The Voice coaches selected the first eight artists for their fourth-season teams during Monday night's premiere of the NBC reality singing competition's new edition.
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The Voice's musician coaches Shakira and Usher -- who made their debuts as new coaches last night in the place of Christina Aguilera and Cee Lo Green -- as well as Blake Shelton and Adam Levine began to create their teams during the show's first episode of the initial "blind auditions" phase of the competition.
Shakira selected Kris Thomas from Memphis, TN, and Mark Andrew from Eden Prairie, MN.
Usher chose Jess Kellner from North Richland Hills, TX, and Vedo from Decatur, CA.
Blake recruited Christian Porter from East Stroudsburg, PA; Danielle Bradbery from Cypress, TX; and Rhian Morgan and Cara Morgan, a sister duo from Rochester, NY who perform as The Morgan Twins.
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Adam picked Judith Hill from Pasadena, CA, for his team.
Below are NBC's full descriptions of each of eight artists selected during The Voice's fourth-season premiere:
"Team Adam"
- Judith Hill
Growing up in Southern California with her mom playing keyboard and her dad on bass, Judith has had every opportunity to develop her voice. She is trained in jazz and was Michael Jackson's duet partner for his "This is It" tour before he passed away. Judith sings with Stevie Wonder on a fairly regular basis and counts artists like Aretha Franklin and Smokey Robinson as her biggest influences.
"Team Blake"
- Christian Porter
Despite having only been singing for five years, this 21-year-old from Philadelphia has opened for Gavin DeGraw. Christian credits his discovery of music to the albums of Billy Joel and Elton John, but is also a huge fan of Coldplay, John Mayer and Jack Johnson. In addition to playing multiple instruments, Christian also can beatbox and enjoys snowboarding, wakeboarding and playing golf.
- Danielle Bradbery
Danielle is a 16-year-old country artist from Texas who has never had a vocal lesson. With natural talent, her cousin encouraged her to start singing and Danielle soon had her first performance at a church festival. Citing Carrie Underwood, Miranda Lambert and Martina McBride as her musical influences, Danielle hopes The Voice will be her first "big gig."
- The Morgan Twins
Singing pop/R&B music, twenty-seven year-old identical twins, Rhian Morgan and Cara Morgan, are inseparable. They still dress alike and want to be "together for life." Inspired to start singing at age seven by the music of Whitney Houston, the sisters have performed at a Buffalo Bills game and opened for LeAnn Rimes. Currently, Rhian works in insurance and Cara is a mental health therapist, but they hope to make music their full-time gig.
"Team Shakira"
- Kris Thomas
After being signed to a label, but later dropped, Kris is ready to pull out all the stops on his path to music success. He is a pop/soul singer from Memphis who has been singing with his family and playing the piano since he was five. He is a huge fan of Whitney Houston, Bruno Mars and Adele and a graduate of Middle Tennessee State University.
- Mark Andrew
A Minnesota native, Mark Andrew is a folk/rock/pop singer and currently works as a roofer. His older brother sparked his interest in singing and he also plays guitar, banjo and harmonica. He takes inspiration from John Mayer, Bob Dylan and Ray La Montagne, and continues to make music to honor two of his former band mates, who have passed away.
"Team Usher"
- Jess Kellner
A hairdresser from Texas, Jess has been singing "since she could talk." She has an eclectic taste in music, citing Susan Tedeschi, Sara Bareilles, Elvis Presley and Adele as her musical influences. She also plays guitar and enjoys playing soccer and painting.
- Vedo
Vedo is an R&B singer from Atlanta, GA. Crediting Usher, along with Michael Jackson as one of his inspirations, he is right at home with his coach. He hopes to use his experience on The Voice to launch a successful career that will help him take care of his mom, who is battling cancer. With his quick wit, Vedo provides the comic relief for his teammates.
About The Author: Elizabeth Kwiatkowski