Idol Chatter & Voice Views

Her audition: Darby Anne Walker, 17, of Los Angeles, Calif., auditioned with the Florence and the Machine version of the R&B classic “Stand by Me.” Miley Cyrus turned in chair in a heartbeat. By the time the song ended, Alicia Keys and Blake Shelton had followed, giving Darby a three-chair turn. Miley rushed the stage to perform a duet of “Jolene” with Darby. Before she made her pick of a coach, she also sang “No One” with Alicia. Darby opted to join Team Miley.

Her background: Darby says her family moved from Atlanta, Ga., to Los Angeles eight years ago — when she was 9 — so she could pursue a singing career. She says she’s played a few places around town, including at a coffee shop near her home. As for her blind audition song choice, she told Carson Daly she considered it “a great reflection of who I am as an artist right now.” She also said the song was a tribute to her mother, “the one person who stands by me.” As for choosing Miley, Darby said she thought it would be a good fit because their voices are similar.

What the show didn’t show:
* According to her Voice bio, Darby began taking acting lessons at age 6 and began writing songs at age 10.
* As an actress, she has appeared on the Disney Channel show “Girl Meets World.”
* She describes herself as “hippy songstress” on her Twitter bio.
* She released her first original, “Take Me Back Blue,” to iTunes in April. You can check it out below.
* On her YouTube channel, you’ll find a wide range of covers, from “Can’t Help Falling in Love” by Elvis to “Heroes” by David Bowie to “Hello” by Adele. Most of those covers were posted in the last 10 months.
* On The Voice, Darby told Blake she prefers indie alternative music, and those YouTube covers include a trio of songs by Lana Del Rey and a pair by Zella Day. I’ve also posted her cover of Zella’s “Hypnotic” below.
* Her father passed away when she was 13, and she says doing well on The Voice would be a great way to pay homage to him.
* In her spare time, she helps her mother babysit children with autism.

Keeping up with Darby:
Facebook
Instagram
Twitter: @DarbyAnneWalker

“Take Me Back Blue” (original)

“Hypnotic” (Zella Day cover)

Her blind audition