Bret Michaels’ “Duet in Heaven” Pick Is a Little on the Nose, but It Would Be a Wild Collab for Sure

Country star Clint Black always asks his Talking in Circles guests one question: if, when you get to heaven, you could sing a song with anyone who is already there, who would it be? For Poison frontman Bret Michaels, his answer to this fantastical question came with a caveat. Technically, his dream duet partner hasn’t made it up to the pearly gates just yet. But if, in some cosmic future, Michaels was hanging out in the afterlife with this fellow rock ‘n’ roller, he wouldn’t be able to resist singing one classic track.

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After all, when in Rome, right?

Bret Michaels Picks Robert Plant As His Dream Heavenly Duet Partner

During Clint Black’s talk show, Talking in Circles, Bret Michaels revealed that the one person he would want to sing with in heaven isn’t actually dead. “One of my favorite, favorite vocalists is Robert Plant from Led Zeppelin,” Michaels began. “He has not passed, and I’m not saying he’s going to pass before me. Robert, I love you. I’d like to do ‘Stairway to Heaven’. That would be…I’m just saying…if we’re going to be in heaven, then we better.”

“I’m not saying I’m going,” Michaels added with a smile. “But I’m not saying I’m not going.” Is “Stairway to Heaven” a bit on the nose for a duet in actual heaven? Maybe. But like Black pointed out during his conversation with Michaels, there’s a reason why that particular record has been worn out since its November 1971 release. The song is one of the most iconic in Led Zeppelin’s discography—and in the category of “rock power ballads” in general. Considering Michaels was eight years old when “Stairway to Heaven” came out, it’s no wonder the song holds such a special place in his heart.

When Michaels was first getting his start performing with a band called Laser in south central Pennsylvania, Led Zeppelin was just one year away from suffering the tremendous loss of drummer John Bonham, which would lead to the band’s dissolution. Nevertheless, the musical catalogue they left in their wake served as a tremendous inspiration for Michaels.

Poison would land their first charting hits in 1986, six years after Led Zeppelin officially disbanded. Michaels and his bandmates’ arrival on the scene helped solidify the late-stage glam-rock movement alongside other giant acts like Def Leppard and Mötley Crüe.

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