Premiering back in 2011, The Voice is arguably one of the most heartwarming shows of our generation, giving talented musicians the chance to be judged by their voice alone, with no strings attached.
For those who are unfamiliar, The Voice consists of five different rounds: the blind auditions, the battle rounds, the knockout rounds, live playoff rounds, and the live shows. With the blind audition stage that wrapped up on October 16, 2023, judges Niall Horan, John Legend, Gwen Stefani, and first-time judge Reba McEntire officially filled their teams, ready to continue the competition full steam ahead.
During the blind audition stage, The Voice hopefuls perform a song of their choice to the judges, however, they have their backs turned. If a judge is pleased by a performance, they can press a button to turn their chair, ultimately revealing the identity of who is singing behind them. If a judge turns their chair, it is an indication that they want to coach this individual for the remainder of the season, giving them tips and tricks to being a superstar.
While viewers get to meet the contestants prior to their performance, learning their name, age, hometown, and other fun facts about them, the judges do not get to learn anything about The Voice hopefuls until their performance comes to a close. Because of this, it is extremely hard for the judges to connect with the person auditioning, given that they know nothing about them or what they have been through.
This was not the case for Dylan Carter, who managed to turn four chairs after his tear-jerking rendition of Whitney Houston‘s “I Look to You” — the judges could feel his emotion through his voice alone!
Who is Dylan Carter, and why did his performance touch the hearts of the judges? Keep scrolling to find out for yourself…
As a viewer, we learned Dylan’s life story prior to his blind audition, discovering that he is from Saint George, South Carolina and he is only 20 years old — how wild is that?
We also learned that Dylan experienced a tragedy in more recent years, unexpectedly losing his mother, who died of a heart blockage at the age of 47.
Dylan’s mom was always his biggest fan, encouraging him to chase his dreams of being a musician. “I Look to You” by Whitney Houston (Dylan’s audition song) has always been one of her all time favorites, requesting that her son performs it at her funeral one day. When that day arrived sooner than expected, he couldn’t make it through, revealing that singing it on The Voice stage would be “a second chance to make her proud.”
Given that Dylan turned four chairs and caused all four judges to cry, it is clear that he did exactly that —who’s chopping onions in here?
After the song came to a close, Reba McEntire, the judge who was definitely the most moved by Dylan’s performance, was the first one to speak to him.
“I love that song. I love songs when you can take it spiritual or secular, either one… So much emotion, and I saw it, and I felt it, and I heard it when you were singing. That’s the kind of songs that do that to me too,” Reba gushed, choking on her words.
She concluded passionately, “I saw you get so emotionally involved, and that’s when you know you’ve got a great song and a great singer, when it touches your heart… To me as a performer, that is when you really hone into why you’re put on this earth, that is to touch people’s hearts, and you did.”
“You made the queen cry in the best way possible,” Niall Horan joked, before he, Gwen Stefani, and John Legend praised the South Carolina native for such a spectacular performance, trying to sway him to join their teams, respectively.
Before John could finish pitching his case, Dylan interrupted him to share why he was so emotional singing this song in particular: “When I saw you all turn around, I saw my mom. She passed back in October. She wanted me to sing it at her funeral, so I did it. I tried, but I couldn’t make it through it. This was the best second chance. I made her so proud.”
That moment is when the waterworks began to flow from all four judges, leaving Niall, John, Gwen, and Reba begging for Dylan to join their team — he is truly something special!
Reba concluded the conversation with a personal anecdote, sharing how her mom was her biggest fan as well growing up: “When I had the opportunity to go to Nashville to meet with some folks, Mama took me. I kept saying, ‘Let’s pull over here. Let’s pull over here,’ and finally she said, ‘Reba, if you don’t want to do this, let’s turn around and go back home, but let me tell you something, if you do this, I’ll be living my dreams through you,’ and I said, ‘Shoot fire, Mama. Why didn’t you say that at the beginning? Let’s go.’”
This story sealed the deal for the 20-year-old, causing him to join forces with Reba McEntire and secure the final spot on her team for season 24 of The Voice.
He shared with the camera that Reba could serve as “a comforting mom figure” throughout this experience, and we can’t wait to see him thrive as the weeks progress.
Catch new episodes of The Voice on Mondays and Tuesdays at 8pm ET/PT on NBC. With the battle rounds beginning tonight (October 17), things are starting to heat up!