Idol Chatter & Voice Views

Her audition: Caroline Reilly, 16, of Cumming, Ga., performed “Somebody to Love” by Jefferson Airplane. She was about midway through the song and a very solid vocal when she enticed a chair turn from Gwen Stefani. And that gave Caroline the very last spot on Season 17. The response from Gwen, who had been hoping to find a young female artist: “Dreams do come true.” Gwen said Caroline’s voice sounds very mature for her age.

Here’s more about Caroline.

* She lives in the north Atlanta area, started taking vocal lessons at age 11 and started home-schooling in seventh grade so she could focus as much time as possible on music.

* Caroline was born in Pembroke Pines, Fla.; her family moved to Georgia when she was about 4.

* In her website bio, Caroline says she always loved music and would play Rock Band with her family “so I could sing my heart out.” She told The Voice she always picked rock songs to perform and was always the lead singer.

* Around age 10, she got involved in musical theater. She was involved in a number of productions, including “Bye, Bye Birdee.”

* She started taking guitar lessons when she was about 12 and began performing, guitar in hand, a year later.

* She’s since tried to pick up bass and drums as well. “Bass seemed to come easy to me, but my drumming is still a work in progress,” she admits.

* Caroline has been a member of three bands so far, and her YouTube covers have a definite rock bent. She told The Voice she’s now part of a duo and performs a lot of classic rock. She told Voice Views that duo also includes Tommy Marcus and they’re still performing together.

* Says Caroline: “Green Day was my favorite band for the longest time and really shaped the way I would play and even write music.” She’s since become a fan of classic rock bands, including Queen, Guns N’ Roses, The Beatles and The Who.

* She also appreciates the musical legacy of Joan Jett and Gwen, both of whom helped provide that women can succeed as rock stars.

* In the summer of 2018, she attended a five-week vocal summet at the Berklee College of Music in Boston and was one of two students awarded a scholarship to return the following year.

* While she’s posted only covers to YouTube, Caroline shared a snippet of an original called “With Me” on Instagram earlier this year. She told Voice Views she plans to release a debut single before the end of the year.

See also …
Caroline Reilly talks about her blind audition and more

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