Idol Chatter & Voice Views

Her audition: Marilyn Hucek, 34, Washington, D.C., by “La Tortura” by Shakira: She performed in Spanish and earned a quick chair turn from Queen Latifah. She delivered plenty of sass and energy and that eventually prompted Adam Levine to turn as well. Adam called her “awesome” and complimented her on the fine job she did covering Shakira, who he said is a hard artist to cover. Queen Latifah suggested Marilyn has the talent to win The Voice. Though he didn’t turn, Riley complimented Marilyn for being different enough to stand out on the show. (Watch her audition below)

Here’s more about Marilyn:

* In an interview with City Confessions, Marilyn says she grew up in a musical household, took voice lessons as a child and participated in choral groups. She also took to writing songs to express her emotions, even before she learned to play any instruments.

* In the same interview, Marilyn said she always wanted to be a singer and auditioned for The Voice when she was younger without telling anyone. She didn’t make the show and nearly quit music, pursuing a career in fashion instead.

* “I literally gave up,” she says. “I was like, ‘Okay, I’ll have no regrets in my life. I’ll put this lifelong dream to rest. Put it in a box, lock it away and I never wanted to think about music again.”

* The turning point for Marilyn the artist came during the pandemic. She lost her job in New York and moved back in with her family in the D.C. area. At the same time, her dad, who had been battling early-onset Alzheimer’s disease, got Covid and had to be hospitalized. Because of the pandemic, she couldn’t even visit him.

* So she turned back to songwriting, including writing a tribute to her father called “Memories.”
“I thought to myself at the time, I need to do everything in my power to bring this song to life … I just need to release this song for my dad.”

* She did, in the summer of 2020, around the same time her dad recovered from Covid, “so it felt kind of like a magical thing.”

* Marilyn’s been writing songs and releasing them as a full-time artist ever since. She has five songs with more than 250,000 streams on Spotify alone, including a single called “Vulnerable” with more than 2 million.

* She released her debut EP, “Love and Loss,” in 2023 and a debut album called “Marilyn” in 2025. The latter closes with a song called “Neil Young,” another tribute to her father, who passed away in 2023 at age 73.

* On Spotify, Marilyn describes her music as blending indie pop, alternative pop, pop rock and singer-songwriter influences. She’s a Chilean-American artist who writes and sings in both Spanish and English.

* A recent single, “Self Destruct,” landed in June. She dropped another, “Animal House,” this week, calling it one of her most fun songs to date. Check out a wonderful acoustic version of “Self Destruct” below.

* And she continues to raise awareness about Alzheimer’s, performing at the Music For Memories Alzheimer’s Fundraiser Concert in the D.C. area last month. It’s an event she started three years ago in honor of her late father.

Marilyn on social media:
Instagram
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