Idol Chatter & Voice Views

John Legend has the strongest team entering the battle round on The Voice.

And he used his block to land 23-year-old Max Boyle from Toledo, Ohio.

That impressive a cappella opening to Max’s blind audition performance of Ed Sheeran’s “Wayfaring Stranger” likely had something to do with it.

And the vocal range Max demonstrated once the band did kick in.

Here’s what Max told Voice Views about his blind audition experience.

Voice Views: How did you wind up auditioning for The Voice Season 17 and what prompted you to do it?

Max: I auditioned for The Voice because I wanted the chance to sing on national TV and to have the opportunity to work with iconic artists in the music industry. I just figured I might as well give it a shot!

Voice Views: Why did you choose “Wayfaring Stranger” for your audition song? And to do the first half of the song a cappella? Had you performed that arrangement of the song before?

Max: I chose Wayfaring Stranger as my audition song because it showcases all of my strengths as a singer. It has spots where I can do runs, belt some higher notes, and it has some cool falsetto moments. It’s also a song I sing at almost every gig, so I was very comfortable with it. I did the first half a cappella because I thought it would be something different and fresh for the coaches, and I thought singing without a backing track could impress them. It can be pretty scary!

Voice Views: How do you feel about landing on Team Legend? Did you have a coaching preference heading into the blind audition?

Max: I feel so amazing to have landed on Team Legend! He is such a cool dude and so intelligent musically. Going into the blinds I actually wanted to either be on Kelly’s or John’s team, so John blocking Kelly made that decision pretty easy for me!

Voice Views: What’s the biggest thing you’d done performance wise prior to The Voice and how did it compare to that blind audition experience?

Max: I’ve had a couple big performances but nothing like The Voice. There is so much pressure to succeed and so many nerves that it is just on another level. Knowing you are performing for national television in front of 4 icons is a very surreal feeling, and no other show I’ve played compares.

See also …
Learn more about Max Boyle and his music