You Probably Didn’t Notice This Fowlerville Teen on American Idol

Season 23 of "American Idol" is now underway, and if you had an eagle-eye and knew what to look for during the season premiere, you might have seen a glimpse of a budding teenage star from right here in Mid-Michigan.

The season premiere featured a few auditions from young singers from all over the country (and beyond), hoping to impress judges Luke Bryan, Carrie Underwood and Lionel Richie enough to earn a trip to Hollywood to continue their dreams of stardom. As usual, the auditions were interspersed with background details about some of the would-be contestants along with banter among the judges.

SEE ALSO: Remember When Michigan's Brayden Lape Was on "The Voice"?

At one point in the episode, "American Idol" flashed some early performance clips from some of this season's hopefuls, illustrating how long some of them have been honing their skills - and that's where you might have seen Fowlerville's Blake James.

Fowlerville's Blake James Shows Up on ABC's "American Idol"

We know that Blake James, 18, of Fowlerville, got the chance to audition for "American Idol" this season, but his audition didn't air during the season premiere. However, a short snippet from Blake's 2017 performance at Fowlerville Idol did air.

The then-4th grader performed a rousing rendition of Jerry Lee Lewis' "Great Balls of Fire". Video of his performance was picked up by a Detroit TV station, which ultimately made its way to Lewis himself.

Young Blake was invited to Memphis, Tennessee, where he got the chance to meet Lewis and perform for him and his wife.

What Is Blake James Doing Now?

Now a high school senior, Blake is still hooked on making music. He was recently named the 2025 winner of "Lansing Has Talent", and regularly plays shows around the region.

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Whether or not Blake was given a Golden Ticket to Hollywood is not yet known, and we're not even sure "American Idol" will publicly air his actual audition at all. But we'll be watching!