The Voice – Battle Rounds

By starrymag | October 17, 2015

Q) What would you say you’ve learned, and how would you say you’ve grown as an artist since participating in the show?

Keith: Well I’m pleasantly surprised to find out that I still have plenty to learn, and that’s really nice because I thought after 17 years I pretty much had learned most of what I needed to learn. But I definitely think my voice is definitely got a lot stronger. And a few people have been commenting at my shows here in Chicago that my range has improved and that my just overall sort of technique has improved and sounds better. And so if people are noticing that, that must be a good thing so, I’m happy about that.

Q) Do you attribute that all to your coach, or to what do you attribute that?

Keith: I’d have to say mostly your vocal coach; to (Lonnie). And I’m always very skeptical of these things. I’m just a skeptic in general in life, so it’s sort of weird when I have – I like to be proven wrong. She has made me a true believer in the whole vocal coach thing. And so I feel like I’m stronger, I feel like my throat is healthier, and I feel like I can hit notes and hold them. I feel like even my technique has gotten a lot better of doing runs and licks and stuff, so I’m very happy with that. And I think I owe it to her.

Q) Kota, how did you prepare, what your strategy was and why you think the decision went in your favor?

Kota: So when I found out that I was going to be singing a song that No Doubt had done, I was really, really, really nervous. And it proved to be a really difficult song to battle with. And we rehearsed a ton and there was lots of notes given. And it was really nerve-wracking having to perform a song that was so special to Gwen, to her face and know that she was thinking of it in a completely different way than we were thinking of it. And just the preparation that went into it, this was probably the hardest I’ve ever worked on anything in my life, and the most nervous I’ve ever been in my life. My strategy going into it was I was literally going to leave everything on the table. I was going to show them everything I had. So what you didn’t see was how crazy I was, running around the stage and kind of just singing my lungs out. And it apparently worked. The coaches all kind of said it was just like an interesting way that I performed it. But it kind of pushed me a little bit over the top. So my strategy worked and I’m very grateful that Gwen saw something in me.

Q) Do you think that’s what turned the tide in your favor, just the energy you showed?

Kota: I do; I do. All along Gwen had been telling me to really tap into that passion because she knows that I’m a trained singer. That I’ve been doing this my whole life. And she wanted me to kind of let go of all my technique and just kind of, you know, tap into the passion and the energy and really channel the song and the emotions. So it took me a while to learn what she really meant by that. And I think she saw that I really took into account what she had been telling me. And I think that’s what made her lean towards me.

Jeffrey: So when I found out I was going to be paired with my partner, Noah Jackson I was pretty scared because the guy has got incredible control and such a great tone for someone his age. He’s only 19. And furthermore our song, Can’t Feel My Face by The Weeknd was absolutely more in his wheelhouse. And so I was definitely nervous. And going into the rehearsals, and Gwen and (Selena) that definitely showed because I didn’t really, you know, give any emotions this song. I also am a trained singer and kind of come from that trained background, so when I first dig into a song I really was only looking at it from the vocalist perspective versus a performer. And Gwen appreciates the ability that you have as a vocalist and a technical singer, she really doesn’t care about it if there’s nothing behind it with emotion. And so that’s all I worked on. And really getting comfortable dancing and singing on stage, because it’s not anything that I would have ever chosen for myself or done, but what I’m glad about that performance is it pushed me to do that and it made me so much more comfortable as a performer going forward. And so I think that’s what she really saw, and there was just a clip of her feedback, but it was really all about the progress that I had shown from the first piano rehearsal with (Selena) to the performance on stage.

Madi: I knew I was going to be paired with Sydney as soon as I found out that she was going to be on Pharrell’s team. Because out of everybody on our team, it just made the most sense to put me and her together, not only because we’re close in age but because we have sort of similar styles. And the harder part about finding out that I was going to be with Sydney was that she – we’ve been friends since executive callbacks for the show. And pretty much since the beginning of the whole process and we’ve been going through it together. When I first found out I was kind of upset. But then I realized that, I mean how many people get to sing on national television with one of their close friends. You know, do a duet with their closest friend on TV. I thought it was – I kind of saw the bright side and you know, I just kind of buckled down. And we decided that we were going to work really hard on it. And we really did the arrangement. We were pretty much up all night the day before our reality rehearsal kind of hammering away at the arrangement and trying to perfect it. And I think Pharrell really like it. But what you guys didn’t see about the rehearsals around the piano was that Sydney has this really strong voice that’s really loud and just really powerful. And Pharrell thought that I was going to be sort of overshadowed by her power if I didn’t find a little bit of my own. And he kept saying that over and over again. We would sing and he would say something like that and we would sing again and he would say something like that again. It was really frustrating for me because I felt like no matter what I did, I wasn’t going to be as powerful as Sydney. And I was just going to be really dully compared to her as far as vocals strength goes. And so the time went on and I really just – I worked so hard to kind of find that part of myself that Pharrell was talking about. And the next rehearsal they suggested that we didn’t play guitars. And we both were kind of like, I think we should anyway. And then the day before our battle we kind of decided not to play them. And I think that that’s what really kind of set me up kind of rise to the occasion I guess, because it helped me to sing better and louder. And really kind of showed Pharrell that I was willing to do what he asked me to do, and apparently rise to the occasion like he said. So yes, I mean it’s a bummer that Sydney didn’t get stolen though, because she – like I said, she was one of my closest friends. But, I’m glad to be advancing.

Q) But was it still daunting though to approach the Brad Paisley song in front of him?

Chris: Incredibly. Just because also being, you know, from Texas and from the South, you know, how would I have been perceived if I screwed up, you know, a country legend’s song in the South? You know I think some people might have, you know, keyed my car every chance they got, or something like that. So I was trying my best to – yes, it was a country song. It was way out of my wheelhouse, but what I was telling Blake and what Brad was telling me was, it’s about the story you tell. And the story was very personal to me, that actually I didn’t even realize it. But they played that song at my grandfather’s funeral just months prior. Actually not even a month prior to that. And so it meant something to me and it still kind of does, you knew. And it was a country song but it was more of just telling the story and in my own way, honoring him

Q) Well yes, as we saw on the clip, we could see that emotion. And I think it came through in the performance.

Chris: Absolutely. Yes, I was worried about it because I was like well, because Krista has such a strong country voice. And I was worried about that. I was like well, she’s going to be a shoe-in for this. And not just that, she’s been a huge Brad Paisley fan for a long time, and thought she was going to do it just excellent justice. I remember, Manny Cabo told this, because I was worried about how to sing it. And he showed me a clip of Sting singing the song, Fragile, which he’s one of my favorite artists. And then he showed me a clip of Stevie Wonder singing the exact same song. And Manny said, “Chris, do you see how they’re singing the same song. But because they’re two different people, do you see how they’ve made it their own?” And he goes, just do that man. Just be yourself. And I had lots of awesome conversations with Manny, and that just made me feel better about it. And that’s just how I sang it. I decided well, I’m not a country artist, but I’m going to sing it like I can, and that made it a lot easier.

Q) Apparently, you got a really fantastic reputation in your town.

Chris: Well that’s good to know. I learned a long time ago, as a young man sometimes you think you have to kind of be a douche bag to get what you want. You know or sometimes you have to be cocky. And then I learned a long time ago, like one, people don’t like it when you big league them. And B, life is too short to do that stuff. Just be honest. I just like to exaggerate my exploits, to make myself sound better but, that never worked out for me. It just made me look like a douche bag. So, I might as well just be honest with people. It’s like hey, can I take a picture? Yes,. It’s one of my favorite things to say is, I don’t have any money man. So if you’re going to charge me it’s like life is too short and people just can see through the BS. And so I’d rather just be genuine.

Q) They say you already have so much talent. But how do you feel you have grown as a musician and performer during this experience so far?

Chris: Well with any experience, if you surround yourself with great people you just rise to their level. And everyone who is on this call right now, they’re phenomenal singers and they’re phenomenal people. And being in a place where with all these singers, guys like Manny and Keith and Darius and Jordan and just – I could just – the names go on and on. Like I said, everyone who’s on this call, I listen to them and I hear them. And I as a competitive person say, I want to be that good. And I just emulate what they do and I just want to – yes, so absolutely it’s made me grow as an artist because just watching these guys and how professional they are, it just makes me want to be all the better. Like it really does. It makes me sit back and want to workshop my craft. Because if I take myself seriously as a professional then I want to be just as good as these guys. And I watch what they’re doing. And the vocal coaching that we got obviously from Blake and Brad Paisley and (Churlane), our vocal coach, all that you just absorb it to just get better at your craft and your profession.

Q) Keith, how did you kind of synch yourself into doing that? I mean as they, it was effortless, your vocals. But how did you kind of synch yourself into doing that song?

Keith: I had a little bit of an unfair advantage over Manny on that song because I have sung that song literally maybe a thousand times. I have sung that song inside one of the medleys that I do with my old band, and we literally had done that medley about a thousand times; no joke. I found out that’s what we were going to sing and that’s what Adam had picked, I was like oh, okay that’s fine. Like I literally – I don’t know if you saw when we were standing around the piano and they said, do you guys kind of know this song and I went like, yes. I didn’t know how to like – so yes it was a little unfair, but was kind of fun was I had to – in a way I had to think about the fact that I have sung this a thousand times, but I’ve been singing it from a performer’s standpoint and not a vocalists standpoint. Because anybody that’s seen me play, they know I jump about like a crazy person on the stage. And I always sacrifice about 20% of my vocal ability for it because you’re trying to entertain a crowd. So I was trying to think oh, well wait. I actually have to think about each line here. What would I like to do on each line? And so it was quite nice to get to dissect something that I’ve done so many times. And it was fun obviously working with Manny because I’m sure as you’ve probably seen so far, everyone loves Manny. So the fact that I got paired to battle with him was just the icing on the cake really. I mean I think it was Madi that I was listening to earlier said she knew who she was going to be paired with from the start. And said, I just want to that’s exactly the same as me. As soon as I found out Manny was on Team Adam, we were like both okay, well it will be us two together. Because any other pairing would just be silly. The two rockers and all that. So yes, that’s about it.

Q) What did you learn from Brad Paisley in terms of advice?

Keith: I mean I’m a huge fan, so like anybody that listens to the music I listen to, I mean CCR is just a staple part of it. So you know because to understand where Rock music comes from today, you have to listen to where Rock music started. I don’t know if you saw that recording of him and Adam doing like a jam session where they did one of Paisley’s older songs. And I was like, the guy is like 70-something and he still sounds like he’s 25. I was like, how does he sound that good. And I was sitting with my guitar player at the time watching, and he was like, and listen to his guitar playing. The guy has still got shock. I was like, I know. I was like, that guy could be in our band tomorrow and nobody would even blink an eye. So I was very sort of like I mean, absolutely in awe of the guy. And there’s a funny stuff I wish they would show that happened behind the scenes between me and Mr. (Fogarty). But I’m going to wait to see if they show that in the next couple of weeks as like an outtake or something, because I don’t want to spoil it. But if they don’t show it, then I’ll tell everybody about it after the competition. Because yes, I don’t want to ruin it in the meantime.

Q) Chris, what is the best advice you’ve given to somebody, a kid growing up and wanting to be a musician?

Chris: So I think anybody that’s gotten over a certain age probably the age of 30, we start asking questions. Because most of society, especially as men, they say well why don’t you have, you know, a super steady job, a wife, and three kids or whatever you know the standard is for that place? And in the South as you know very – that’s very prominent. So what I tell people when they ask me that question, why should you keep going; why should you keep doing it, and I once took a music business class and this guy said something I never forgot. He said the difference between — and he started naming these celebrities that are out there; musicians — he said, the difference between them and all the people that you see in the bars every night is he said, they were the most persistent. He said they didn’t let the negativity get them down, they just were persistent. They just didn’t give up. And I listened to that and I really took that to heart. And even when people back home were making fun of me saying wow, you know you’re kind of embarrassing yourself, still doing it at this age. Like seriously, some people are just harsh and honest. And so I would just say yes, but I’m happy. This is what I want to do. And what separates them from me is, this is what I want to do and I just want it more. You know you have to want it more. There’s no such thing as a small gig. You play everything you possibly can because you love to do it and you want to get better at it. And what separates the professionals and the ones that are – who are not are the ones who have stuck with it even through the crappy, horrible gigs and said you know what, I’m still going to keep going. And hopefully you get your shot, you know. That’s what I would tell anybody who was in my position.

Q) And how much has your Christian faith play into that?

Chris: My faith is – it affects every aspect of my life. Every single aspect of my life. So yes, definitely with this one as well, but not in a way that most people think. Because some people would say, oh well your faith is what drives you to keep you going. No, not necessarily. My faith is what drives me to keep going and be a better man, and to be a better husband. And I put my career in the hands of the God that I believe in. But as a professional; as a musician I also realize that I can’t be lazy. I have to step up to the plate and I have to work hard. And I realize whatever God’s plan for my life is going to be, it’s going to happen. But so yes, that’s a good question and it’s sometimes a difficult one to answer, depending on who’s asking it.

 

*CONFERENCE CALL*