Idol Chatter & Voice Views

Her audition: Kaleigh Glanton, 20, Wichita, Kan., auditioned for The Voice with “Have You Ever Seen the Rain.” She immediately displayed a unique tone to her voice, turning in a performance that just kept getting stronger. Adam Levine turned around early in her performance, followed by all the other coaches. Shakira said she adored the “quirky” tone of Kaleigh’s voice; Blake said he loves Kaleigh’s “style.” Kaleigh joined Team Blake.

Her background: Her parents are divorced and Kaleigh says she has lived mostly with her dad, a classical guitarist.

“I talk to my mom every day, but I always wanted to be just like my dad,” she told The Voice. By age 12, she was playing classical music on guitar as well. And by age 16, they were performing as a duo with Kaleigh singing as well. Kaleigh is now ready to head out on her own musically. Oh, she’s also into crossfit and says she’d love to open a gym, but “music is my number one priority.”

On choosing Blake: “With Blake telling me he would never want to change anything about my voice, that it was perfect and that all he wanted to do for me is just put me in the spotlight — hearing him say that, it sold me. Right away. I just had a feeling through my whole body that I had to go with Blake.”

What the show didn’t show: In her website bio, Kaleigh says she was pulling songs off the internet to learn the guitar parts at age 15 when she started singing to them. “It’s crazy that I never sang to music before. Now I see myself as a singer first.” She says her dad, Howard, was disappointed at first that she didn’t want to continue to pursue classical music. But he continued to play by her side. In fact, you heard right on The Voice. That audition from last April was the first time she performed without him by her side, Kaleigh confirmed in a conference call interview with the media.

What type of music does she typically play? “I would say a mix of folk, soul, blues, rock, pop all into one. So it’s just however you look at it, but definitely it’s different.” Now that she’s on Team Blake, she says she wouldn’t mind throwing in a mix of country music as long as “it’s something new and fresh.” Oh, and Kaleigh knows exactly what she needs to work on most.

“Definitely my stage presence. Usually I’m used to sitting down on a stool with my guitar and never really playing in front of big crowds. So I really don’t have to engage with the crowd that much.” But she says she’s already seen progress from her time on The Voice. As for that audition. “Having four chairs turn boosted up my confidence up to here,” she said in her Voice video, raising her arm. “I can’t reach that high.”

On iTunes: Just her audition song, which is a shame based on the superb originals I’ve embedded below.

Update: Kaleigh defeated Noah Lis in the first battle round; they sang Michael Buble’s “Everything.”

Keeping up with Kaleigh:
Twitter: @KaleighGlanton
Facebook
YouTube
Website

Editor’s Note: For links to profiles of all the Season 6 artists on The Voice, go here.

“Destiny” (original)

“Ain’t No Sunshine”

“Stupid Love” (original)