Country music star Brantley Gilbert has created a loyal and reliable group of fans throughout the years. As the community continuously stands behind the multi-platinum artist, they recently proved that they have each other’s backs as well.
When an 11-year-old girl fighting for her life took to TikTok to share her heart transplant journey and love for the “The Weekend” singer – his fans rallied together and made it their mission to get the brave Gilbert supporter noticed.
@lonniehutchinson #horse #doglover #tennessee #horses #makeawish #makeawishchallenge #dream #celeberty #country #music #brantleygilbert @brantleygilbert ♬ One Hell Of An Amen – Brantley Gilbert
“My name is Alirix, and my dream has always been to meet you,” the devoted country music fanatic said in a TikTok video that her father posted in early January. “You helped me through my heart transplant, and I listened to you all the way through, and I hope I can meet you. When I was in the hospital, they granted me a make-a-wish, and my wish is to meet you,” she added.
The heartwarming video went viral in less than a day and garnered over 139K views on the powerful platform. It wasn’t long until her message reached the hitmaker, and he confirmed that her dream would shortly come true.
“Let’s do it darlin. Can’t wait to meet you in person very soon,” Gilbert shared. “You sir are one top notch person!!! You have no idea how much this means to her! I remember jamming out to you on deployment to Afghanistan!” her father replied before thanking BG Nation and crediting them for the rapid success of the video.
“He made a duet for us!!!! BG Nation, you rock!!!” he said in the comments. The Georgia native took it upon himself to make a TikTok addressing Alirix, in order to set up a plan of action.
@brantleygilbert #stitch with @lonniehutchinson ##makeawish #brantleygilbert #humbled ♬ One Hell Of An Amen – Brantley Gilbert
“Hey Alirix, it’s Brantley Gilbert here, I got your TikTok. I got to say that I’m so humbled that you want to meet me,” he uttered in the short clip. “My wife makes the exact opposite wish a lot. So, here’s the deal – it’s going to be a while until we post some shows. So in the meantime, hopefully, we can work something out on top of a show, but we’re going to reach out to you and let you pick any show anywhere, anytime, and you come see us darling. See you soon,” he concluded.
Following the touching duet, Make-A-Wish began to work their magic and had the young girl in the presence of Gilbert in no time.
On Wednesday, February 16, the award-winning artist uploaded a moving YouTube video of his experience with Alirix at a private rehearsal.
The clip begins with Alirix explaining why Gilbert’s music resonates with her. The 11-year-old described his storytelling as “trustworthy” and something she “can rely on.” With the help from her mom, she told Gilbert’s production crew that the left side of her heart was too big, leaving the heart valves to slowly leak blood into her lungs.
The moving clip continues to show the wish being granted, as Gilbert brings the fearless child around backstage. With her glued to his side, the two shared a ton of hugs, sang along to chart-topping hits, and he even signed several pieces of memorabilia.
“The hard days make ones like this that much sweeter…So glad I got to meet sweet Alirix and her family the other day at rehearsals…Thank you #bgnatiion and Make-A-Wish America for helping make it happen,” the star gushed on YouTube.