“Real Housewives” star sings with her niece during “American Idol” audition that she opens with a wine glass

Raechal ShewfeltTue, February 3, 2026 at 3:00 AM UTC

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Lionel Richie, Carrie Underwood, and Luke Bryan on 'American Idol'

Disney/Eric McCandless

Wait, which reality show is this?

Britani Bateman, a cast member of The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City, popped up Monday on American Idol, when her niece, Carmen Lorell Martin, auditioned.

Martin, a 20-year-old from El Dorado Hills, Calif., seemed to adore her aunt and even brought her into the audition room. She noted that "Britani has always been a big mentor to me to get out there."

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Before Martin even began, judges Lionel Richie, Luke Bryan, and Carrie Underwood were curious why there were two people standing before them.

Bateman tapped a wine glass that she'd brought with a knife, in a nod to the Bravo franchise.

"I have an announcement," she said, as she introduced her "beautiful niece."

After she asked the judges if they knew her, the show played the sound of crickets chirping.

Once Bateman told them, she offered her equipment from the toast to the music stars, which they kindly accepted.

Bryan noted that it was time for her to "give away the spotlight."

Martin then played the piano and sang a touching version of "Thought It Was Love" by Ty Myers.

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Bateman wiped away tears after the performance ended.

"You have a really pretty voice," Underwood said. "Your range is really great. You're hitting some high notes in there, but it would be great if you could put some oomph in there."

That's when Martin said she and Bateman, who's worked on Broadway and released music before joining Housewives in 2024, wanted to sing together. They broke into "Let Me Be Your Star" from the TV series Smash.

Underwood declared it "great" and said it "runs in the family."

Bryan said the judges need Martin to "cut loose a little bit," and that he thought being at the piano was forcing her to act "proper." The contestant promised that things were different when she was in front of a band.

"I think that the only way she's going to understand this thing called roughing up," Richie said, "is to put her in a brawl. The only way to put you in a brawl is to say yes, so you go to the next level and meet the rest of this crazy class, and you understand what this means." He threw a few elbows.

Bryan tapped the glass that Bateman had brought into the room to announce that Martin had earned a golden ticket, and, of course, no one was more excited than Bateman.

Before the women even stepped into the room, Martin had raved about Bateman.

"I think on the show, she's definitely her silly self," Bateman's niece said of her. "Just a little crazy, and I love it."

American Idol airs Monday at 8 p.m. ET/PT on ABC.

on Entertainment Weekly

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