’American Idol’ premiered the year she was born. Now, this Kansas girl is on the show
Makayla Brownlee was only 7 when she first sang on stage.
It was the Kansas Wheat Festival, a party staged each year in Brownlee’s hometown of Wellington, Kansas, population 7,700.
The tiny blonde singer got up in front of everyone and belted out a rendition of Miranda Lambert’s “The House that Built Me.”
“I was really nervous,” remembers Makayla, now 17. “But once I started singing, I thought, ‘Yes, this is definitely what I want to do.’ I’ve been working for it ever since.”
On Sunday, the realization of Makalya’s lifelong dream — or at least the first step of it — will play out on national television. She’ll appear on Sunday night’s episode of “American Idol,” the ABC singing competition and star-making machine now in its 18th season.
She’ll be the second person from the Wichita auditions to be featured so far this season. Last month, Wichita resident Arthur Gunn appeared on the show’s season premiere and was praised by the judges.
Makayla, who was among the hundreds who responded to an open-audition call by “Idol” producers in September, talked to the Wichita Eagle via an “Idol”-arranged phone interview this week about her dreams of becoming a singer, what it felt like to meet celebrity judges Katy Perry, Lionel Richie and Luke Bryan, and about Wellington’s collective freak out over their hometown girl’s big shot.
Born to make music
Makayla grew up in a musical family.
Her father, Mark, is a lifelong musician whose always performed in local bands. Two of her four older brothers are in bands, too. Ryan Brownlee is a drummer for the band Morrison County, and Mark Jr. is the bass player and lead singer for Mark Brownlee Jr. and ATG. Mark Sr. also performs in that band.
Makayla spent her childhood watching the men in her family make music and decided she would too. She learned to play guitar and keyboards, and she started singing on stage with her brothers’ and father’s bands. Eventually, she was hired to do solo gigs in local bars.
As a kid, she was also a big fan of “American Idol,” which premiered in 2002, the year she was born. She and her mom would watch it together every season, and Makayla idolized “Idol” winners Carrie Underwood and Kelly Clarkson.
Makayla’s first time trying out for “American Idol” was last year. She went to the open audition call in Kansas City and waited in line for six hours for a chance to sing for a producer.
“They told me to come back next year,” she said.
There was no question she would, Makayla said, and when she heard the audition bus would stop for a day in Wichita, she started making plans to go. On audition day in September, she lugged her guitar to Century II and waited for her turn. Makayla performed “Creep” by Radiohead and “Travelin’ Soldier” by Dixie Chicks.
She found out right away that she’d be moving on to meet the celebrity judges, and the moment was surreal, Makayla said.
“Idol” publicists wouldn’t allow Makayla to say where she traveled to audition for the celebrity judges, but she could say that waiting to sing for them was one of the most nerve-racking experiences of her life.
But it didn’t stay that way.
“The waiting game was terrible,” she said. “But once I got in the room to audition for them, all my nerves went away.“
Makayla said she’s home schooled, so she’s not accustomed to all the hubbub and attention that has come along with her “American Idol” run. Most of the time, she’s just quietly hanging out with her boyfriend, riding four-wheelers or going to the lake with her family.
But getting a chance to live out a lifelong dream has made it easier to manage.
“It’s crazy to think now about how I would always watch it and think, ‘Oh wow, that’s cool,’” she said. “And now I’m on the show.”
This story was originally published March 12, 2020 at 3:51 PM.
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