Most parents will likely agree that, after their child is born, priorities change in an instant.
Radio host and Australian Idol judge Kyle Sandilands was quick to learn this after the arrival of his son Otto, born in August 2022.
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It has come through in his approach to his health, and notably to TV audiences, in the way he now judges Idol since becoming a father.
From the very first audition for Idol 2024, Sandilands was in tears, when contestant Dylan Wright’s backstory hit home.
Wright sang the Crowded House hit Better Be Home Soon for his late mother, who died a decade ago after a battle with acute lymphoblastic leukemia.
“I knew that boy was singing that song for his mother who died and because I’ve got a young son, he’s only 18 months old, I’m now having all these weird thoughts,” Sandilands tells 7NEWS.com.au.
“For years, I just lived hard and fast and recklessly, and did whatever I wanted and wherever, and behaved however I wanted.
“(But) when you’ve got a child, and you’re 52, you think, ‘I best be careful here, there’s much more to live for’.
“So I sort of thought to myself, ‘What happens when I die? Like, how old will he be?’”
Sandilands says Wright’s story about his late mother hit him hard, and he is now determined to live a “cleaner, healthier, longevity type of life” rather than that of “a lunatic”.
“That guy is a young man and singing about a dead parent,” he says.
“Love that song, Better Be Home Soon, it just got me at the wrong time and I tried not to (cry), trust me.
“But I couldn’t (stop) because it was very emotional in that room.”
Moving forward, Sandilands says “you’ve got to reap what you sow”.
He says that instantly when Otto was born ”everything became so much more important”.
This focus on his health was key during Sandilands’ summer break when he had weeks off from Idol and his KIIS FM radio show.
His wife Tegan is said to be a major help with focusing on health, making “sneaky” small adjustments to his lifestyle that have a large impact.
One of these is reducing the butter on his beloved melted cheese toastie, instead of simply buttering the edges.
“I said ‘Just make it how I like it’,” he recalls.
“She was putting butter on but just buttering the edges and I didn’t know the difference.”
Sandilands could look back at the difference this lifestyle had on his appearance by watching the recently aired episodes of Australian Idol, filmed in late 2023.
“I’m never wearing stripes again,” he jokes of his audition blazer.
“I usually lose a little bit of weight over Christmas when everyone else puts it on,” he continues.
“But I think just getting into a routine (from) having a child, you can improve your health just by being yourself.
“No one wants to die early.”
Australian Idol continues Monday at 7.30pm on Channel 7 and 7plus.
