Kyle Sandilands Converts To Country

Australian Idol judge and radio host Kyle Sandilands might be on his way to finally enjoying country music after last night’s episode of the reality singing series showcasing four strong country singers.

Last night, the 2023 Groundwater KIX-Start Competition winner Denvah Baker-Moller (who we know well as Denvah) wowed the judges – Sandilands, Marcia Hines and Amy Shark – with her soulful rendition of Pony by Kasey Chambers.

Immediately, her unique voice shone through and might even convert Sandilands to becoming a country music lover. Following Denvah’s audition, Sandilands praised the performance and said, “I was never a fan of the country music genre, but my mind has been changed on this because there’s quite a few good country singers coming through the door.

“And if I like country, that’s almost a miracle. That’s how good they are!”

He later proclaimed Denvah a possible winner of the ninth season of Australian Idol, telling her, “You really have a good chance of taking this right through.”

Denvah received a Golden Ticket following her audition, taking her straight through to the Top 30 competitors of this season. You can watch Denvah’s audition below.

Australian Idol continues today and Wednesday at 7:30 pm AEDT on Channel 7 and 7plus.

Last night wasn’t the first time Sandilands was forced to confront his judgements towards country music. Sandilands previously made statements indicating that country music was unpopular in Australia. This belief was proven untrue last year when this report revealed that Australia is the fastest-growing market for country music.

Luke Bryan responded to his comments last year. Referencing his March 2018 Australian tour dates – he’s due for another visit – which saw the singer appear at CMC Rocks and sold-out arena shows in Sydney and Melbourne, Bryan said, “It was a life-changing event. The arena where they have the Australian Open [Rod Laver Arena]… it totally blew my mind.

“I knew that we were going to play it; I knew it was going to be a good night, but going out there and there’s 18,000+ Australian country music fans told me that the market is ripe over there,” Bryan said, responding to Sandilands’ comments. He concluded the video, “Kyle, go easy on us, baby. Go country.” 

Maybe Kyle Sandilands has gone country after all.