Her audition: Gina Castanzo, 18, of West Chester, Pa., auditioned with “Cecilia and the Satellite” by Andrew McMahon In The Wilderness. She landed a spot on Team Blake. “Between your sound and your stage presence, we are literally the oddest couple in the history of The Voice,” Blake said after a performance we saw just a snippet of.
Her background: Her bio on The Voice website says Gina comes from a long line of musicians. It credits her grandfather for buying her a guitar and introducing her to her biggest musical influences, Fleetwood Mac and Norah Jones. Gina performed in choirs and musicals through high school, even performing at the Vatican. She’s also pursuing a degree in biology since both of her parents have science degrees.
What the show didn’t show:
Born and raised in West Chester, Pa., she attended Bishop Shanahan High School in Downington.
She will attend James Madison University next fall and study biology, but says “right now (I) am focused on my passion of music.”
She describes herself as “never shy” and says she’s been performing in dance recitals, competitions and musicals since age 4.
She says she got her start on a stage in a West Chester bar called The Note playing as an opening act and has been doing open mic nights since then.
There’s very little on her YouTube channel, but you can check out five of her songs on this ReverbNation page, where she describes herself as an indie rock artist. She has a unique sound, and “Tomorrow” is especially impressive.
Her website offers up these fun facts: She’s studied dance for 14 years, owns and plays five guitars and has flown on stage twice. Those flights likely stem from the school musicals in which she’s performed.
She also writes on her website: “I hope to be a role model to you all who are viewing my website, to show you that with focus and determination dreams do come true. You can be a student and a musician; I am standing here to say that that is possible.”
During a conference call with the media, Gina said her audition song, “Cecilia and the Satellite,” is one of her favorites. She got to see Andrew McMahon perform it at a music festival last year and says “I was standing in the crowd crying; it was that moving to me.”
As for Blake’s comment about them being “the oddest couple in Voice history, Gina says she found it “cool” to have the show’s country coach “turning around for me and recognizing that, although I wasn’t a country artist, I had something unique to bring to the table. I’m so excited to get to see what Blake thinks of my voice even though it’s not what he’s used to.”
Keeping up with Gina:
Twitter: @gina_castanzo
Website
Facebook
YouTube
“Come Away with Me” (Norah Jones cover)
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