On Easter Sunday, April 1, American Idol hopefuls in Hollywood will be told if they’ve made it to the Showcase Round or not. One of the big contenders is 23-year-old Brandon Elder from Arab, Alabama. For his blind audition he sang an original song called “Gone” about his mother who adopted him before he was one year old. On American Idol, Brandon said his biological mother, who was 15 or 16 when she had him, traded him in for a car in Birmingham. Shortly after, a woman named Patricia Elder adopted him and provided him with a stable life. Patricia was diagnosed with breast cancer when Brandon was 14. That’s when he turned to music. She passed away in 2016. The song is about her.
After Brandon’s performance of “Gone,” Lionel Richie told him, “You wear your heart on your sleeve which makes for great songwriting.” Richie also revealed that his song “Three Times a Lady” was about his mother. These two men love their mothers. Richie is also an adoption advocate — Great News star Nicole Richie is his adopted daughter. American Idol airs Sundays and Mondays at 8pm on ABC.
