"The Voice" always sees its fair share of country singers, and 31-year-old Tae Lewis put his best foot forward on the Blind Audition stage during Monday night's premiere episode.
The North Carolina native, who now lives in Nashville, Tenn., chatted in a pre-audition interview about being a Black artist in country music. He attributed a large part of his success to the Black Opry, an organization for Black country artists, of which he is a member. Lewis also explained the reason for his audition song choice, which was Keith Urban's "Somebody Like You."
"The song is basically about loving oneself before you can love somebody else," he says. "I definitely relate to this song because I didn't love myself at one point. ... For a long time, I felt like I didn't have a place in country music because of what I look like."
Lewis then took the stage, immediately launching into an electrifying version of the 2002 song. The coaches listened intently as he showed off his smooth voice and powerful range. Lewis also showcased his artistry by adding his own flair to the tune. A flawless high note helped McEntire make the decision to turn her chair, and John Legend followed.
At the end of the performance, Dan + Shay immediately regretted not turning their chair for Lewis. The duo complimented Lewis on his vocal runs, and Lewis shared he is a big fan of them.
"Listen, Reba turned around and I got really scared," Shay Mooney said of his reason for not turning. He then endorsed McEntire for Lewis' coach.
Chance went the other way and endorsed Legend as Lewis' coach, despite McEntire's burning stares. Legend then gave his best pitch to Lewis.
"I took a country artist to the Lives with me because she didn't have to compete with the three, four, five, whatever country artists on Reba's team," Legend said. "The lane is clear to you, my friend."
McEntire had no problem highlighting her strengths as a coach.
"You know I've been in the business a very long time," McEntire said. "I'd love to have you on my team; we'd have a blast."
Legend didn't give up though, and he continued attempting to win Lewis over. McEntire then resorted to using a megaphone to overpower Legend's voice.
In the end, Lewis couldn't pass up an opportunity to work with country Queen McEntire, and he chose her as his coach.
