In case you missed it, The Voice is back and we’ve got some local talent making waves on the big screen!
Now in its tenth season, the series debuted on Sunday night August 8 with the blind auditions, which saw a pool of talent take to the stage to win over this year’s judges – multiple ARIA and Grammy Award winner Keith Urban, UK hit machine Rita Ora, singer-songwriter Guy Sebastian and, making her coaching debut, singing and acting sensation Jessica Mauboy – with hopes to collect $100,000 cash prize, plus a recording contract with Universal Music Group.
One of the most successful formats in the world, the 10th season of The Voice is hosted by Sonia Kruger and features surprising new elements, plus the strongest ever line-up of artists competing to be crowned the winner.
New this season, the coaches can have an unlimited number of artists on their teams, but the more artists they turn for, the more they must lose in the following round – The Cut. After the Blind Auditions are complete, each artist must immediately face their coach to prove their star power. Each coach can only take five artists through to the Knockouts.
Also, new this season is the introduction of augmented reality technology, adding a new scale and visual dimension to the design and performances across the series.
Keep up with the latest music news via our website.
Monday night saw Surf Coast musician Seb Szabo take one step closer to having his dreams come true after making it through The Voice’s blind auditions, striking a chord with a number of coaches.
Performing a stunning rendition of Fleetwood Mac’s classic ‘Dreams’, guitar in hand, the 24-year-old from Moggs Creek impressed Ora, Urban and Sebastian with his captivating combination of both subdued, acoustics and his warm and intimate croon, drawing similar comparisons to Chris Martin.
While the judges made convincing arguments to lure Szabo to their teams, it was Urban’s comments that struck a chord with Szabo, landing him on Team Keith.
“I love what you do because there’s a characteristic in your voice that’s really good, it’s really unique and I think you have a sense of who you are and that’s half the battle,” Urban said.
“There’s something in that voice that I want to see what’s going on so I would love work with you.”
No stranger to music, Szabo released his debut EP earlier this year, epitomising Szabo as both an expert songwriter and proficient musician. Having already earned himself a solid reputation as the enigmatic frontman of Atticus Street, Szabo launched this solo endeavour in 2019 with his debut track ‘Tears We’ve Been Holding Back’, and has since seen him embrace a vibrant new sonic direction, with songs that both lift your spirits and empty your lungs.
Check out the performance below.
Last week saw Geelong singer Adrian Hood blow away the judges with a powerful rendition of Beyonce’s hit ‘1+1’. The father of four and well-known musician in the Geelong delivered an absolute powerhouse performance, turning all four of the judges.
His incredible voice and emotional connection to song resonated with judges, bringing Mauboy close to tears and causing the judges to battle it out to have Hood on their team. The connection Hood had with Guy was obvious though, choosing Sebastian to be his mentor, who claimed to be a “proper fan of Adrian” from his earlier years.
“It is unfair on a wide level that Australia isn’t hearing you release albums,” Sebastian said
“You’re a rare gem. I don’t say that often, you’re seriously special.”
Hood is no stranger to the limelight and found early success after signing to P.Diddy’s label, Bad Boy Records, in his 20s. His time on the voice is a second chance at chasing his music dreams. On Spotify, he currently has more than 42k monthly listeners and his most popular track is ‘Brown Eyed Blues’.
Check out Adrian’s performance below.
The Voice airs on Sunday, Monday and Tuesday nights on Channel 7.
