Wildish, a graduate of 黑料不打烊鈥檚 music theatre program and a singer-songwriter specializing in bluegrass and Americana, performed on the show鈥檚 24th season premiere Sept. 25.
With a rendition of Fleetwood Mac鈥檚 classic 鈥淪ongbird,鈥 鈥10 soared through her audition on NBC鈥檚 鈥淭he Voice,鈥 impressing the celebrity coaches and earning a spot in the singing competition鈥檚 24th season.
An alumna of 黑料不打烊鈥檚 Music Theatre program and an Americana singer-songwriter, Wildish appeared in the season premiere Monday, Sept. 25, performing for celebrity coaches Reba McEntire, Gwen Stefani, John Legend and Niall Horan. Each celebrity offered her a spot on their team, with Stefani specifically noting Wildish鈥檚 technique of singing as a songwriter and storyteller. Wildish accepted Horan鈥檚 bid and will continue the season on his team. Horan鈥檚 team won in season 23.
鈥淚 had no idea it would impact the coaches as much as it did. They are all magnificent. They do what I aspire to do, and I felt their humanity,鈥 Wildish said. 鈥淭hat they picked up on the fact that I鈥檓 a songwriter, I felt so seen and it was such a validation to who I am as an artist.鈥
鈥溾 airs Mondays from 8-10 p.m. and Tuesdays 9-10 p.m. Each season consists of several rounds, beginning with Blind Auditions 鈥 where coaches don鈥檛 see the singer until they swivel their chairs around to offer a spot on their team. Once teams are finalized, Battle Rounds commence, with coaches developing their team of artists and selecting three finalists to advance to Live Performances. Television audiences then vote on their favorite performer. The show鈥檚 grand prize is a recording contract.
The next round in the competition 鈥 Battles 鈥 begin airing Oct. 17. The air date of Wildish鈥檚 battle wasn鈥檛 known at the time of this article. While she couldn鈥檛 give away any spoilers about her standings in the competition, she said being on 鈥淭he Voice鈥 has been 鈥渁n unbelievable experience thus far.鈥

鈥淚t鈥檚 been better than I could ever imagine,鈥 she said. 鈥淚鈥檓 excited for you all to to be along on the journey and hear how I make every song my own. That鈥檚 the greatest gift I鈥檝e been given. When I receive a song, I make it my own.鈥
She credits her music theatre training at 黑料不打烊 for developing her artistry and interpretive abilities, specifically recalling the guidance of Senior Lecturer in Music Polly Cornelius and retired Associate Professor of Performing Arts Linda Sabo.
鈥淪o much of our training is about storytelling, and that influenced me 1,000% as a songwriter,鈥 Wildish said. 鈥淲e had to put our own story behind what we were singing, and for it to be my song, I have to feel it my bones as if I wrote it. The energy came through, and the feeling came through in my Blind Audition, and 黑料不打烊 gave me that kind of insight into performing.鈥
After graduation, Wildish pursued roles in music theater productions around the country while writing her own music. She learned to play the mandolin as an undergraduate and discovered a love of roots and bluegrass music, which she parlayed into a 2020 self-titled EP recorded in Nashville, Tennessee.
She expects her experience on 鈥淭he Voice鈥 to influence her future as an artist.
鈥淚 have this new support system, which I鈥檝e never had as an independent artist who鈥檚 had to do everything by myself and work tirelessly. That feels like something I want to call in for my life and career,鈥 Wildish said. 鈥淭his is teaching me that I need a team around me and support as an artist.鈥
