Billy Gilman, who earned himself a four-chair turnaround in the "Blind Auditions," is opening up about how he was anything but calm, cool and collected heading into his The Voice battle.

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On Monday night's The Voice broadcast, coach Adam Levine asked Billy to square off against Andrew DeMuro in an epic battle. The two guys, both incredibly talented, were required to sing "Man In the Mirror" by Michael Jackson simultaneously.

Billy and Andrew needed to blend their sound into a duet, but at the end of the day, they both needed to stand out and deliver a better vocal and performance than their opponent. Adam ultimately decided to keep Billy on his team, eliminating Andrew from the competition.

On Tuesday, Billy talked to Reality TV World about his feelings leading up to that big moment onstage. Below is what he had to say.

Reality TV World: Tell me what it was like to enter the "Battle Round" as a frontrunner. Did you feel you were at an advantage, and would you honestly have been angry with Adam had you lost the Battle? Because obviously you would've had three other coaches to choose from in the Blinds who might've kept you around.

Billy Gilman: It really comes down to, "Listen, we are all in this together." When I opened my eyes -- the final note, I closed my eyes and I thought, "Alright, at least I have Miley and Adam." And I thought, "I sang the song; A lot of the pressure is off."

But then when I opened my eyes and saw the four chairs, I was really, I mean, anyone in that situation is stunned. Because you just hope to God one turns! To have all four of them, it's a testament to how far -- whether you have one [chair] or four -- it's just a testament to know how many have sacrificed and only this many are here in this moment. It's just a testament to everybody's hard work.

And for the Battle, I was a nervous wreck because, to be honest, "Man In the Mirror" was not in my wheelhouse. So there were nights in the hotel that I would be up until, like, 2 or 3 o'clock in the morning practicing rhythms and drum beats and listening to things that are really outside of my comfort zone.

Because that was not a Billy song -- at all. At all. It would never be in my show; It would never be in my psyche to sing. So I had my work cut out for me. But then you only work that much harder because you want it with all that you are.

It encompasses your life, and really, it chooses you rather than you choosing it. So you make it work good, bad or indifferent. So when Adam kept me on his team, I was so grateful, just for the hard work. And the hard work continues!

We're all phenomenal singers and I'm just so honored to be a part of this family, and for as long as it lasts, it's been quite the amazing ride so far. And the one thing that I would want to let people know is how great [the competition] is. It's anybody's game, and for all of us to be amongst each other, it just shows the hard work we put forth.

Reality TV World: So it sounds like you weren't confident going into your Battle at all. What insecurities and fears did you have to overcome?

Billy Gilman: I will be the first to admit I was a nervous wreck. I thought, "Once I get past Blinds, or if I get past it, at least I've proven to myself enough to where someone -- hopefully Adam, [Miley Cyrus], [Alicia Keys] or [Blake Shelton] -- will believe in me enough to keep me on a team."

I'll tell you something, it's a nervous setting because you don't want to over-do it -- because you don't want to look desperate, but you also want to shine and you want your opponent and your buddy, whom you've grown to respect and admire, you want them to grow and shine.

It's really like a dance act. [You ask], "How much do you do? How much do you hold back?" Because you're coming from a place where you're just so honored. It's a lot of emotions and I will be honest, after the Battles, I slept 19 hours out of 24 hours because I was so exhausted.

I didn't pick my head up off the pillow to do anything for almost 19 hours. I was that exhausted. So it only makes it that much more gratifying when you work and you want it and you breathe it so bad, and it comes to fruition at whatever capacity. A "win" or "steal," it's still a win because you're there.

It's nerve-wracking. It really, really set me back a few pages. I will tell you. And I'm genuinely grateful that Adam saw whatever he saw, and I'll continue to make him proud, hopefully. I'll strive to be the best me and the most honest me that I can be. But it was nerve-wracking.
About The Author: Elizabeth Kwiatkowski

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