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Bret Michaels          

Singer-Songwriter, Musician & Reality Television Personality

After more than 20 years in the entertainment business, Bret Michaels is still going strong.

As front man for the multi-platinum legendary rock band Poison, Michaels has sold over 25 million records and scored an amazing 15 chartbusting Top 40 singles, including "Talk Dirty to Me," "Something to Believe In," "Nothing But a Good Time" and the timeless #1 smash "Every Rose Has its Thorn," which he re-recorded with Miley Cyrus. Poison continues to be one of the industry's top grossing concert attractions.

Michaels' "Rock of Love" television series on VH1 was one of the most successful in the network's history, and he has appeared in several others including "Bret Michaels: Life As I Know It" and "The Masked Singer." Michaels is, if nothing else, a true survivor. He has survived a lifelong battle as an insulin dependent type 1 diabetic and a well publicized near fatal car crash in 1994. In 2010 he battled back from a brain hemorrhage and a warning stroke to win NBC's "Celebrity Apprentice 3."

His first televised appearance after winning "Celebrity Apprentice" was as a surprise guest on the finale of "American Idol," where he brought down the house, and his 2010 People Magazine cover was one of the best selling covers for the publication in the last 5 years. Michaels has written and produced songs for other artists, including Stevie Nicks and he formed a film production company with actor Charlie Sheen, writing, directing and starring in several films. His memoir, Roses and Thorns, published by Simon & Shuster, will be out in March, 2011.

He is also active in many worthy causes. As a result of his participation on "Celebrity Apprentice," Michaels raised over $640,000 for the American Diabetes Association, and his top-rated appearance on a special celebrity edition of "Don't Forget the Lyrics" raised over $200,000 for charity. He's received numerous honors for his work on behalf of others, including the American Diabetes Association's esteemed Chair's Citation Award for excellence in raising awareness and funds for the ADA, and he served as the Diabetes Awareness Month spokesperson.

In May 2020, Michaels finally released his long awaited autobiography, "Bret Michaels: Auto-Scrap-ography Volume 1: My Life in Pictures & Stories," which features select photos and stories collected over his 35+ year career including as the lead singer of Poison and as a solo artist.

Speech Topics


A Conversation With Bret Michaels

Not only is Bret Michaels one of best known musicians in the entertainment world, he is also an astute businessman. He retains 100% of all of his publishing monies and merchandising, and his record company owns his solo master recordings, making the business mogul a millionaire many times over.

His business acumen and marketing creativity led to a win on the 2010 season of Celebrity Apprentice, where he invented the flavor Trop-A-Rocka for Snapple, which sold over 600,000 cases upon its rollout.

In this unique and fascinating program, Michaels combines his knowledge of entertainment, technology and marketing to talk about how he has kept fans engaged for over 20 years. He discusses promoting his band, Poison, evolving his own successful solo career and brand into household names, his strategy for winning Celebrity Apprentice and spinning that into the Snapple campaign, and yes, what life is really like as a veteran rocker. From business to entertainment to the business OF entertainment, Michaels continues to innovate.

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