Bo Bice Bio
About Bo Bice
American Idol runner-up Bo Bice was born Harold Edwin Bice, Jr. on November 1, 1975 in the northern Alabama town of Huntsville. His grandma began calling him "Bogart" because she thought he resembled the great actor Humphrey; the nickname was eventually shortened to Bo. The family moved around the South, living mostly in Georgia and Florida, but wherever they called home, music was always a big part of life. Says Bo, "My father played guitar, banjo and mandolin. My mother and three cousins were in a group called the Singing Jays, and my mom sang at the Grand Ole Opry. I guess that's why I always took music for granted. I remember how weird it was the first time I realized not everybody could sing."
His parents had extensive record collections, and Bo soon began his own, purchasing 45's at garage sales beginning with "Monster Mash" and "Time in a Bottle." He bought his first album, a Steve Miller record, when he was five and was soon enlarging his collection with Boston, the Rolling Stones, and the James Gang. Bo had been rocking out on a toy guitar since the age of two when on his ninth birthday his parents upgraded him to his first real guitar, an electric Squire Telecaster. Bo laughs, "That's not a little thing for a nine-year old. It cost $500 at that was a lot of money for my parents. I had that guitar around my neck all the time."
That same year, Bo won his first singing competition at Brown Elementary School in Smyrna, Georgia. He followed this success by placing second at the Georgia State Competition at the Atlanta Civic Center with Lee Greenwood's God Bless the USA at age nine. Three years later Bo went on to win the state vocal competition in Atlanta.
When Bo was 13 his father's career took the family to England. Bo attended an American school on an Air Force base, where he was a member of the school choir, and met other students who were musicians. His first band, Spinning Jenny, appeared in local pubs. Bo played in other bands during his time overseas, but at seventeen he decided it was time to move home to the States. He lived with extended family while finishing high school, and after graduation enrolled at Calhoun College in Decatur, Alabama where he joined a new group, Purge. Bo moved on to study music at the University of North Alabama in Florence where he joined a new band, Blue Suede Nickel, and later formed a trio called SugarMoney with fellow Purge members John Cooper on bass and Shane Sexton on drums. Bo graduated with degrees in music production and massage therapy.
Bo was a veteran performer, playing regular gigs with SugarMoney and managing a guitar store in Pelham, Alabama when his mother dared him to audition for American Idol. He took the dare, swung by Atlanta and picked up Mom on the way to the Orlando auditions. They arrived at the venue just after midnight, somewhere in the first 500 hopefuls. Bo remembers the time as "an incredible experience, sleeping head-to-foot on the floor with thousands of other people."
In his first-tier audition, Bo sang Badlands' "In a Dream" for a producer, who asked if he knew any Motown. He sang My Girl by the Temptations and the producer advised him to perform that song in the next round. Bo next sang for executive producer Nigel Lythgoe, and though he followed the producer's advice, he followed up My Girl with In a Dream. Lythgoe sent him through to Simon, Paula and Randy, who of course sent him to Hollywood. Everyone was happy, except perhaps his boss at the guitar store, who fired Bo for missing their annual sale to go to Hollywood.
The viewing audience didn't see much of Bo throughout the auditions process, as the producers focused attention on Constantine Maroulis with his garage band, Carrie Underwood on her farm, Anthony Federov and his parents discussing his life-threatening childhood illness, and early favorite Mario Vasquez. However, a five-second clip of Bo singing "The Letter" during the second auditions was enough to inspire a group of admirers to form a fan club called The Bice Squad.
In both appearance and style, Bo did not fit the traditional American Idol mold as it existed in early 2005. The laid back Southern Rocker was also older than previous contestants, qualifying in the 2005 season at the age of 28 because the age range had just been increased to encompass 16-28 year olds. In fact, Bo and Constantine were not only two of the oldest contestants to ever make it to the top twelve on Idol, but were among the first to embrace the rock genre. Whatever the existing mold, Bo broke it wide open with his early performance of The Allman Brothers' "Whipping Post" which elicited glowing praise from all three judges and established him as a force to be reckoned with in the competition. Although his talent was enough to go the distance, it was also Bo's gentle, unpretentious demeanor that appealed to both viewers and judges.
Perhaps Bo's age and experience helped make him so appealing. He was content with himself and with the life he had back in Alabama, and it was clear that if Idol didn't go his way, he would be perfectly happy returning to that life. Although he never brought it up on camera, Bo had impressive credentials going into the competition, among which were opening gigs for Blackfoot and Warrant, as well as live performance and recording with Johnny Neal of the Allman Brothers. Even so, Bo stayed true to himself. On the Idol stage he wore clothes personally sewn for him by his grandmother, Madge Schofield. Bo prays before every performance, and carries a cross given to him by his mother and a small shield he acquired in England as good luck charms.
Following Idol, Bo was signed by RCA Records and his first single, Inside Your Heaven, debuted on Billboard's Hot Singles chart at #2. The flip side was Bo's version of the Ides of March's "Vehicle," which featured an appearance by Richie Sambora. Bo also participated in the traditional post-Idol tour with his fellow top-ten contestants, even carrying on with the tour when he suffered a broken foot during the July 31 concert in Manchester, New Hampshire and despite suffering months of stomach pains. On August 18 Bo was hospitalized for emergency intestinal surgery to remove a life-threatening blockage.
Bo was not able to return to the tour until the final two concerts in September. He was determined to perform in the show on the 11th, which was a Red Cross benefit for Hurricane Katrina victims. Bo also opened his Alabama home to a family who lost their own home to the storm. Despite his injuries, illness, and Idol Tour obligations, Bo still found time over the summer to perform at the Bonnaroo Music Festival by invitation from Trey Anastasio (formerly of Phish). He also performed a song with Willie Nelson at a Birmingham concert and was invited by the legendary singer to perform at Farm Aid. Bo also appeared on Carlos Santana's 2005 album All That I Am on the song Brown Skin Girl.
Continuing the whirlwind of life-changing events, Bo married his long-time girlfriend Caroline Fisher in Helena, Alabama on June 15, 2005. Their son, Aidan Michael Bice, was born September 24 of that year. Hard at work recording his debut album, Bo hardly had a moment to take it all in. The Real Thing, produced by Clive Davis, was released on December 13, 2005. The album features Chad Kroeger of Nickelback and Richie Sambora, as well as songwriting collaboration from pros John Shanks and Max Martin. The album sold around 227,000 copies in its first week, opening at #4, the sixth-highest opening for a debut album by an American Idol finalist.
Expressing appreciation to the producers, judges, fans - to everyone who helped make his success on American Idol a reality, Bo remarked "So many things have come into my life because of Idol. I got to sing Van Halen's "Panama" with Trey (Anastasio) at Bonaroo, and got to play with Willie Nelson, Richie Sambora, and Lynyrd Skynyrd. I was able to meet George Benson, Kenny Wayne Shepherd, Kenny G, Billy Preston and the guys from Anthrax. I'm very grateful!"
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