Idol Chatter & Voice Views

His audition: Todd Michael Hall, 50, of Saginaw, Mich., performed “Juke Box Hero” by Foreigner. His rock vibe prompted a quick chair turn from John Legend. Blake Shelton joined him near the end of the song. The judges praised his range. Blake called Todd Michael’s performance a direct path to the finale and said it took him back to the hair band days. John called the performance “magical.” Todd joined Team Blake.

Here’s more about Todd Michael.

* He will need no introduction to metal fans. He’s been serving as lead singer of the world-touring rock band Riot (also referred to as Riot V) since 2013.

* But more recently, he’s also branched off as a solo artist, starting with a 2017 album “Letters from India.” Check out “The Best I Can” from that project below.

* He says that album was inspired by his long-distance relationship with his wife Lumpeny. They met as pen pals in 1993, continued to correspond and those correspondences became fodder for the album. In fact, Todd Michael said in this interview that most of the songs on the album were actually written in the late 1990s.

* He’s since followed up with four three-song EPs, all released last year — “Fire,” “Air,” “Earth” and “Water.”

* In an interview with Sail Away Tomorrow, Todd Michael says he started singing when he was 15 and recorded his first album — “25 Gets a Ride” — with his first band Harlet at age 17 back in 1988.

* He’s since recorded music with the following bands: Pulling Teeth, Jack Starr’s Burning Starr, Reverence and Riot. His most recent albums with those bands were 2018’s “Armor of Light” with Riot and 2017’s “Stand Your Ground” with Jack Starr’s Burning Starr.

* And in one of the aforementioned interviews, he said he was a bit nervous about the reaction to his solo music because it’s so different from the metal he typically sings. But he added: “My songs were written and performed with passion and come from my heart, so I hope people can hear that and it resonates with them.”

* His Voice venture has the blessing of his Riot mates. Guitarist Mike Flyntz wrote on Facebook: “It’s been an honor to perform and record with one of the greatest singers I’ve ever heard. I’ve had to keep my mouth shut about this for a few months now but we are proud to announce Todd auditioned for The Voice.”

See also …
Todd Michael Hall talks about his blind audition on The Voice

Todd Michael on social media:
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