Sitting on a stool with an acoustic guitar on a dimly lit stage, Brayden Lape performed an emotional rendition of Jordan Davis’ No. 1 hit “Buy Dirt.” Following Lape’s previous Knockout Round performance of Brett Young’s 2017 hit “Mercy,” which brought coach Gwen Stefani to tears, the 16-year-old Michigan native shared another heartfelt performance, kicking off the first night of live performances on The Voice.
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“You are definitely the heartthrob of the season,” said contestant Rowan Grace, who is also on Blake Shelton’s team, before Lape’s performance. “You got everybody falling in love with you after hearing your Blind Audition.”
Coach Camila Cabello said Lape’s performance was one of her favorites. “Brayden, that was so good,” said Cabello. “You were just so effortless and it just felt like you have just been doing this for so long. I just felt like there was so much ease in the room. That was my favorite performance of yours. I’m really impressed.”
Lape’s coach Blake Shelton added, “I’ll tell you this, that was incredible. I can’t believe how calm and collected and perfect you sound. To The Voice fans watching this show right now: You can either decide that you want to say as a voter of this show that you discovered this guy right here, or you can wait a couple of years and then start hearing him on the radio and realize that you missed your chance.”
The title track of Davis’ second album released in 2021, “Buy Dirt” featuring Luke Bryan, earned the country singer and songwriter the 2022 CMA for Song of the Year. Written by Jordan Davis, his brother Jacob and brother Matt and Josh Jenkins, “Buy Dirt” was also previously honored by ASCAP and received an NSAI Song of the Year award.
Lape first agreed to audition on The Voice after his mother convinced him to sign up. He performed Niall Horan’s 2016 song “This Town” during his blind audition on Sept. 20, making Blake Shelton turn his chair. When the Battle Rounds came around on Oct. 18, Lape beat out 29-year-old Benny Weag when the two performed Parker McCollum’s 2021 song “Pretty Heart.”
“I had to pick Brayden,” said Shelton after sending Lape to the Lives. “Brayden is only 16 years old and he’s already so good. He’s got an incredible tone. Every time he gets on this stage he’s taken huge steps. So, I think once we get into the Lives, I think he could be holding the trophy at the end.”
Prior to auditioning on The Voice, Lape only performed five small gigs, including his biggest at the Sunflower Fest, at a local apple orchard in Michigan. A sophomore at Grass Lake High School in Michigan, Lape first started singing during the pandemic to counter the boredom of lockdown.
“I started to learn how to play the guitar watching YouTube,” said Lape. “Soon after I started singing in front of my family, then soon my friends.”
Photos: Trae Patton/NBC
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