Brett Young Was Almost a Contestant on ‘The Voice’
Brett Young became one of country music's most noteworthy breakout stars in 2017, but not before making a life-changing decision that almost led him to The Voice.
Young tells Variety that one month before he signed a record deal with Big Machine Label Group, he received a call from a representative at The Voice setting him up for the ideal scenario: he didn't even need to audition, he could head straight to TV for the blind auditions. After going through the necessary steps to be on the show, he paid a frantic call to his mentor at Red Light Management, Enzo Divincenzo, which changed the course of his rise to stardom.
"Two days before I’m supposed to fly to L.A. and start this show, I called Enzo and said, “Hey bud, I’m freaking out. Can we have drinks?” he explains. "I got together with Enzo for drinks and told him what was going on, and he said, “I don’t think you should go.” I said, “Hold on,” and I walked outside and I called [the Voice production] and let ‘em know I couldn’t make it...That was the scariest piece of advice I ever got."
Though Young has seen the power of what The Voice can do in expanding one's career after watching Blake Shelton's star power explode as a judge on the show, he has no regrets in backing out of the opportunity to be on the show. "As a contestant, you win the show, and then what happens after that? For the most part, that quick a rise makes everybody feel like the first song better be a smash, or else there’ll be that quick a demise," he describes. "Yeah, there is that 'what if' thing, but obviously we’re all feeling very blessed and fortunate we chose what we did."
Since the release of his self-titled debut album in 2017, Young has earned two back-to back No. 1 singles with "In Case You Didn't Know" and "Like I Loved You." He was also named one of Taste of Country's RISERS in 2017. The "Mercy" singer is gearing up for a jam-packed summer, hitting the road with Thomas Rhett on his expansive Life Changes Tour in the midst of working on his sophomore project.
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