Who is Steven Flockhart? The pastor who appeared on American Idol has now been arrested

Starring in hugely popular television contests such as American Idol and The Voice can end up with your face being plastered over swaths of front pages and promotional material. It’s the fame that many entering the singing competitions dream of. Well, for Steven Flockart, pastor of 901 Church in Shelby County, Memphis, he is making headlines for very different reasons, and of a much uglier nature.

Steven Flockhart: American Idol to prison cell

Based on information from the church’s own website, Flockart has been the lead pastor with them for over a decade and looks after two separate locations. The incident that saw him arrested last Thursday was explained in an affidavit, detailing that three years ago he had opened a joint credit card account with another member of the church. That victim in the case said that he had handed over his personal information needed for that to happen, but had not given permission for the account to be in his name.

Fast forward and the unnamed victim sees his credit score plummet and then discovered via PayPal that there was an unpaid bill of $6,500 on a credit card in his name. According to court documentation, Flockart did admit to opening the account, and further information has been revealed about him having done something similar at a church in Georgia, including forging documents, which saw a lawsuit raised in 2020.

Flockart appears in court today, Monday 6 November.

The church released a statement on the situation.

“While we do not find the allegations factual, we believe that vindication is from God and firm in His sovereignty and truth. We exist so that people would be reached and lives would be changed.

“Please pray for our pastor and his family, for the hearts of those who seek to attack him and the church, and our community.”

Who is Steven Flockart?

According to the 901 Church website, “Stevie” mixed music with the church ministries, before feeling a calling from God to focus his time and become a pastor. Supported by his wife, he was to lead the salvation of over 1200 people locally and others further afield. Here are the words from the institution, which remain after his arrest.

‘For 12 years Stevie was heavily involved in the music industry but also served the local church in various worship and creative arts ministries.

‘But, in 2012, after briefly appearing on American Idol and then being selected as a contestant on The Voice… God made it clear that he was supposed to walk away from what could have been a very prominent music career, and that he was supposed to Pastor and Lead people to advance the Gospel of Jesus Christ. So with the support of his incredible wife Whitney, they spent 2 years preparing to do just that. In the past 4 years they have allowed God to use them to see over 1200 people give their lives to Jesus just in the local church, and hundreds more throughout the country.

‘They know that God has brought them back to the 901 so that people would continue to be reached and lives would continue to be changed.’