Idol Chatter & Voice Views

His audition: Justin Chain, 23, of Fort Payne, Ala., sang Luke Bryan’s “She’s Country” for his audition. Blake Shelton turned his chair early in the performance, but wound up being the only coach to do so. Blake complimented him on his “amazing” pitch and called the other judges “idiots” for not turning around.

Background: Justin said his parents sang all the time when he was growing up, so he just naturally joined in. Next thing you knew, he was competing in talent shows and had formed a band. But then he turned his focus to sports. “It wasn’t near as expensive as trying to be a famous music singer,” he told The Voice. He planned to try football at the University of Alabama as a walk-on. But a bad motorcycle crash in October 2009 nearly took his life, ended those hopes and left him in bed recovering until January of the following year. While he was recuperating, he decided music was what he was supposed to do.

On being on Team Blake: “He’s country, and I’m country. I feel we’ll get along real great and be able to mesh better because of that. I’m really hoping he can teach me to follow his lead, but at the same time make my own path. To be comparable to him one day, that’s my goal.”

What the show didn’t show: On Facebook, Justin describes himself as a “good ol country boy” from Alabama who now works at a Cadillac dealership in Murfeesboro, Tenn., where he moved to chase his dream of being a country music artist. He also lays out what it took to piece his body back together after that motorcycle crash — 500 stitches and staples, 80 screws, 13 plates and 25 units of blood. “So I thank God every day I’m still here.” During a conference call the day after his audition aired, Justin said he’s willing to stray from country music if called upon to do so, adding that he’s tried his hand at some R&B tunes and “I’ve got a little bit of soul in me.” Justin has several originals on his YouTube channel, including a song called “Motorcycle Wreck,” but doesn’t appear to have released them for download.

Quote: “So much was riding on that blind audition. I was nervous. And when he (Blake) turned around — in my mind I was like, ‘Please let me be saying the right words.’ Because I could have been signing about green beans or mashed potatoes and I would have had no idea what was coming out of my mouth. I’m just glad it all worked out the way it did.”

On iTunes: Just the studio version of his audition song.

Keeping up with Justin: On Twitter — @justinchain — Facebook — YouTube

For profiles of other Season 5 contestants, go here.

Justin Chain, “Motorcycle Wreck” (an original)

Justin Chain, “Blame It on the Whiskey” (an original)