| Dalton Rapattoni | |
| Birth Name: | Dalton Louis Rapattoni |
| Birth Date: | 6 February 1996 |
| Birth Place: | Memphis, Tennessee, United States |
| Origin: | Sunnyvale, Texas Dallas, Texas |
| Genre: | Alternative |
| Years Active: | 2010–present |
Dalton Louis Rapattoni (born February 6, 1996) is an American singer from Dallas, Texas. In 2015, he auditioned for the fifteenth season of American Idol. On April 6, 2016, he finished the show in third place, behind La'Porsha Renae and Trent Harmon.
Rapattoni was born in Memphis, Tennessee on February 6, 1996, to Kiva Jackson Rapattoni and Fran Rapattoni.[1] When he was two years old, the family moved to Sunnyvale, Texas, where he was raised.[2] He was diagnosed with bipolar disorder at the age of 9. After medications used to treat his condition caused seizures, he was withdrawn from school because of resulting absences.[3]
He began to learn to play guitar at the age of 11, after his grandmother bought him lessons. When he was 12, he started attending the School of Rock in Dallas and also in Frisco, Texas.[4] [5] As a result of the School of Rock program, he formed a local band with friends that was called Fly Away Hero.[2]
At age 14, he participated in a nationwide talent search for boy band members by completing an audition video in a local Dallas mall. He was selected as one of the five original members of the boy band IM5 and moved to Los Angeles as a result.[6] After completing training, IM5 debuted in 2011.[2] In March 2014, Dalton revealed that he had left IM5.[7]
Since 2015, he has worked as a teacher at the School of Rock in Dallas and Rockwall.[8] [9]
In 2015, Rapattoni auditioned for the fifteenth season of American Idol. On April 6, 2016, he finished the show in third place. Rapattoni was eliminated before he could sing Simon Fuller's choice song, "Say Something," and his reprise of "Hopelessly Devoted to You".
| Week | Theme | Song(s) | Original artist(s) | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Auditions | Contestant's choice | "The Phantom of the Opera" | Andrew Lloyd Webber | Advanced |
| Hollywood Week, Part 1 | Lines of Ten | "California Dreamin'" | The Mamas and the Papas | Advanced |
| Hollywood Week, Part 2 | Group Round | "Treasure" | Bruno Mars | |
| Hollywood Week, Part 3 | First solo | "Hopelessly Devoted to You" | Olivia Newton-John | |
| Hollywood Week, Part 4 | Second solo | "It's Gonna Be Me" | N'SYNC | |
| Top 24 | Contestant's choice | "Rebel Yell" | Billy Idol | Safe |
| Duet Round | "Higher Ground" (duet with Chris Daughtry) | Stevie Wonder | ||
| Top 10 | Contestant's choice | "Hey There Delilah" | Plain White T's | Safe |
| Top 8 | Idol Grammy Hits | "Radioactive" | Imagine Dragons | Safe |
| Top 6 | American Idol All Time Song Book | "I Want It That Way" (duet with Mackenzie Bourg) | Backstreet Boys | Safe |
| "Eleanor Rigby" | The Beatles | |||
| Top 5 | America's Twitter Song Choice | "Numb" | Linkin Park | Bottom 2 |
| "The Sound of Silence" | Simon & Garfunkel | |||
| Top 4 | Classic Rock | "God Only Knows" | Beach Boys | Safe |
| Sia | "Bird Set Free" | Sia | ||
| Top 3 | Hometown Dedication | "Calling You" | Blue October | Eliminated |
| Scott Borchetta's Choice | "Dancing in the Dark" | Bruce Springsteen | ||
| Judges' Choice | "Everybody Wants to Rule the World" | Tears for Fears | ||
| Top 2 (Eliminated at Third Place) | Winner's single | "Strike a Match" | Dalton Rapattoni | N/A |
As part of his early training at the School of Rock, he formed a local band with friends called Fly Away Hero. They released two EPs and played various shows around Texas from 2010 to 2012.
Rapattoni was selected in 2011, as part of a nationwide talent search, to be a member of the boy band IM5, which was created by Perez Hilton, Jamie King, and Simon Fuller.[10] He performed and recorded with the band through March 2014. He released the solo single "Stop" in May 2014.
Upon his departure, he reformed his old band Fly Away Hero with new members and released a new EP "Lost and Found" on January 6, 2015. The EP charted to number 17 on the Billboard Heatseekers.[11]
Rapattoni chose to audition for the final season of American Idol in August 2015 and placed third. The song "Strike a Match" was released after his performance on American Idol, and based on just over a day of sales, it reached number 38 on Rock Digital Songs, number 25 on Alternative Digital Songs, and number 46 on Hot Rock Songs, with 6,000 copies sold.[12]
After American Idol during the summer of 2016, Rapattoni moved to Austin, Texas, to begin working on his album at Orb Recording Studios with Matt Noveskey of Blue October at Orb Recording Studios.[13]
On May 6, 2016, he announced the School of Rock Gives Back Tour,[14] where he performed alongside School of Rock house bands throughout the United States and Canada, as well as held free meet and greets to thank those that voted for him in the Idol competition. After the School of Rock Gives Back Tour ended, he announced another tour: "The Inspired Attempt Tour". The Inspired Attempt traveled all around America, starting in Boston and ending in Arizona.
On October 14, Rapattoni released his first single "Turn to Stone." On December 9, 2016, he released a cover of John Lennon's "Happy Christmas" as a digital single. He continued to tour during the months of March and April 2017 with The Acoustic Attempt Tour. On April 21, 2017, Rapattoni announced a summer tour with The House On Cliff and singer Lauren Carnahan. His debut solo studio album, Nobodys Home was released on September 22, 2017. Rapattoni is releasing the album through PledgeMusic, and when fans pre-order the album they will instantly receive the singles "Signs" and "Heaven" off the album.[15]
In March 2022, Rapattoni formed the band King Honey Bee and on March 27, the band released their first single "Velvet Jacket".
| Year | Peak chart positions | Album | |
|---|---|---|---|
| US Rock | |||
| "Stop"[16] | 2014 | ||
| "Strike a Match" | 2016 | 46 | |
| "Turn to Stone"[17] | Nobodys Home | ||
| "Happy Christmas"[18] | |||
| "Signs" | 2017 | Nobody's Home | |
| "Heaven" |
| Title | Year | Album |
|---|---|---|
| "God Only Knows" | 2016 | American Idol Top 5 Season 15 |
| "Dancing in the Dark" | ||
| "Strike a Match" | Strike a Match (American Idol Top 3 Season 15) - Single |