Idol Chatter & Voice Views

Johnny Gates of The Voice Season 12 released his debut EP Friday.

In fact, the four-song EP he released Friday is his first. It features a single called “Dive Bar.”

And, nope, that’s not a cover of a Garth Brooks/Blake Shelton duet.

But, yep, it’s certainly worth a listen as Johnny lends his distinct vocals to the tale of a guy escaping to a dive bar to forget a lost love.

We met Johnny on Season 12 of The Voice, when he made the Top 20 as a step toward forging a solo career.

Prior to that, he was lead singer for the rock band Runaway Saints. They move from Rhode Island to Nashville in 2008, signed a major label deal, and toured with Rod Stewart, but eventually parted ways with the label.

Johnny says he headed to L.A. to “hit refresh.”

“I knew it wasn’t forever,” he writes on Facebook. “Nashville was my forever. But the second I got to LA, I was an unknown artist trying to survive, and I got to work.

“This EP is a product of that. It’s a product of writing songs alone, writing songs with my best friends, recording in apartments, with no agenda, dealing with noise complaints, and angry neighbors, sometimes kinda buzzed, and having fun, and learning, and getting better, and just being myself.”

Johnny says more music is coming, along with a fall tour announcement. You can also follow him on Instagram.

Here’s a snippet of “Dive Bar” from that self-titled EP.

See also …
Post-Voice albums and EPs from 2019
Post-Voice singles and music videos from 2019