Idol Chatter & Voice Views

Her audition: Sam Behymer, 25, of Morgan Mill, Texas, sang “Royals” for her audition on The Voice. She was barely into the second line of her performance when Adam Levine turned his chair. Usher joined him midway through Sam’s audition. Adam called her “a breath of fresh air.” And Usher praised her “quirky” sound. Sam decided to join Team Adam.

Her background: When The Voice visited Sam at her job in L.A., she was working as a nanny to two young boys, ages 2 and 4. “They call me their own personal Mary Poppins singing nanny,” she told the show. Sam hails from Texas, where her father is a music minister at a Baptist church, the very church where she started singing. Sam says she didn’t start performing in public until she headed off to college. Her parents aren’t convinced she can make a living at music, so Sam says she’s been considering going to graduate school to become a librarian. She’s hoping The Voice proves she can make it in music.

On choosing Adam: “I’ve been watching The Voice since the first season, and I always thought if I were to be on the show, I would choose Adam. It’s crazy that it’s really happening. This is the first time in my life that an actual thing that I’ve dreamed has actually happened.”

What the show didn’t show: During a conference call interview, Sam says she attended Pepperdine University in Malibu and started performing at campus coffee houses and singer-songwriter events to “break out of my shell.” “I’m awkward and uncomfortable and have a hard time relating to people,” she says in her Voice video. “But when I’m onstage, that’s when I feel like I can express who I am.” Fellow students loved those performances, and Sam is among the most prolific of Season 6 contestants when it comes to releasing new music. As a junior in college, she released an eight-track album called “Heartmouth.” She followed that up with a 2011 EP called “Bluebirds In” and a 2012 album called “This Bad Decision.” “Since then I haven’t done a lot of performing live,” she said during that conference call. “L.A. is a pretty tough town to make it as a musician because there’s so much talent here and so many people trying to break out, so it’s hard to get paid to gig here. After a while I ran out of money and had to get a grownup job.” Hence she had been a nanny for the same family for about two years before The Voice audition came along.

On iTunes: Her audition song, plus the 2009 and 2012 albums. The 2011 EP is available from Bandcamp or her Facebook music page, where you’ll also find a six-track live album from Sam Behymer and the Bowties that appears to be available as a free download. You can also hear full-length versions of her songs there. I haven’t gotten to check out all the songs, but be sure to listen to “Besides” from “Heartmouth.”

Update: Sam defeated Carey Laine in the first battle round; they sang Ed Sheeran’s “Give Me Love.” In the second battle round, she was eliminated by Christina Grimmie; they performed “Counting Stars.”

Keeping up with Sam:
Twitter: @thegreatsamboni
Facebook
YouTube
Website

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.

“Be Somebody” (Kings of Leon cover)

“In Closing” (from 2011 EP)

“Degrees of Separation” (from 2011 EP)