Eatonville teen advances on 'The Voice'

Emily Randolph, a 15-year-old Eatonville resident, has made it through the first round of a nationally televised singing competition. In a recorded episode Tuesday of "The Voice," Randolph was invited by judges to choose one of them to be her coach in the show on NBC. She picked country star Blake Shelton and is scheduled to appear in the "battle" round in about two weeks. Tuesday's episode was part of the "blind auditions," in which the decisions from the musician coaches are based solely on voice. The coaches hear the artists perform, but they don't get to see them initially as they're seated with their backs to the contestants. If a coach is impressed by the artist's voice, they push a button to select the artist for their team. At that point, the coach's chair swivels so they're facing the artist. If more than one coach pushes their button, the power then shifts to the artists to choose which coach they want to work with. If no coach pushes a button, the artist is eliminated from the competition. Shelton and CeLo Green were the judges who picked Randolph and then tried to convince her to join their respective teams. Randolph said Wednesday that she chose Shelton because he "really seems to understand my vision for the type of singer I'd like to be." Randolph has sung country songs, but she currently favors a "blues rock" style, she said. The eventual winner of the competition will receive a recording contract. Other judges on the show are Christina Aguilera and Adam Levine. All four judges are popular performers and recording artists. Randolph, who said she wasn't expecting to make it past the blind auditions, is a junior at Eatonville High School and has performed locally for several years, including at the Washington State Fair in Puyallup and the Pierce County Fair in Graham. (Read more in the Oct. 9 print edition of The Dispatch)

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