Three Yeses on American Idol, Community Heroes & a Brokini Birthday Surprise

It’s Talk About Something Good Tuesday, and this episode is packed with heart, hometown heroes, and a little bit of chaos.

We start with an inspiring conversation with former Country Climb Star of the Week, Julian Kalel, fresh off his American Idol audition where he earned three yeses from the judges. Julian opens up about the nerves, the journey, and what it means to share his story and original music on one of the biggest stages in the world.

In studio, we’re joined by David Whitmore from the Show Low Elks Lodge, talking about their upcoming Membership Drive Party during the Big Game this Sunday starting at 2 PM, and highlighting the incredible work the Elks do for our local community — from kids’ programs to charity efforts that make a real difference.

Then things take a turn into pure Morning Brew energy as Jineane joins us and we recap a brokini birthday cake delivery that lit up our phones — including a call from the birthday crew themselves and a few predictions that this might become a very strange new side hustle.

We wrap with more good news, laughs, and a final reminder to stop by the Show Low Elks Lodge this Sunday and be part of something bigger in the community.

Transcript

Julian’s American Idol Audition

SPEAKER_02 0:00

From the Horn Auto Center Studios, Chris Bennett and the Morning Brew. Holy moly, best friends. Last night, one of our former Country Climb stars of the week, Julian Khalel, took the stage on American Idol uh to audition in front of the judges, Luke Bryan, Carrie Underwood, and Lionel Richie. And uh today he's here to talk to us about the audition, that moment, and what's next. Let's welcome Julian Khalel. Great seeing you on uh American Idol last night. Tell us uh how were the nerves when you first uh went in front of those judges.

SPEAKER_00 0:38

Well, I'm hoping people um weren't able to notice that, but I was incredibly nervous. Um, I mean, my legs were shaking and and everything. My my breathing was was all over the place, but um, I had to remind myself why I was there and uh what the bigger picture was, and I was glad that I had to well, I was so thankful that I got to bring my sister with me. Um and she she really helped calm me down as well, but still feels surreal.

SPEAKER_02 1:04

What did

Choosing “Lone Guitar” And Its Meaning

SPEAKER_02 1:05

you decide to sing and uh what went into uh that thought process?

SPEAKER_00 1:10

Yeah, so I went into this audition um knowing easily what what I was gonna do. I was gonna perform uh an original called Lone Guitar. And uh that song is incredibly important to me because um it comes from a very difficult, dark place uh where I was at a crossroads where I was questioning, you know, why I was, you know, whether or not I still need to be here. Um and it is a decision that I think um a lot of people don't don't really ever talk about, um, and that uh really affects just the world in general. Um and I just wanted to pick something that I would hope could connect with people that might feel the same way as I do. Um because that song, um, of course, when I talk about mental health, I'm not some expert, I'm not a therapist. Um, I'm just talking about personal experience. Um, and I'm just being honest. But I think honesty is all you need um when it comes to trying to connect with people. Um, but I basically talk about what it feels like to me to be at that crossroads, to be in that hole and to feel completely hopeless and like you're like you're barely holding on. Um but more importantly, um, what overshadows all of that pain, and and that is the love that my family has for me, and then the love that that I have for others. Um, and that my pain and what I'm going through extends through the people that love me. Um and a decision to stay means more than than you realize.

Returning After Setbacks And Three Yeses

SPEAKER_02 2:39

We are talking to Julio and Kallel, one of our past Country Climb stars of the week, and a contestant on this season's American Idol. He was on last night's uh episode where he got all three judges' yeses. And uh here he's telling us about how uh this wasn't his first time auditioning for American Idol.

SPEAKER_00 2:58

Well, first of all, they were they were glad to have me back. Um I didn't include this detail, but I actually did audition for American Idol. Um, and this we'll we'll show in the episode. I did audition for American Idol last season. Um I was a year younger, probably not as prepared, but I had a beautiful moment with the judges. I I got all three S's, I got a golden ticket, and it was amazing. Um, but unfortunately, and and I still kept my same message and that same approach to this whole process. Um, but in a way it kind of came back and bit me. Um unfortunately, after that audition, they were shared concerns about my ability to balance a journey like American Idol and my mental health. And I felt like me being vulnerable and honest and and me having that platform um kind of backfired on me. And and it was really sad because I felt like I was being defined by my struggles. I I felt like I was being defined by um you know the my my lowest moments or what I've been through. And and I just thought that that wasn't fair. Um and it took a lot of convincing to get me to to come back. Um, but I knew I'd regret it if I didn't give myself the opportunity. Um, and so you know, uh I I went and I decided to tackle that and to face my fears once again, and I feel like it paid off.

SPEAKER_02 4:20

Yeah, and uh again, you got all three yeses. That's so cool. I'm so excited to watch your journey this year and your your story and what you stand for has always resonated with me. And uh I'm so honored that we have a connection with you, and uh, I just can't wait to cheer you on and to watch American Idol this season and uh just to see what unfolds.

SPEAKER_00 4:44

Thank you, Chris. Thank you.

SPEAKER_02 4:46

We have been talking to Julio Kallel, one of our former Country Climb stars of the week and a contestant on this year's American Idol. Make sure you tune in and cheer on Julio Kallel this year on American Idol.

Elks Lodge Community Work

SPEAKER_02 5:01

I am so happy to have a best friend with me in studio, so I'm not all by myself. It's my friend David Whitmore with the Show Low Elks Lodge. I'm a proud Elks member. And uh the Elks Lodge uh is a nonprofit, right, that does a lot of great work in the community. Uh tell us a little bit about who are the Elks and what do they do and who do they help?

SPEAKER_01 5:26

So the Elks, we're just we're a bunch of great people who love helping our community. Um we do a lot of stuff for veterans and children, um, and just supporting the community in general.

SPEAKER_02 5:36

That's right. Uh I know you're part of the Elks Riders, the motorcycle club with the Elks, and you guys do a lot of uh charities uh benefiting uh the children in the White Mountain, which is very near and dear to my heart. You guys do uh clothe the child. What are some other programs you do?

SPEAKER_01 5:51

So the with the Elks Riders, we all the funding that we get through our runs goes to benefit the um the children's charities in the Elks Lodge that includes our Easter egg hunt, our clothe the child, our kids' Christmas, um our backpacks for school. Um, everything we do goes towards that.

SPEAKER_02 6:07

And uh the Elks just does great work for the community. And if you've been thinking about joining the Elks, it's a great, great uh uh club. They do great things, it's a great place to hang out as well. And uh you're having a membership drive for people that are interested in learning more this Sunday for the big game at the Elks Lodge. Tell us a little bit about that.

Big Game Membership Drive Details

SPEAKER_01 6:29

All right, so it's gonna be um uh we're gonna be opening the doors at two, uh kickoffs at 4 30. It's gonna be a potluck. We're gonna have a ton of silent auction prizes, we're gonna be doing 50-50s, um, some other raffles, um, everything we can do to raise money to help support our kids on the White Mountain in the White Mountains.

SPEAKER_02 6:46

Heck yeah, watch the big game, enjoy delicious food, part of the potluck, and uh benefit uh our local community. It sounds like a win-win. Although one team is not gonna win this weekend. Which team do you think's gonna lose?

SPEAKER_01 7:01

You know, honestly, I'm not even worried about the game. All I know is the kids in the White Mountains are gonna win if everyone comes out and uh to the membership drive there. Heck yeah. Uh that's what I'm care I I care about.

SPEAKER_02 7:12

You don't have to be a member this Sunday. Just come and learn about the Elks for their membership drive starting at 2 o'clock, and the address is uh 805 East Whipple. Janine, you there?

SPEAKER_05 7:23

Yes, I am. Hi, Chris. Good morning.

SPEAKER_02 7:25

Good morning. Happy talk about something good Tuesday.

SPEAKER_05 7:28

Yes, I love it.

SPEAKER_02 7:29

Heck yeah. Um before we talk about some good news,

Good News: One-Armed Hole-In-One

SPEAKER_02 7:33

uh, you want to hear something uh juicy and fun I got to do uh last night.

SPEAKER_05 7:37

Oh yeah, always on you, yes.

SPEAKER_02 7:40

I was telling my friend David, I have David Whitmore with the Elk Slodge uh here with me today, and I told him I love my life because I do some of the weirdest things, and it's just normal to me, and I don't even like uh remember. It's like not that big of a deal to me. And that's why we love you. And I get asked to do some of the coolest things because I'm willing to put myself out there. And you know, Janine, I uh have you ever seen me in my brocchini or heard of a brocchini?

SPEAKER_05 8:07

No, I've seen you in your brocini. Not live. Not live, thank goodness. So I may have thrown up in my mouth a little. I'm just kidding. No, I no, I I've seen you on tape in your brocchini, yes.

SPEAKER_02 8:18

Yes. I might be the only one to own one of these. You could get your own at brocchini.com. I don't think I will, Chris. Oh, you don't want one? Oh no. So I have one, and my friends Frank and Mandy Miller were like, hey, would you be willing to come out to our house uh and uh deliver a birthday cake in your brocini? And I did it for the friend who uh Shadrick, who was turning 51. And uh let's just say I don't think his eyes are ever gonna be the same. He he kept saying to his friends, I'm gonna get you back. I'm gonna get you back. But I'm gonna share the video on my social media a little bit later.

SPEAKER_05 8:58

Uh oh yay. Now, how do people find that to see your brocchini?

SPEAKER_02 9:02

So uh I'll put it on Chris Bennettcomedy.com. I'll share it to the uh Q Country page. Uh but uh, you know, you also might want to wear some sunglasses.

SPEAKER_05 9:14

Now, are you gonna tag my page with that one?

SPEAKER_02 9:16

Do you want me to?

SPEAKER_05 9:17

Okay.

SPEAKER_02 9:18

I might delete it after I'll I'll post it here in a little bit, but you will want to wear sunglasses because my legs are white, white, white.

SPEAKER_05 9:28

That's the thing, is that your brokini, isn't it like a powder blue or something? Yeah, powder blue. I'm not sure I understood the selection of the color because with your white, white, white skin, I don't know, the baby blue, it's just so fun.

SPEAKER_02 9:40

I'll tell you what, Janine. I don't think I was thinking at all when I bought it, to be honest with you.

SPEAKER_05 9:45

Exactly.

SPEAKER_02 9:46

But uh yeah, we'll be uh sharing that to our social media page if you're brave enough uh to see me in my bro Kitty. All right, Janine, are you ready for some good news on this?

SPEAKER_05 9:57

I am so ready for some good news, yes.

SPEAKER_02 9:59

Heck yes, on this talk about something good Tuesday. First, uh my good news is the Sholo Elks Lodge, which does a lot of amazing uh work in our community

The Infamous Brokini Birthday Prank

SPEAKER_02 10:08

for the kids all over. Uh they are having a membership drive this Sunday, part of the big game. So anybody that's been interested in what the Elks do and being an elk and giving back to their community, they could head to the uh Sholo Elks Lodge this Sunday. It's a potluck. Watch the big game and find out uh all the great things the elks do. The event is at what time, David? Doors open at two, kick off at 4 30. Doors open at 2, kick off at 4 30. And uh I have another good news story about a golfer in England. Uh today's uh news story is about a guy who proves that sometimes the biggest wins, Janine, don't come from the scoreboard. They happen in your spirit. Oh yeah. Patrick Duke is a 67-year-old golfer in England who recently hit his first ever hole in one. Uh that's pretty impressive, but it's even more impressive to learn that he did it with just one arm. That's right. He had a workplace accident in 2012 that changed his life, and uh he said uh he was in a really dark place, obviously dealing with depression, PTSD, and feeling like he's lost his purpose. So a friend invited him to try golf, and he decided to give it a shot, and fast forward to a 120-yard hole, seven iron, and a perfect swing. The ball landed, rolled back, dropped straight into the cup, and people nearby started cheering, and Patrick said he couldn't believe it. And uh he says uh for him, golf uh didn't just give him a hole in one, it gave him confidence, community, and a reason to keep going.

SPEAKER_05 11:43

Aw, I love that.

SPEAKER_02 11:44

Pretty awesome. Very nice, but pretty awesome. So, yeah, so we have uh the Elk S Lodge uh event happening Sunday and uh a little golf story. I can't even hit a hole in one, Janine, with two arms.

SPEAKER_05 11:56

Exactly.

SPEAKER_02 11:57

I can barely do it at Putt Play.

SPEAKER_05 11:58

But you do wear a brocchini.

SPEAKER_02 12:00

I do wear a brocchini.

SPEAKER_05 12:01

All right, you can't you guys have a good one. Love you, best friends. Love you too. Bye-bye.

SPEAKER_02 12:08

Good morning. It's the morning brew with Chris. Who's this?

SPEAKER_04 12:11

Mandy Miller.

SPEAKER_02 12:12

Mandy Miller,

Listener Calls And Running Jokes

SPEAKER_02 12:14

David. Mandy Miller is the one who orchestrated my brocini cake delivery yesterday. And uh uh we did it for your uh your husband's uh best friend just turned tw uh 51. Uh tell us uh what was the response like?

SPEAKER_04 12:31

It was amazing. It was priceless, beyond priceless. But little backstory on Chad and his wife Andrea. So Chad growing up didn't really have birthday parties. And last we have some family get togethers with him every Monday for dinner, and he came last um Monday and didn't tell us it was a birthday until after dinner, and they were getting ready to go, and he's like, Oh, by the way, it's our birth my birthday today. So I'm like, okay, came on because you didn't tell us it was your birthday, so you're you're getting it. So me and Frank designed the plan, and that's when we got a hold of you. But in our family, we're big on birthdays and celebrating people's birthdays. So they're included in our family now, they're amazing people. Um our life has fully changed because of them. They're just amazing outright, just like our life changed when we met you, Chris. You guys are just amazing people, and we thank God for you guys. And last night was just priceless and and we have watched it over and over and over. Just because it was just his response was hilarious. He's just an outgoing, just fun loving like you. It's just amazing that we've met these amazing people um, you know, so late in our life. You know, if we could do things sooner, we would. Definitely, but um, it was just amazing. He he was definitely gonna get Frank back. He said the game's on. He wanted to give me a hug. Oh, yeah. He's like, uh-uh. He's like, no hug. Um he was he was running, definitely. At the end of the video, you could see him. He's like, no, no, no, no, no.

SPEAKER_02 14:18

He definitely uh, well, you guys are very special to me, of course, and he definitely uh seemed very special. And I'm glad that uh he got he got to see uh me and uh he saw a little bit more of you than we did the first time we met. Yeah, the problem is I've been doing this brocchini thing uh with Frank and Mandy for the past couple of years, and uh I'm uh the brocchini's starting to get smaller. So I don't know how many more uh uh deliveries we've done. Bleave it on the dryer. Believe it on the dryer. Well, thank you so much, Mandy, for letting me be a part of that. And uh we'll be sharing that video on uh our Facebook here in a little bit.

SPEAKER_04 14:57

Thank you. We love and appreciate you. You're awesome.

SPEAKER_02 15:00

Thank you, best friend. Bye. Good morning. It's the morning brew with Chris. Who's this? Well, good morning, Chris. It's your best friend Kirk Nermi. Heck yeah, we're international, Kirk Nermi from down in the valley. Uh, to what do we owe the honor of your phone call today?

SPEAKER_03 15:16

Well, Chris, I gotta hit you with a little tough love. You know we're best friends. We you know I love you, but for years you always complain about how nobody recognizes how funny you are because you're so good looking. Right. And then you go out and shock the internet, shock the world, and get in your bikini and bring such a level of sexy, I don't know that you're gonna be able to recover from it. I don't know. Who's gonna know you're funny anymore? I mean, come on, Chris.

SPEAKER_02 15:41

I don't know. As Justin Timberlake uh once said, I'm bringing sexy back.

SPEAKER_03 15:46

Oh you you brought it back, you brought it back and back again, Chris. I mean, this is this is a level of sexy I don't know you're gonna be able to recover from.

SPEAKER_02 15:54

Would uh you let your wife, uh Crystal and Ann Beth, uh, watch the video, or are you a little uh concerned uh uh she might get some stars in her eyes?

SPEAKER_03 16:03

If if she didn't work at a grade school, I'd send you into her class. Oh yeah, no, no, no.

SPEAKER_02 16:09

I'll do I'll do I'll do family-friendly uh butt dances where I pull my jeans up, and then uh this is uh just for adults only.

SPEAKER_03 16:21

Well,

Upcoming Elks Events And Scholarships

SPEAKER_03 16:22

maybe one day you'll be like, I'm sure you're gonna be busy on Valentine's Day. I'm sure the entire White Mountain is gonna want you, your brocini, andor your butt dance for Valentine's Day. So you better just clear your calendar right now. Things are things are going on the upswing.

SPEAKER_02 16:37

If you want a brocini or butt dance, hit me up on social media. Uh I don't have any rates set for it, but I do work on tips. Awesome. He works hard for the money. Uh-huh. Uh-huh. Kirk Nermi, thanks so much for calling in. We love you, best friend.

SPEAKER_03 16:55

Well, let's hope people can still recognize that you're funny, Chris, because that was an awful lot of sex.

SPEAKER_02 17:00

I know. I'm just I'm just too sexy. Yeah, we'll be sharing that video in a little bit, and I'm sure the comments uh won't agree that I'm sexy. It's it's not the best picture. All right, we love you, best friend.

SPEAKER_03 17:13

All right, bye. Bye.

SPEAKER_02 17:14

I have been having so much fun this morning hanging out with our best friend, David Whitmore, over there at the Solo Elks Lodge. And uh, you have the big membership drive happening for the big game. If you're looking for a great place to catch the game, have some drinks, enjoy potluck, and learn about the uh Elks Lodge, join us Sunday starting at 2 o'clock for the uh the membership drive. Yes. And you guys do a lot of other great things in the community. You have scholarship drives, a lot of other events. What are some things coming up uh with the Sholo Elks Lodge that we should keep our eye out on?

SPEAKER_01 17:48

Well, besides the the big game and the membership drive this weekend, uh we are gonna be getting our gun shows coming back this year. We're gonna have two of those. Uh those gun shows help us uh get our scholarship fund up so we can provide scholarships to kids from the White Mountains. Um we're gonna have be having uh three motorcycle runs this year if you ride motorcycles. Um all of those are gonna be benefiting the children's charities, um, everything that we can do to help uh help the community out.

SPEAKER_02 18:14

And if you want more information or just to keep uh track of what the uh Solo Elks is doing, they keep uh record of all that on Facebook at the ShoLow Elks Lodge. Number 29. Number 29, ShoLow Elks Lodge number 2090. And uh if you're looking for a place to catch the big game this weekend, I highly recommend you come on out to the membership drive at the uh Solo Elks. You don't have to be a member, just come and learn about the Solo Elks Lodge, enjoy the game, and uh also raise money for uh local charities.

SPEAKER_01 18:46

Exactly. There's gonna be a lot of uh silent auction prizes, 50 50s, other drawings going on. It's gonna be a fun time. We'd love to talk to you about the Elks, uh, let you know how to become a member. It's really easy. Um, and it's a great time, and we get to have fun all year long. Heck yeah. Thank you so much for uh coming in and having fun with this today. Thank you for having me.