you go take shots during your bathroom break?”
At this point, Dylan still hasn’t played a single note. When he finally begins, Luke yells “Pass!” just three strums in, then demands he sing a Lionel Richie song (per Paisley’s inner ear request). Mid-performance, Luke leans over to Carrie to whisper that he’s attempting to bench 175 tomorrow, theatrically stretching his arms at the judges’ table.
When it comes time to review the judge’s thoughts after Dylan’s performance, Luke starts off, “…um… I need more hot chicken.” With the code word activated (and both judges insanely confused), Paisley walks out into the ballroom and reveals the mystery voice behind Luke’s crazy demeanor.
Carrie delivers the final laugh of the segment: “You wanna hear something great? I didn’t think anything was wrong.” Which is honestly understandable considering Luke Bryan has always been the goofiest figure in country music and is known to say a few off-the-wall comments. “Business as usual!” Ryan Seacrest adds on.
Just like running into an old friend in the hallway after summer break, Carrie and Brad go way back, given their long-running relationship as CMA Awards Co-hosts from 2008 to 2018. Not to mention their hit 2011 duet, “Remind Me,” which charted number one on Billboard’s Hot Country Songs. Given his Belmont roots and current home just down the road in Franklin, Paisley was the perfect choice to kick off this bound-to-be-goofy season of Idol.
Watch the clip below: