The Voice is back for season 10! Coaches Adam Levine, Pharrell Williams, Christina Aguilera and Blake Shelton have started building their teams during the Blind Auditions, and already we’re seeing some very strong singers grace the Voice stage.
BuddyTV participated in a conference call with the advancing artists from the premiere. They shared their thoughts on becoming a solo artist after being a backup dancer, performing with Adam Levine, having the coaches fight over them, overcoming addiction and what they learned about themselves.
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Paxton Ingram Moves from the Background to the Spotlight
Paxton Ingram is a former backup dancer, so being on The Voice is definitely a different experience. “As a dancer, it’s fun being a part of the background and being a part of the whole production side of it and being part of the show.”
However, getting this chance to step out from the background and be in the spotlight (or the “center of attention,” as he put it) is “the ultimate feeling” for Paxton. So while he enjoyed being a backup dancer, he sees it as “awesome” and “rewarding” to “actually be in the shoes that I wanted to be” in. Now he has the opportunity to fully realize what he’s wanted to do in his life.
Mike Schiavo “Blacked Out” While Performing with Adam
One of the highlights of the season 10 premiere was when Adam Levine got up on stage and performed with Mike Schiavo. That was definitely a dream come true for Mike since Maroon 5 has been a musical inspiration to him over the years. But when I asked him about singing with Adam, Mike admitted that “I just kind of blacked out and went on auto-pilot during that moment. So I’m really lucky I remembered all the words.” That experience was “insane,” as he put it.
The song they performed together, “She Will be Loved” is his favorite song from Maroon 5’s debut album, Songs About Jane, which was “the first album I really owned and it brought me into modern music.”
Speaking of Mike’s audition and the coaches, Adam, Pharrell and Blake were all fighting over him after he performed. And while it may seem to us like Adam was the obvious choice, it actually wasn’t. “It was definitely hard not to pick him after we sang together. But Pharrell has become a huge influence in my music over the past couple years. … And Blake always does a great job on the show coaching his artists. So it really wasn’t as easy a decision as it seemed.”
So what persuaded him to choose Adam? “In the moment when I was on stage listening to them, they all delivered, but everything Adam was saying was exactly what I feel like I needed in that moment and, ultimately, that’s definitely what pushed me to choose him.”
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Alisan Porter on Overcoming Addiction
One of the most anticipated auditions of the night was for Alisan Porter, who has starred in movies and on Broadway. But she also shared her personal story of addiction. She “feels very blessed” that she was able to overcome those struggles and be in a great place right now, both personally and professionally. “Every day, I work hard to not go backwards and keep moving forwards.”
Now that she’s on The Voice, what has Alisan learned about herself during this process? “I think more than anything, I learned that I really still want to [have a career in music],” she said. “I was kind of nervous about putting myself back into something so public and going back into a career, especially since I have kids now and I’ve been a stay-at-home mom for three and a half years.” But those reservations she had going into her audition disappeared and being on the show has “fueled the fire within me … and I feel super comfortable and excited about going forward.”
The Voice airs Mondays and Tuesdays at 8pm on NBC.
(Image courtesy of NBC)
Staff Writer, BuddyTV
Jeff Dodge, a graduate of Western Washington University, has been a TV news editor for many years and has had the chance to interview multiple reality show stars, including Randy Jackson, Nick Cannon, Heidi Klum, Mel B and John Cena.
