Idol Chatter & Voice Views

His audition: James Dupre, 30, of Bayou Chicot, La., auditioned with “Let Her Cry” by Hootie and the Blowfish. He was about two lines in when Adam Levine, Gwen Stefani and Pharrell Williams turned around almost simultaneously. Near the end of the song, Blake Shelton joined them, giving James the sixth four-chair turn of Season 9. Despite a pre-audition preference for Blake, he opted to join Team Adam.

His background: He says he was one of 6 kids and music is “all I thought about.” He got married at 19 and figured a career in music “was not really a safe route to go,” so he became a paramedic. He and his wife have four sons. But he and his wife divorced after seven years together. In 2010, he started posting YouTube videos and wound up on The Ellen Show. That led to a record deal with Warner Music Nashville. He moved to Nashville. “But I couldn’t get any traction going, so they let me go.” All of this has left him living 11 hours away from his four sons and pursuing a music career that keeps him on the road a lot. He calls the audition the highlight of his career.

What the show didn’t show: Thanks to James, Adam finally lured a country singer away from Team Blake — a singer who turned four chairs no less. James explained his thought process during a conference call with the media. “I have a passion for country music and obviously I consider myself a country music singer,” James said. “But I also told myself before going out on the stage, ‘If I do get more than one chair I wanted to really live in that moment and listen to what each coach had to say and just make my decision at that time.’

Adam’s argument about how Blake’s team was already stacked with talented country singers played a factor, James admitted. So did his own willingness to “be outside the box a little.” He noted that he did audition with a song by Hootie and the Blowfish. He said he thinks Adam “can show me a lot of things that I don’t do in the country world, you know? So, I’m really happy with the decision.”

As for his previous record deal, the album that stemmed from it is available on iTunes. James also plays a singer in a yet-to-be-released independent film called “The Price” about a legendary country singer (played by Randy Travis) trying to make amends with the son he never knew (that’s James’ part). Pre-Nashville, James worked for the Acadian Ambulance Co. back in Louisiana for six years; it’s the same ambulance company where his father Tony has worked for about 25 years. James’ background also includes a stint studying meteorology at the University of Louisiana at Monroe, according to his hometown newspaper.

For links to more bios of Season 9 artists on The Voice, head here.

On iTunes: An 11-track album called “It’s All Happening” from 2010.

Update:
Battle round: Defeated Dustin Monk, singing “Fortunate Son.”
Knockout round: Lost to Shelby Brown. He sang “Sure Be Cool if You Did” by Blake Shelton.

Keeping up with James:
Website:
Facebook
YouTube
Twitter: @JamesDupre

Lonesome Alone (original)

She Don’t Get High (cover)

Don’t Close Your Eyes (original)

Blind audition — Let Her Cry