The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City's Britani Bateman was by niece Carmen Lorell Martin's side during her audition for American Idol. "I have an announcement," Britani, 54, said while doing her signature Housewives move - clinking a wine glass with a butter knife - on the Monday, February 2, episode of ABC singing competition. "This is my beautiful niece." Britani then sang Carmen's nickname, Carmenlita, in an operatic voice. After Britani introduced her niece to the judges, she asked if they were familiar with her own work. "Do you know me?" Britani asked. "I'm Britani. Britani Bateman" Celebrity Relatives Who've Appeared on 'American Idol' None of the judges, Luke Bryan, Lionel Richie and Carrie Underwood, responded. Carmen, 20, clued in the judges letting them know her aunt is one of the Real Housewives of Salt Lake City. When the judges did not recognize Britani, she brought the attention back to Carmen. "This is not about me," Britani said. "This is about my amazing, gorgeous, perfect niece who you're about to hear. It's insane." Carmen went on to sing her rendition of "Thought It Was Love" by Ty Meyers while also playing the piano. Carmen's performance brought her aunt to tears and earned a round of applause from the judges. Carrie told Carmen she has a "really pretty voice" and "range" but wanted to bring some "some oomph in there." Carmen decided to sing another song and this time it was a duet with Britani, who previously worked on Broadway. The pair sang "Let Me Be Your Star" from the TV series Smash. Following the duet, Carmen and Britani earned applause from the judges. Carmen ultimately earned a Golden Ticket and advanced to Hollywood Week. "The only way to put you in a brawl is to say yes so you can go to the next level and meet the rest of this crazy class and you'll understand what this means," Lionel said. Before her audition, Carmen gushed about how she's looked up to her aunt over the years. "Britani has always been a very big mentor to me to get out there," she explained. "She has her own spotlight. She's living out her dream, and that's why I'm here too." Brian Littrell Cries Over Son's 'Idol' Audition, Performs Surprise Duet This is not the first time a famous relative has joined a loved one during their American Idol audition. Last year, Backstreet Boys' Brian Littrell's son Baylee Littrell auditioned for the show and was joined by his dad for a duet. Britani is best known for starring on RHOSLC since season 5. She joined the Bravo franchise in 2024 as a friend of the housewives. In addition to her role on RHOSLC, Britani has pursued musical endeavors as well. In December 2024, she released a Christmas EP. The following year, she made her cabaret debut with her show, What About Me: An Evening With Britani Bateman, in New York City. "This has been in the works for a year," Bateman exclusively told Us Weekly in October 2025 of the plans for her shows. "I'm excited to see Luann [de Lesseps] at BravoCon and just maybe convince her to come do a number with me." American Idol season 24 airs on ABC Mondays at 8 p.m. ET and streams on Hulu the next day.