Idol Chatter & Voice Views

Her audition: Gianna Salvato, 18, of Freehold, N.J., auditioned with Pink’s “Glitter in the Air.” About 15 seconds into the song, she says Gwen Stefani turned her chair. She turned out to be the only coach to do so. When the song ended, Blake Shelton and Pharrell Williams praised the way she connected to the tune, Adam Levine complimented her on her bright red hair and Gwen said her vibrato was very unique.

Her background: We learned very little about Gianna on the show because she was part of a montage with two other singers. The shows website says she lost her sister with she was 8 and coped with the loss by pouring herself into music.

What the show didn’t show: In a conference call with the media, Gianna said her family was “always playing music” as she grew up so “there was kind of no other choice than to participate.” Her sister, Raquel, played piano, so Gianna began playing piano, too. They also shared a love for the music of Alicia Keys. Vocal lessons followed. She says the passing of her sister was a difficult situation. “After I got myself together, I threw myself into music, into piano, into singing. Then I combined the two and started playing out everywhere.” Today, she says she’s going for a pop/soul type of sound. And while The Voice is the biggest stage she’s graced, she also won Amateur Night at the Apollo in April 2013 and performed with Stevie Wonder at a House Full of Toys event in Los Angeles about a year ago. She’s been working on her own music, which you can check out on her Reverbnation page. And make sure to check out “How Can I Save the World” below; it’s the catchiest original pop tune I’ve heard yet from a Season 7 contestant. The face that Gwen was the only judge to turn around for Gianna didn’t bother her one bit. “She was my first choice anyway,” she said. “So that was great.”

Update: She was eliminated from the show when she lost a battle round match against Bryana Salaz. They sang “Boom Clap” by Charli XCX.

On iTunes: Just her audition song.

Keeping up with Gianna:
Twitter: @giannasalvato
Facebook
YouTube
Website

“How Can I Save the World” (original)

“Crazy” (cover)

“Dream Catcher” (original)