Idol Chatter & Voice Views

Rachele Nguyen listens to feedback from the coaches after a successful blind audition on Season 24 of The Voice. (NBC Photo)

Her audition: Rachele Nguyen, 17, of Cypress, Calif., performed “Bleeding Love” by Leona Lewis. Rachele delivered a nice gentle opening to the song and seemed comfortable on stage at age 17. An impressive glory note near the end enticed a chair turn from Reba McEntire. Reba said she loves Rachele’s potential and thinks she’s ready to blossom as a singer. Since Reba was the only chair turn, Rachele automatically became Team Reba.

Here’s more about Rachele:

* She’s a first generation Vietnamese-American. Her parents moved to the U.S. from Vietnam at a young age, she told The Voice.

* Rachele said her grandmother had had a big impact on her like and she thinks her dream was always to singe and perform because “that’s what she loves to do” and she got all of her grandchildren interested in music.

* As for Rachele, she says her parents enrolled her in vocal lessons at age 7. That’s when she discovered her passion for singing.

* And according to her Voice bio, at age 9 she participated in a Vietnamese singing competition show and became known in the community for her talent.

Rachele Nguyen listens to comments from Reba McEntire, her coach on The Voice. (NBC Photo)

INTERVIEW:

Voice Views: Why did you choose “Bleeding Love” for your audition song? Is it a song you’ve performed often?

Rachele: Ever since I was very young, I was always with the family and watching many singing competitions such as American Idol, X Factor, America’s Got Talent, and of course The Voice. I’ve seen so many people that I’ve looked up to and seen how they’ve grown as an artist. Not only that, but I’ve been singing ever since I was 2 years old.

Now that I’m 17 I felt that it was my turn and my chance to try The Voice and see how I wanna grow as well!! I loved watching the Voice and it brought me the most excitement to me and I so I wanted to go and pursue that.

Voice Views: What was that blind audition performance like for you, especially since Reba’s chair turn came so late into your song?

Rachele: I chose “Bleeding Love” as my blind audition song because I felt that it was such a song that I connected to and I can show all my versatility in the song. I really wanted to show the world my voice and I really felt that this song was one of the very best not only because Leona Lewis sang it, but you can hear her telling a story. And that’s exactly what I wanted to do.

When I was up on stage there were a lot of things going on in my head. It was very different from when I’m practicing in a room with just me and when I’m actually up on stage with a crowd … When it came to the actual performance, for me it wasn’t the best that I wish I could’ve done because all the nerves came in and I felt my heart rate was increasing every second of the song, lol.

I felt that I did give it my all and I was proud of my end results. When Reba turned at the end, I actually didn’t know till I opened my eyes at the very end of the song and I was more than grateful and excited that I got one chair turned which was from the queen herself — Reba. I felt that she was more than the best coach that I could ask her since she’s been doing this her whole life and this is not second but first nature for her.

Voice Views: How old were you when you started singing and how did you get involved in music?

Rachele: I began singing at the age of 2. My dad’s side of the family was always musical and I do feel that it is in my blood and part of me. My family saw the potential and they have always put their time into me and gave me singing lessons and help me grow and truly put music in my blood like literally lol.

Voice Views: Who are your musical inspirations and what type of music do you prefer performing?

Rachele: I have a lot of music inspirations. Sometimes, I always watch out for new music and other days I love going back to the older classics such as Boyz II Men, Ginuwine, Brian McKnight or Aaliyah.

Currently I’m obsessed with Tori Kelly. Her music always inspires me because she does write what comes to her mind, she’s opened minded to any genre and she can literally SINGG!! Personally I love to sing R&B pop and soft ballads. For me and my voice, those type of songs give me space to show my versatility and style of singing.

Voice Views: Do you have your own music? If so, please tell me a bit about it?

Rachele: At the moment, I don’t have music out but after this experience, it really motivated me to continue in this path and create my own music. At first I was very insecure and scared to release or post videos of me and my music because I was always scared of what others would think of me and what they would say.

But I do feel that The Voice really helped changed my perspective on it and made me want to work harder and continue to achieve my goals and dreams.

Voice Views: And what are your musical aspirations once your time on The Voice ends?

Rachele: Once my journey on The Voice ends, I do plan on investing on my dreams a lot more getting the things I need to create music and produce beats. I will be going to college and studying in music. This experience has DEFINITELY altered my thought and decisions about music and I want to chase my dreams and share my gift to the world through music!!!!

Rachele on social media:
Instagram
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