The Voice Season 26: 15 Singers to Watch
The Voice Season 26 is just around the corner with the premiere on Monday, September 23rd, and we wanted to give you a quick sneak peak to some of the talented singers who will be auditioning in front of returning judges Reba McEntire and Gwen Stefani and new judges Michael Bublé and Snoop Dogg. This list includes contestants who appear to be standouts, a few returnees, and some others who have been featured in promos.
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Trios have been a common occurrence on the latest seasons of The Voice (Girl Named Tom, Sorelle, OK3), and 323 is another talented trio from Tallahassee, Florida. The group is made up of Jonathan Perry (33), Jacob Sumpter (18), and Kinsley Treadwell (25). The group is a blend of pop, soul, and country, and they also sing worship music. Their harmonies are tight, they sometimes perform acapella, and all of the members can hold their own when singing leads But it’s Kinsley’s angelic voice that truly stands out amongst the group.
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“Love Can Build a Bridge” Cover:
Austyns Stancil
Austyns is a R&B singer, originally from Oakland, California who resides in Kansas City, Missouri. He was an obvious inclusion to this list as his falsetto is one of the best I’ve heard since Season 12 winner Chris Blue graced The Voice stage. Austyns performs gigs locally and has performed the national anthem at local events including the Kansas City Royals games. On his Instagram, he posted a photo of himself auditioning for American Idol season 14 in 2015. It’s unclear if his audition ever aired.
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“Sometimes I Cry” Cover:
Cameron Wright
Cameron “La Diva” Wright is another soulful singer who is a bit theatrical in their approach and has the chops to tackle a variety of genres including rock and roll. They have a 4-octave range with the ability to hit some crazy high notes. Cameron is an experienced singer originally from Minneapolis who has since relocated to Los Angeles. According to a Voyage LA article, they started performing professionally at the age of 10 at various pro sports games, had a demo listened to by Stevie Wonder at the age of 12, and have since performed at several prestigious venues. It also states in Cameron’s Spotify bio that an original of theirs, “My Love” was featured in Fox’s show STAR, and that he performed behind Beyoncé during her 2018 performances at Coachella which would be featured in the film Homecoming.
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“Take 5” Original Live Performance:
Cameron Wright Voyage LA Feature:
Cami Brooks
Cami Brooks, a season 21 no chair turn from Mount Shasta, California, who auditioned with Adele’s “Hometown Glory” returns. Her tone is rich and gorgeous, perfect for tackling pop ballads, but the first time around, nerves may have gotten the best of her. Since her last audition, she graduated from USC. After her audition, she stated she planned to take voice lessons and return to the show, so hopefully that paid off. She’s been pretty quiet with only two singing videos posted since her time on the show. Only time will tell if she’s ready for the big stage this time around.
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“Easy On Me” Cover:
Season 21 Audition:
Cassidy Lee
Cassidy is another returnee, hailing from Jacksonville, Florida. She is a rock singer who initially auditioned in Season 18 at the age of 22 singing Fleetwood Mac’s “Gold Dust Woman”. She has a growly and raspy tone with a little bit of twang, and has a voice that breaks in a very cool way. Her initial audition lacked a bit of oomph, but this time around she is likely to shine. She has been performing as the front woman of her band the Annie Dukes who released a self-titled EP in 2023 titled, Annie Dukes. Their sound has notes of grunge and her powerful voice shines on it.
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Season 18 Audition:
Annie Dukes – “First Coast News” Appearance:
Danny Joseph
Danny is a tattooed rock singer originally from London who lives in Dallas, Texas where he often gigs. His style is a bit of a throwback, blending rock, blues, and country. His voice has an interesting raspy quality to it, with loads of power, and he is a very talented guitarist. I wouldn’t be shocked if he ends up in the Season 26 finale as he’s got all the goods.
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“I Put A Spell On You” Cover:
Edward Preble
The addition of Michael Bublé to the show means here comes the crooners! Edward is a latin crooner and will be representing the old-school crooning style in Season 26. He is from Florida but attends college in New York where he also has performed. His old-school style goes as far as wearing a suit and fedora in nearly all of his videos.
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“Someone to Watch Over Me” Cover:
Frankie Torres
Frankie Torres, is a soul and R&B singer from Minneapolis, Minnesota. She has released some music including a song in March, 2024, titled “Out of Time” and has years of performing experience. Her sound is full of soul featuring some old school influences. Frankie is prominently featured in a promo with Reba saying “this is our trophy” as she shows Frankie the trophy she won last season as a part of her pitch.
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“Midnight Train to Georgia” Cover:
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Jaukeem Fortson
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There’s always a few young contestants to shine and Jaukeem Fortson, a 13-year-old from Georgia, is sure to be one of those this season. He won Season 4 of Hallelujah, a worship singing competition that features Christian singers from across the U.S, with a performance of “Trust in God” by Elevation Worship. Jaukeem tackles both worship and pop songs, but he puts soulful spins on whatever he is singing with his ability to add embellishments and impressive runs.
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Hallelujah Winning Performance:
Katie O
Katie O is an 18-year-old country singer from Jacksonville, Florida who advanced to Hollywood in Season 20 of American Idol in 2022. She has a very classic country sound and is very seasoned for her age as she has been performing for years. One video of her yodeling on Tik Tok from 2023 has 376K views and 45K likes to date. In a promo of auditions, she tells Snoop Dogg, “I’m kind of starstruck.”
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Kay Sibal
Kay Sibal is an actress and singer from San Francisco and a UCLA alum. She was a part of the UCLA Scattertones, an acapella group that got 3rd at the 2022 ICCAs. Her time in the group overlapped with American Idol alums Sophia James and Sarah Isen. She also is a part of a female Filipino quartet called grlhood and a trio that includes Sophia James called No Spare Change. In 2022, Kay starred in Pat Benatar and Neil Giraldo’s, Invincible – The Musical, which was featured on The Late Late Show with James Corden. Kay’s voice is silky and smooth. Her takes on pop songs are often soulful and sound more R&B than the originals. She has been featured in several promos. In one promo, Reba says, “it touched my heart” about Kay’s voice.
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“Invincible” Feature on James Corden:
“How Far I’ll Go” Live Cover:
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Lauren-Michael Sellers
Lauren-Michael Sellers is a Nashville based pop country singer-songwriter from Birmingham, Alabama. Like many other recent singing show alums, she has been a part of the viral music social media page, Songhouse, who just released her latest upbeat pop song titled “Take Me Back.” Her voice has a lot of power behind it with a unique storytelling quality to it. An emotional video of her singing an original on the Songhouse page, got over 20K likes on Tik Tok.
Mikaela Ayira
Mikaela is a soulful pop singer from Atlanta, Georgia. Her voice is effortless and she often takes on current vocal trends. She was recently featured in a segment on The Jennifer Hudson Show, singing “And I Am Telling You I’m Not Going.” Mikaela recently released her first song titled, “Again.” She has been a featured face in many of the pre-season promos.
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“Best Part” Cover:
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Sydney Sterlace
Sydney is a 15-year-old singer from Buffalo, New York who is beyond her years. She sings a variety of genres including country, pop, folk, and musical theater. But whatever she is singing always has a singer-songwriter quality to it, and her voice has a surprising amount of power and maturity. She has performed in musicals and performed the national anthem at a Buffalo Sabres game.
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“Dyin Ain’t So Bad” Cover:
Sofronio Vasquez
Sofronio is an experienced Filipino singer with a history of competing, including Season 6 of the Filipino show, Tawag ng Tanghalan where he placed in 3rd place. In 2021, he won the Kumu Diamond Award. Kumu is a streaming platform he often sings on, and is one of the most streamed performers on the platform. His cover of “Nothing’s Gonna Change My Love For You” got 75K likes and 1.1 million views on Tik Tok. His voice is silky smooth with the ability to belt and hit runs, so he is sure to be a crowd pleaser. He is another one who has been featured in a few pre-season promos.
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“Nothing’s Gonna Change My Love For You”:
