Idol Chatter & Voice Views

Her audition: Kendra Checketts, 19, of San Diego, Calif., auditioned with “Sober” by Demi Lovato. She got an almost immediate chair turn from Blake Shelton. Kendra went on to display powerful vocals and hit a heck of a glory note. But none of the other coaches turned, meaning she automatically joined Team Blake.

Here’s more about Kendra:

* At age 11, she wrote and released her first song, “Wind Across the Water.” Proceeds went to ChildHelp, a charity helping abused and neglected children. The song’s still available on iTunes.

* Kendra has gone on to raise more than $80,000 for charities, largely through her singing. She also raised money on behalf of Casa De Amparo, a youth social services program, and various animal shelters. “I grew up with the mindset of helping others to gain happiness myself and I’m so blessed that my parents brought me up that way,” Kendra told Voice Views.

* Her father suffered a brain hemorrhage driving her back from an audition in Los Angeles and wound up spending a year in the hospital. Kendra would sing to him to lift his spirits and credits music for helping her cope through the difficult period.

* Kendra has released five singles since 2017 and released music videos for two of those. You can check out her latest single and music video for a song called “85” below. Also be sure to check out her excellent “In Your Arms.”

* Her most successful single to date was actually a feature vocal she recorded for a Clueless Kit release called “I’m Not Sober.” It’s been streamed more than 330,000 times on Spotify.

* Kendra told Voice Views she’s always been a fan of The Voice. “The show in general is so amazing whether it be the producers, hair and makeup, wardrobe, literally everyone on the team is so sweet. They are such genuine people which is why I love the show so much.”

* As for her audition song, Demi Lovato’s “Sober,” Kendra said: “Although I don’t relate to the song in the way she sings it, it was so cool being able to put my own take on it. Demi is such an amazing artist and her music moves people. I was hoping to do the same during my blind audition. Singing this song for me was more of a tribute to her than anything else. She has always been one of my favorite artists and supporting her through her hard times is something I would do in a heartbeat. ”

* And while Kendra is more than soul-pop than country, she says that just might make Team Blake a nice fit. “I think that it being such a strange pairing is the best thing that could have happened. Kelly wanted me to work on my story telling, and country music is very big on that. Learning from Blake is such an honor and it’s cool being able to learn how to improve by a singer of a different genre. Also Blake is a goof ball and so am I, so we get along well.”

* Kendra told Voice Views she’s planning on releasing her debut album once the show is over. “I would describe it as dark, R&B, pop. I take a lot of influence from older songs and artists like Whitney Houston, Amy Winehouse and even old jazz. I do like to put an R&B twist on pop music to introduce more of the younger community to older music. When it comes to the dark side of my songs, I love incorporating weird sounds and I guess you could say electro-pop in my songs as well. Sort of a creepy Billie Eilish vibe!”

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