How Gwen Stefani's Anniversary with Blake Shelton Helped Her Land a Voice Artist
What a smart tactic from Stefani!
You could certainly feel the love and emotion radiating from Sloane Simon Tuesday night (October 8) as the 19-year-old musician from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania took the stage for her Blind Audition on Season 26 of NBC's The Voice. Simon, who currently studies at New York University's prestigious Clive Davis Institute of Recorded Music, nabbed a 2-Chair Turn from Coaches Michael Bublé and Gwen Stefani with a cover of Natasha Bedingfield's all-time classic, "Unwritten."
“My father and I used to sing this song on drives to elementary school," Simon explained ahead of her performance, which incorporated her knowledge of the guitar. "Music has always been our shared bond, so advancing to the next round would definitely be a huge win for my family. I can’t wait to make my mom and dad proud today. The rest is still unwritten…"
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Sloan's relationship with her father, Steven, has never been more precious since he was diagnosed with Stage IV metastatic melanoma during Sloane's first semester of college. "The doctor said he had anywhere from a couple weeks to a couple months left," she revealed. "It’s been heartbreaking."
Nevertheless, Steven appeared to be in high spirits when he appeared via a touching video message, in which he sends his daughter love and asks Snoop Dogg to turn his chair around. Snoop didn't turn around, but he did advise "pops" to "stay strong." While dad couldn't be there in person, Sloane was cheered on from the sidelines by her mother and sister.
Sloane Simon's Blind Audition on The Voice Season 26
Bublé tried to sway Sloane to his team by claiming it was his wedding anniversary, but that was a straight-up lie. In reality, it was the anniversary of Stefani's marriage to former Voice Coach, Blake Shelton. "I love that song so much," Stefani said. "You changed it up a little bit to make it your own, which I think is cool. If we worked together, there's so many things that we could do."
"Sloane, I just want to say you're the silver lining for your family," added Reba McEntire. "I'm very glad you're here."
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Given that it was Stefani's wedding anniversary and that Sloane's outfit was directly inspired by a still of Stefani performing back in the '90s, there was no question about where the young singer would land. "I'm so happy I got Sloane," Stefani said. "She has a very angelic voice. I really just need to find out more about who she is and what kind of music she wants to make."
