The Voice just wrapped its 25th season, crowning Asher HaVon as the show’s first-ever openly LGBTQ+ winner. The show kicked off in 2011 and has produced countless memorable performances during the last 13 years. Now, one season 8 contestant is returning to the TV screen in the midst of a tough personal battle.
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‘The Voice’ Contestant Matt Snook Is Battling a Rare Form of Cancer
Missouri native Matt Snook turned then-coach Blake Shelton’s chair with his season 8 blind audition of Brooks & Dunn’s “Red Dirt Road.” Snook advanced to the Live Battle Rounds, where he unfortunately lost a hard-fought battle to Cody Wickline singing Randy Houser’s “How Country Feels.”
Undeterred, Snook kept singing after his elimination from The Voice. He has opened for the likes of Michael Peterson, Joe Diffie and Kacey Musgraves. During a November 2023 gig with Peterson, Snook began experiencing breathing problems and a cough that wouldn’t quit.
Still sick in January, Snook visited the ER, where he received a devastating diagnosis: renal cell sarcomatoid carcinoma. “It is an incurable and rare kidney disease,” the country singer told the Platte County Citizen in April.
Snook’s breathing has improved with the help of treatments and medication, but sadly, “Singing publicly for me is probably over,” he said. “I don’t have the energy or stamina to perform.”
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Matt Snook Checks Off a Bucket List Item
In addition to trying out for The Voice, Snook has been an avid Texas Hold’em Player since age 21. In fact, he had planned to take a step back from music in 2024 to make room for the national poker tour circuits.
On Saturday (July 6), Snook fulfilled a lifelong dream by competing in the 2024 World Series of Poker Main Event in Las Vegas.
“[This] is probably going to be one of my last hoorahs to play a tournament,” Snook told PokerNews.
Snook added that doctors gave him six to 12 months to live. However, he wasn’t dwelling on his condition, choosing instead to quite literally focus on the hand he’s been dealt.
“Poker players know that poker is a grind and life is a grind,” he said. “But I don’t want anybody feeling sorry for me. I don’t want any empathy. I’ve just lived a blessed life and I’m glad to be here.”
Featured photo via NBC
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