Two musicians with Connecticut ties, Anita Antoinette and Blessing Offor, made quite the impression on NBC’s “The Voice” on Monday when they managed to make all four judges turn their chairs in approval during their blind audition.
Anita Antoinette
Judges Blake Shelton and Gwen Stefani hit their buttons a mere four seconds into Antoinette's performance, with Adam Levine and Pharrell Williams following suit 25 seconds later.
Antoinette’s family was shown cheering her on from the green room with host Carson Daly.
Antoinette, the daughter of reggae artist Clinton Fearon, spent her early years in Kingston, Jamaica, before coming to the U.S. in 1996. She and her family settled in Boston and later in New Britain, according to her Facebook page.
The self-taught singer and guitarist went on to graduate from the Greater Hartford Academy of the Arts in 2008 before heading back to Boston to earn a bachelor’s degree in professional music at the Berklee College of Music in Boston.
This is her second run in the singing competition. Antoinette was previously featured in the show’s third season but was eliminated during the blind auditions when all four judges failed to turn.
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Antoinette will work alongside coach Gwen Stefani as she advances to the next round.
Blessing Offor
Offor, a 2007 Hamden High School graduate who went on to attend Belmont University in Nashville, Tennessee, sang a soulful rendition of "Just The Two Of Us" and played along on the keyboard.
All four judges spun their chairs when Offor hit his final note, and Stefani told Offor his voice reminded her of Pharrell – his new coach.
Offor, who appeared on stage in sunglasses, told the judges he was born blind in one eye and lost sight in the other when he was 11 years old.
"I picked Pharrell because at this point, his track record is undeniable, so I'm really looking forward to working with him," Offor told Daly after his performance.
According to Offor's Web site, he has performed three times at The Kennedy Center in New York City and has produced a single, "Loving Each Other," to be released Oct. 14.
Tune in to see Antoinette and Offor perform on “The Voice” on Mondays and Tuesdays at 8 p.m. only on NBC Connecticut.
You can vote for them online later in the season.
