Hudson Valley Man Lands a Spot on Blake Shelton’s ‘Voice’ Team

A musician from the Hudson Valley recently made an appearance on NBC's The Voice, and because he landed a spot on Blake Shelton's team, it seems we'll get to hear more from him in the near future.

Ian Flanigan is originally from Saugerties, New York, but he hit the ground running when he was 18, pursuing his passion of songwriting everywhere from Florida to Colorado. The 30-year-old and his family have been living full-time on the road in an RV for just over a year, and they were about seven months into Flanigan's tour when he got the opportunity to audition for The Voice.

"It was right when the tornado hit East Nashville and then, you know, the pandemic was pretty much just starting and COVID was announced, so it was our last gig in Nashville, an open mic where there someone who was scouting out for The Voice that was there," Flanigan said. "We sent in a video and it just kind of happened to take off like that, where somebody asked if I'd want to send in another and audition privately. So for me, it went pretty much from having my tour uprooted with the pandemic, like every other musician, to kind of having this random, awesome shot at this show."

And awesome it was. Flanigan performed Zac Brown Band's "Colder Weather," and his unique voice shocked the judges, especially when they turned around to find a guy without a giant beard, hat, or beer gut, as Blake Shelton was expecting to go along with Flanigan's raspy voice.

Although Shelton was the only 'Voice' coach to turn a chair for Flanigan, the other coaches, including Kelly Clarkson, had high praise for the New Yorker and knew the pairing would work well.

"Your voice sounds like you would travel around the world for a living, like literally it sounds like a passport that's been used forever," Clarkson said. "The only reason that held me back was range-wise I didn't know where it was gonna go and by the end of it you kind of showed a little bit of it, and I noticed Shelton was turned around, and well, you're a country singer. Sometimes we get defeated."

Just as Clarkson was defeated, Shelton was equally as excited to score Flanigan for his team.

"Ian, I have been racking my brain trying to think, 'Who does he sound like,' and the closest thing that I can think of is Joe Cocker," Shelton said. "But the fact that I can't figure it out, that's saying a lot about your artistry. I don't know if there was an accident that made you have that voice, like you accidentally swallowed fire or something.... Now you're on Team Blake. We're gonna have a blast, dude."

Flanigan said that while he and Shelton haven't gotten to spend a lot of time together quite yet, he's looking forward to it in the future.

"Blake is a super down-to-earth, awesome guy," Flanigan said. "He's got a lot of really kind things to say, and good direction being a writer and performer himself."

Listen to our full interview with Ian Flanigan here: