Idol Chatter & Voice Views

Her audition: Sloane Simon, 19, Pittsburgh, Pa., “Unwritten” by Natasha Bedingfield: Sloane immediately showed off an impressive tone. That tone got an early chair turn from Michael Buble. Gwen soon followed, prompting a big smile from Sloane. This is clearly someone who loves performing. And the song she auditioned with is one of the favorites of her dad, who’s struggling with cancer. Michael called her amazing and loved the way she played guitar. Gwen liked the way Sloane changed the song up a bit to make it her own. Sloane joined Team Gwen.

Here’s more about Sloane:

* She’s a student at the New York University Clive Davis Institute of Recorded Music.

* And she’s no stranger to singing competitions, having auditioned for American Idol Season 19 while still in high school.

* Her audition didn’t air, but Sloane got three yeses from the judges and says she made it to the Top 40 before being eliminated.

* Since that Idol audition, she’s released seven singles, including three this year as Sloane — “Crash Into Me,” “Daylight Savings” and “Take a Step Back.”

* Sloane and her band played “Take a Step Back” at NYU’s UltraViolet Live competition earlier this year and took first place for best group performance.

* She also won a Women Who Rock Rising Star competition in the fall of 2023, earning her the opportunity to open for one of her idols, Ann Wilson.

* In an April interview with Washington Square News, Sloane said she started writing music at age 8 when her mother gave her a guitar, meant to be a distraction from her mother’s cancer diagnosis. “She didn’t know that it would turn into my greatest passion and my calling in life,” Sloane said of that gift.

* By middle school, she was playing weekend gigs at a pizza shop in the Pittsburgh area where she grew up.

* And by the time she was in high school, Sloane estimates she was playing about 80 shows per year. She’s performed at the Bluebird Cafe in Nashville and The Dolby Theater and Viper Room in L.A., according to her web bio.

* Sloane says she doesn’t like to explain her songs, preferring the listener to draw their own meaning. But she wrote “Daylight Savings” about losing time with people you love, for her mom, who was re-diagnosed with cancer while Sloane was off at college.

Sloane on social media:
Instagram
TikTok
Facebook
YouTube