15-year-old is youngest winner ever in history of show; singer earned America's top vote as a member of Team Kelly
First-time coach Kelly Clarkson notches win with soulful pop artist
Brynn Cartelli, a 15-year-old music and high school student from Longmeadow, Massachusetts, was crowned champion of "The Voice" on Tuesday. The soulful pop artist is the youngest winner ever in the history of NBC's four-time Emmy Award-winning musical competition series.
Brynn faced tough competition from the other Top 4 finalists — Spensha Baker and Kyla Jade from Team Blake, and Britton Buchanan from Team Alicia.
Season 14 of "The Voice" concluded at Universal Studios, California, with a star-studded live finale featuring performances by superstar recording artists Jason Aldean, James Bay, Florence + The Machine, Halsey feat. Big Sean, Dua Lipa and season 13 winner Chloe Kohanski. Additionally, the finale featured special musical collaborations with the Top 4 artists and chart-topping singers, including season 15 coach Jennifer Hudson, Ryan Adams, Kane Brown and Julia Michaels.
In her blind audition, Brynn sang "Beneath Your Beautiful" by Labrinth feat. Emili Sande, earning her a chair turn from both Blake Shelton and Kelly Clarkson. After both coaches fought to work with this young talent, Brynn ultimately chose first-time coach Clarkson.
A powerful performance of Sia's "Unstoppable" in the live playoffs earned Brynn a spot in the Top 12 though America's votes. Her ability to cross genres with songs such as Patty Griffin's "Up to the Mountain," Lady Gaga's "You and I" and Coldplay's "Fix You" brought Brynn all the way to the semifinals, where a moving performance of Jackie DeShannon's "What the World Needs Now Is Love" sealed the deal and sent her all the way to the finals.
On Tuesday, Brynn debuted her original single, "Walk My Way," which was co-written by Grammy-nominated and multi-Platinum selling artist and songwriter Michaels, who has written many of the biggest hit songs of the past several years. Coach Clarkson joined Brynn for a duet of "Don't Dream It's Over" by Crowded House and Brynn closed out the evening with a powerful cover of "Skyfall" by Adele.
On the finale, Brynn performed a special duet with Michaels, who also served as one of this season's "Battle" advisers. Together they sang a medley of her Grammy-nominated smash hit "Issues" and new single "Jump" (feat. Triple Redd).
Brynn is season 14's most-streamed artist in Apple Music and hit the iTunes overall Top 10 singles chart four times this season. Her original single, "Walk My Way," reached No. 2 on iTunes.
Brynn's love for music dates back to her early years when she would wake up singing in her crib, rather than crying. At 4 years old, she became inspired by her very own "Voice" coach, Clarkson, whose songs strengthened her connection to music. In between school, sports and friends, Brynn found time to grow into a musician by learning to play the piano, writing her own music and recording captivating song covers.
Growing up in a small town, Brynn took advantage of any opportunity to perform locally, but, with the support of her family, ultimately knew she was ready for a bigger stage and took a chance by auditioning for "The Voice."
Brynn has earned the grand prize of a recording contract.
The Monday edition of "The Voice" is the No. 1 alternative series of the 2017-18 primetime season in both adults 18-49 and total viewers, averaging a 2.6 rating in adults 18-49 and 12 million viewers overall in "live plus seven day" ratings from Nielsen Media Research. On Tuesday nights, "The Voice" has averaged a 2.4 in 18-49 and 11.6 million viewers. The current spring cycle opened on Feb. 26 with the show's highest results in the past 12 months in both 18-49 (a 3.5 rating in L+7) and total viewers (14.8 million).