Olivia Eden "Flabbergasted" The Voice Coaches With Her "Captivating" Niall Horan Cover
Olivia Eden gambles with a cover of a Coach's song during the Blinds.
Fifteen-year-old Olivia Eden, from Long Valley, New Jersey is a self-described “weird kid.” Olivia was busy reading cookbooks from cover to cover when she was still young enough to count off her age on both hands. In fact, this isn’t Olivia’s first time competing on television; her love of cooking earned her a spot on Top Chef Junior, where she baked a “perfect” cupcake and placed seventh overall.
Even while competing in the kitchen on a national stage, Olivia knew her real love was music. That love first emerged after singing with her dad in a talent show when she was five, and continued through father-daughter performances at open mic nights and fairs. Now, Olivia has returned to the small screen to sing for the Coaches on The Voice.
Olivia Eden “Cooks” in Blind Audition
Olivia took to the stage, microphone in hand, and began a rendition of “This Town,” by none other than Season 24 Coach, Niall Horan. Singing a song written or performed by a Coach is always a gamble — they’re likely to love it or hate it with no middle ground — but it’s a gamble that paid off.
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Olivia’s voice was soft, almost flighty at times, and blended beautifully with a light backing track. And there’s something in her tone which is somehow both bouncy and sad, all at the same time. Niall hit the button as the first verse closed, a good sign for Olivia, still mid-song. Reba McEntire followed seconds later, triggering a burst of (nervous?) laughter from the stage. A quick recovery and a solid finish closed out the song, earning Olivia Eden an impressive Two-Chair Turn.
“Great song choice,” Niall said. “I know that one well… There is so much maturity to that voice. I really want to hear you sing country music. You showed off so many different parts of your voice, like, more than I do, and I wrote the thing. You have a really captivating voice, really refreshing to hear. I’d love you to be on my team and thanks for picking my song.”
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Given Olivia’s song choice and Niall’s encouraging words, the choice of Coach might have seemed like a foregone conclusion, but Queen Reba wanted Olivia too. “I was blown away with that. I started playing honkytonks, bar rooms, dance halls, rodeos, when I was 13 and I was petrified. Your voice is so incredible, and I’m flabbergasted at your vocal ease. You were just having such a good time you made me have fun! I’m so glad I turned around and I would love to be your Coach,” Reba said.
But the writing was on the wall from the first gentle notes. “I’m gonna have to go with Niall,” Olivia ultimately said.
“Sometimes you can be hard on people who sing your song because you know it inside and out. But knowing how creative Olivia is, based on hearing my own song, makes me excited to work with her because you have so much depth in song choice. She’s going to be a real dark horse in this competition,” Niall said.
Will Olivia take the cake? Find out on The Voice, Mondays and Tuesdays at 8/7c on NBC and next day on Peacock!