Idol Chatter & Voice Views

Her audition: Ayesha “Music Box” Brooks, 28, of Seattle, auditioned with “You Gotta Be.” She said she chose the song “because every day I wake up as a single mother and I have to tell myself: ‘You can do it. You’re strong enough.'” The performance prompted Shakira to turn around, earning Music Box a spot on Season 6 of The Voice.

Her background: The Voice aired just a tiny snippet of her audition and really didn’t fill us in on her background. The show’s website identifies her as a single mother trying to make it as a full-time singer and be an inspiration to her son.

What the show didn’t show: According to her bio on Freedom House Records, Ayesha earned several honors in high school as a classical and jazz vocalist. But she says she struggled with stage fright and needed an alter ego, so she adopted a stage name. “I feel like the name ‘Music Box’ sort of chose me,” she said in a conference call with the media. “I feel like the music lives within me and I can relate to a music box.” After high school, she attended Berklee College of Music for two years. Then she moved back to Seattle where she got involved with the hip-hop and rock music scenes. “I’ve just been on the grind, singing with different bands,” she says. “Out here in Seattle, I do a lot of rock shows, actually.”

On having Shakira as a coach: “I really, really wanted Shakira to turn around, and I got one chair to turn around, and it was Shakira. She really understood me as an artist, and she really understood me as a mother, and that’s the whole reason I wanted to be on her team.”

On iTunes: Just her audition song. But head to her Bandcamp page and you can download a trio of tunes that are more rock than anything. Those are “Jungle,” “Jezebel” and “Purple Moon Child.”

Update: She lost to Deja Hall in the first battle round; they sang The Bangles’ “Eternal Flame.” Music Box was then stolen by Usher.

Keeping up with Music Box:
Twitter: @iamMusicBox
Facebook
YouTube

Editor’s Note: For links to profiles of all the Season 6 artists on The Voice, go here. And check back for live blogging during every episode of Season 6.

“Next Girl” (Black Keys)

“Lotus Flower” (Radiohead cover)

“Use Somebody” (Kings of Leon cover)