Idol Chatter & Voice Views

Blind audition: Lane Mack, 30, of Lafayette, La., auditioned with BB King’s “Every Day I Have the Blues” and looked totally at home performing for a superstar audience. Miley Cyrus turned midway through his performance. Lane ended the performance with one heck of a scream, but no one else turned, putting him on Team Miley.

His background: His uncle is Robbie Romero, a Grammy nominated musician. “Growing up, I would go to all of his shows,” Lane says. After school, he immediately went to work for his dad’s cabinet painting business. One reason: He can make his own schedule and take off when he “needs to play music.” As for music, he says he’s been writing songs and playing live since high school.

What the show didn’t show:
* When he was still in high school, Lane played in a punk rock band with his friends, according to The Voice website. They organized a tour that took them all the way to California.
* Lane attended the University of Louisiana, where he majored in interior design.
* Lane’s been married about seven years. He and his wife, Mekail, have two children, including a 3-year-old son and a 3-month-old daughter.
* Lane released a seven-track self-titled blues EP in 2015. Exceptional tracks include “Jesus’ Cadillac” and “Trouble and Worry.” I’ve embedded versions of both below.
* That EP also includes a track called “New Orleans Bound” that features Ray Boudreaux, a Top 8 finisher on Season 5 of The Voice. During a conference call with the media, Lane said they’ve been friends since “right out of high school” and that Ray was “a inspiration” in his decision to try The Voice. “I just saw how much positivity and how much good opportunities he was able to get by doing The Voice,” Lane explained. “And it was something that was always I guess at the back of my mind. And one day I decided, you know, let’s just do this thing.”
* Lane still plays guitar in Ray’s band. In fact, he says they watched the blind auditions together.
* On the show, we heard Lane say he hoped to land a spot on Team Miley. During the conference call, he explained why. “The reason being is because I feel like she’s very unapologetic for totally being herself,” he said. “And she goes out and tries new things in the world and puts herself out there. And it doesn’t really matter, you know, whether or not she’s getting positive/negative feedback. She’s just doing what she loves to do. And that really resonates with me.”
* He also called it “shocking and amazing” that she would compare his performance and vocals to Jeff Buckley.

Keeping up with Lane:
Twitter: @LANEMACKMUSIC
Facebook:
YouTube