Idol Chatter & Voice Views

Little wonder Celica Westbrook has aspirations of making it in music.

She says her grandparents were singers and her parents were singers.

Now she’s a member of Team Christina on a national TV stage.

And though she’s just 16, the resident of Franklin, Tenn., has been performing for years.

“I’ve gotten very close to making it,” she tells The Voice. “At 14, I was offered a record deal. They said, ‘We’re going to put you on the Bieber tour.’

“I was close to being signed, but it all fell apart. It was definitely heartbreaking, but I’ve grown as a person and I’m thankful to have gone through that experience.”

For her audition, Celica sings “A Thousand Years,” and the reaction to her sound is pretty darn immediate.

Christina turns around quickly, followed by Cee Lo and Blake. Adam had already filled his team by the time Celica performed. Otherwise he might have made it a four-chair turn-around.

After Cee Lo finished one of his soft-sells, Blake called her a “phenomenal, incredible singer.”

Christina said: “You need to be on the radio, like now.”

What the show didn’t show: On Facebook, Celica tells us she’s a “soulful pop singer, actress” and that her name means heavenly. She hails from Erie, Pa., where her family won a local radio contest for a chance to perform the national anthem at a Harlem Globetrotters game. She sang lead, at age 9. Her acting credits include an appearance in a Hannah Montana movie and in videos by Keith Urban, Brad Paisley and Craig Morgan. She also appeared on a reality singing show before — with her mom on CMT’s “Can You Duet,” though they apparently did not make the finals. Celica has four songs on iTunes, including two Christmas covers, a dance version of Stevie Nicks’ “Dreams” (released earlier this year) and a song called “New Moon” that came out in 2009, was written by her parents and was inspired, of course, by the Twilight series. You can hear lots of Celica on her YouTube channel and on her Facebook page. The dance tunes there (“Mississippi” and “Break Thru”) are very good (not to mention a better idea than turning “Dreams” into a dance tune.) According to her website, she’s working on an EP to be released later this year. She told Christina Milian she chose Christina Aguilera as a coach because she thought what she was saying “was right on point.” Besides, she added, she grew up listening to Christina.

Editor’s Note: Check back or live blogs once the battle rounds begin on The Voice.

Celica singing “New Moon”