Meet Voice Contestant Austin Gilbert, A Country-Singing Army Veteran
An Army veteran got the chance to make his musical dreams come true on The Voice.
25-year-old Austin Gilbert served in the Army after high school. A lot has changed since then. He proudly served his country, left the Army, got engaged, and now he’s expecting his first child—a son.
Looking ahead to the future, Austin turned to music to help support himself and his growing family. The Eugene, Oregon native decided to take a leap of faith by auditioning for Season 28 of The Voice.
His audition aired on Tuesday, September 30. He took to the stage with a cover of country superstar Luke Combs‘ steamy hit, “The Kind of Love We Make.”
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Austin had the crowd on its feet within seconds! They were having a blast listening to him sing, and so were the coaches.
But some time passed before anyone turned their chair. Finally, Niall Horan flipped around, and Michael Bublé followed him.
Surprisingly, country queen Reba McEntire didn’t turn around! So that meant that Austin ended up on an unexpected team by the end of the night.
Who Did Austin Gilbert Choose As His Coach On The Voice?
Niall and Michael took turns pleading their cases to Austin after his audition. Niall complimented the sound of his voice, saying he has “great tone [and] a lot of power.” He also told him it was amazing to witness how he could sing the way he does and “entertain at the same time.”
Michael also showered Austin with compliments, telling the Army veteran, “You’re too good of a singer.”
Reba wanted to let Austin know she wasn’t “deserting” him. In fact, she had a strategy in mind by not turning her chair for him. She said that since she has a lot of country singers on her team already, she was waiting to take Austin from his coach in a later stage of the competition.
“I will steal you later,” Reba vowed.
So who did Austin choose…Niall or Michael? After some thought, he (metaphorically) tipped his hat to Michael and chose him as his coach!
Michael was thrilled to welcome him to his team, saying how much he loves his “real, distinct voice.”
Watch Army veteran Austin Gilbert audition for The Voice in the video below.