Jeffery Austin – The Voice

By: Jamie Steinberg

Q) What originally made you want to be a part of “The Voice?”

A) I’d always watched these kinds of shows growing up and “The Voice,” especially. I was at my job in PR and looking at my career path, what I wanted to do for the rest of my life. Before I settled in to that, I wanted to give it a shot and do music. Hopefully, I would give it a go and I’m so happy that it turned out like this.

Q) What were some of your favorite performances on the show?

A) “Say You Love Me” that I did at at the Top 24 show. I had a lot of odds stacked against me with the amount of incredible singers on Team Gwen at that time time. So, I was definitely a little nervous, but so happy to do that song and it got me through to the live round. From there, I was really focused as to who I was as an artist. From there, some of my favorite ones would definitely be “Believe” that I did at Semi-Finals and “Jealous” that I did at the Top 10.

Q) What advice did your mentor Gwen Stefani give you that you really took to heart?

A) She told me not to be selfish with my feelings. People want to connect with someone and feel the same thing you are feeling. It’s how people move on and deal with things going on in their life. They want to feel that someone else is feeling the way that you are. When you share that it’s how you connect with people. That meant everything to me in every performance that I did.

Q) What was it like for you to duet with Tori Kelly at the finale?

A) Incredible! She was just so sweet and so nice. She was so helpful with splitting up the song and giving me moments. We really focused on making it a duet even though it is her single. For a new artist to do that, especially a new artist and so hot like she is right now, it was really nice. She didn’t have to do me any favors and I’m so happy that she did. She really let me have a duet with her and it felt so amazing. I loved the song!

Q) Who will you keep in touch with from the show?

A) I can’t imagine not staying in touch with anyone from the Top 12. I feel like I have such unique bonds with them that I can’t see myself not being a part of their lives somehow. A bunch of us are moving to LA so I’m sure I’ll see them that way, doing everything. You never know! I have some really close friends now that I never see not being a part of my life.

Q) Who would you most like to collaborate with in the future?

A) I would love to do Adele or Sam Smith. Probably my number one collaboration would be with John Mayer. He’s been one of my favorite artists growing up and he’s such an incredible musician.

Q) What is next for you?

A) I’m hitting the ground running and making a go of this career. Just getting exposure from the new platform that I have as being a finalist on The Voice. Hopefully, I’ll make something of it and I’m really excited to see what the future holds.

Q) How does it feel to be such an inspiration to the LGBT community?

A) It makes me feel amazing! One of the greatest things about the show is they let me be who I am 100% of the time. Never, ever did they make me feel that I had to be anything other than me. I stayed true to myself this entire time and to have people reach out to me that I was inspiring in that regard it really touches me and is one of the greatest rewards from the show.

Q)  What would you like to say to everyone who is a fan and supporter of you and your music?

A) I just want to thank them for getting me here. The show requires fans and people voting you through. So, I know that 100% they fought for me to go to the finale so I am so glad I was able to fight for them. I want to thank them for the journey and the most amazing experience of my life. I would love to continue having their support as I continue my career.