April 27, 2024 • 11 mins
Huntley, from Fredericksburg VA is winner of season 24 of The Voice, and will be the Grand Marshal of the Hang 10 Car Wash Firefighter's Parade at this year's Bloom!
Chris & Lori talked to him about his career, his incredible viral moment when all 4 chairs turned at his audition, and more!
Chris & Lori talked to him about his career, his incredible viral moment when all 4 chairs turned at his audition, and more!
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(00:00):
Good morning, Chris and Laurie Show. Is this Huntley? Hey? What's
up? Hey? Man? Itis so good to talk to you,
Huntley. We're so excited you're comingto the Apple Blossom Festival here in Winchester
and you're going to be the GrandMarshal of the Firefighters Parade and we are
just thrilled that you are. Man, have you ever been to the Apple
(00:21):
Blossom Parade? I mean you're fromFredericksburg, right, Yeah, I'm from
Fredericksburg, But I'm so I've beensuch busy as a like musician that I
really don't get to attend events unlessI'm playing the I gotcha. And You've
been a musician for a long time, right yeah. I mean really,
I've been doing this since I wasfourteen, starting here at Casey's Alley here
in Fredericksburg, playing all the hardcorebands. I want to know what made
(00:44):
you decide to go on the VoiceThose of you who don't know Huntley not
just was on the Voice, buthe won Season twenty four of the Voice.
So, Hunty, what made youdecide to just go for it?
Well, you know, I've beentrying to fight for this for a very
long time. And you know,I'm thirty three years old, and you
know, I know that's not old, but in music, years are kind
of like dog years. You know, as you start to get older,
(01:06):
it starts to dwindle down. Andyou know, I started taking a little,
you know, back seat to beinga performer, and I was actually
kind of considering being a substitute teacherand getting into speaching. And literally right
when I filled out the form,this lady found one of my vis like
five hundred views on it, andshe was with the casting team and they
said that they really liked what Idid and they'd like to consider me.
(01:29):
And you know, I actually didn'tmake it. I was supposed to be
in the season before. That's whenI got the message. And then I
was cooking spaghetti dinner with my daughterand I got a call that they were
interested, and I made it tothe blind auditions, and uh, that's
when I flew out to La.Everything works out the way it's supposed to
write. Yeah, it's just it'sit's really crazy because it's like it's kind
(01:51):
of like one of those those momentswhere it's like you kind of you know,
I feel like I've just gotten kindof the short straws out of the
three, and I've kind of beenjust fighting for a spot to be in
this industry. And you know,I don't think that, you know,
the nos are going to stop justbecause I won the voice. You know,
I think that this is a reallycool opportunity and I didn't think I
was gonna win this, But youknow, I the reason I have that
(02:14):
mentality is because, I mean,I've been fighting for this for a long
time, and I know, nomatter what talent you have or how hard
you're can to work for, youcauld still get to know and you know,
not make it in this industry.To the fact that, you know,
I got an opportunity to show theworld like what I do, but
also who I am, I thoughtwas a great opportunity, just you know,
to step in front of the AmericanI think I think it did pretty
(02:35):
well. I think so so alot of folks may not have watched The
Boys. If you missed it,you really missed something. Huntley's got a
real voice. It's affected it,it's not put on. He is the
real deal. And a lot offolks compare you to Chris Stapleton. The
thing that I really enjoyed was watchingyour audition. I can still remember it
because you had a four chair turn. Everybody turned their chair. That was
(03:00):
most brilliant watching you. And I'mgoing to paraphrase what I think John Legend
said later. He said, you'realready ready for this. You were already
set to go, right. Youreally were, because when they all turned
around, You're just like, allright, now, let me just sing,
and you just just relaxed right intoit. And I mean owned the
stage, owned the room, ownthe crowd. It was amazing. What
(03:23):
was it like when you saw allfour chairs turn. You know, I'm
not really the type of person toget nervous. I get really excited before
doing anything. But you know,this time was a little bit different because
my daughter was standing on the sideof the stage. So when I first
walked out there, I saw mymom and my daughter there and it was
just kind of more of like asa dad. It was like, all
(03:44):
right, it's time to take careof business. And when I got there,
I just took a deep breath andI started singing. And how fast
they turn around. It was unbelievable. Oh you guys wanted to see the
show, Well, here we show. And I just felt like, you
know, the thing about music that'sawesome is that you know it. It
doesn't matter what age you are orlike, it doesn't really it doesn't matter.
Like you know, humans, welove music, and I just felt
(04:06):
like it was a time for meto show them how much I love singing
and how much I really felt likeI belonged to be on that stage.
Well, they really enjoyed it,obviously, and they were all hoping that
you would choose them, and ultimatelyyou choose Nile. Now here's the fun
thing that if you haven't watched thisclip and maybe we can get it up
at chrisnlaurishow dot com. You hadyour daughter come out. I'm not sure
(04:28):
if she picked for you or ifyou did you guys have a little conversation
because she was the one who announcedit's Nile, right. Did you have
a conversation backstage here's who I wantto work with or was it really her
pick? Well, the thing is, man, is that like you know,
I, you know, I wasseparated. We've been separated for our
families for quite a while before this. That's why you know, it's seeing
our families that's pretty emotional when weget to see them and I know that's
(04:51):
the longest, you know, inthe beginning, that was the longest that
I've been away from my kids,you know, a month that was insane
to me. And you know,I had a bot right before, maybe
three days before I got to seemy family that my daughter got on stage
and I had four chair turns andmy daughter got to get up on stage
and pick who my coach was.And I, you know, the whole
(05:13):
time, you know, I waskind of stuck. I mean, first
I wanted John Legend, and thenGwen Stefani and Riba were on there,
and I was like, oh,man, like you know, No Doubt
was like one of my favorite bandsgrowing up in Ribak. I mean,
I grew up watching her, youknow, her shows and you know,
my mom listening to her music mywhole life. And John Legend, I
mean, he's John Legend. He'she's an icon, you know, and
he's so knowledgeable and such a greatguy. And you know, Nile was
(05:35):
the one who I kind of knewthe least about, but I had so
much respect for what he's done withthe opportunity that he was given, you
know, and you know, andwhen my daughter was going up there,
you know, when I first sawhim the day before we actually had the
blind auditions, she looked at nowand was like, I really like his
eyes. I was like, ohno, I was like. I was
(05:58):
like, I was like, Idon't know, I got to read this
guy before. I like let herpick, and I just researching him from
last season. I was really reallyimpressed with just the way he composed himself.
He's a really fun guy and youknow, uh, he's definitely grown
into a friend now. But Iwould say that she was walking up the
stage and I wanted her to reallyyou know, and I whispered in her
(06:19):
ear and I said, you know, I really want you to remember what
all these you know, nice peoplesaid about Daddy, and I want you
just to pick from your heart.But when she was walking up there,
she was like, now, Iwas like, dude, just wait.
She just wanted to get she knewwho she was picking from the get and
I just was leaving it all toGod. And I felt like that was
(06:40):
you know, a long this journey. You know, one of the things
I got to say is that,you know, I've always been a spiritual
person, and I, you know, kind of I wouldn't say Sir,
away from my faith, but definitelyit's been wavering for a while, and
on this trip it just more thanI got of winning the voice, just
my connection with the people I madeon that show and how close they were
to God. God showed me somany signs while I was on that trip
(07:00):
that I belonged to be there,and I'm so grateful, and I felt
like giving the opportunity to give mydaughter to be a part of this and
just trusting in what was kind ofjust happening unfolding, and trusting the show
and just trusting you know, thecool people that were on the show with
me, I felt like it wasbigger than just winning the voice. That's
incredible. That's incredible, all right, So look what's going on now?
(07:25):
You win the big money and thenyou win a recording deal. So what
are we expecting? Are you workingon an album, working on some new
music? Well, you know,right now, I'm definitely working on I
mean, I've had a lot oforiginal music for a while right now,
and I think that, you know, I've taken some time back to kind
of feel out the industry a littlebit and see where my place is.
(07:46):
And it's definitely a learning game.You know, it's you know, I
think that when people get on theshow, they expect like a Kelly Clarkson
moment, yea. And I thinkthat I didn't think I was going to
win for one second that I wason that show, and my mentality was
and I was gonna have to workfor this after like I'm I'm thirty three
years old, I'm not you know, you know that that Kelly Clarkson dream
was kind of like a pipe dreamin my eyes. So you know,
(08:09):
I'm ready to work for what,you know, I get. And I
just also want to stay a localguide in Virginia and I want to I
want to you know, keep asmuch local as I can while also you
know, traveling the world and spreadingmy music. You know, right now,
we're working on the album, butI think a few single releases to
get people a little taste of whatI'm about to release is uh going to
kind of be the track that Igo on. And I have a lot
(08:30):
of shows planned for this year andI can't wait to release my schedule.
Well, we are excited because wehear you might actually show up at the
country music party and sing a littlefor us. Oh, we shall see,
we shall see what happened. That'dbe fantastic. That's Saturday night.
You're gonna be down here Friday nightthe Grand Marshal of the Firefighters Parade,
which is the world's largest firefighters parade. By the way, it's insane.
(08:50):
I'm really grateful because you know,I'm not even sure that they know,
but my my uncle Ray, whowas like probably the biggest male role model
in my life. He actually passedaway years after, but from nine to
eleven complications, and he was afire chief, and so it's really special
to me that I get to bea part of this. And I know
there's a lot more people that youknow, probably have a lot more you
(09:11):
know that I feel like deserve todo this. I'm way more than me,
but you know, just to honormy uncle Ray, I'm really grateful
to be a part of this.Well, we can't wait for you to
be here for it. What canwe expect it when we see you on
stage and you're performing, because it, like we saw you on the Voice,
you were in a lot of differentgenres making them your own. I
had read it at someplace that Nilereally pushed you into different places. You
never probably would have gone, whatis it gonna be like when we see
(09:33):
you on stage? Huntly, onething that you see is I'll have my
guitar, which was pretty crazy becauseduring the whole season I didn't want to
use the guitar because that was Iwouldn't say it's my safety net, but
that's what I've been doing for solong. But when I had the you
know, the world's best band behindme playing, I just wanted to rock
out. And then the fact thatI literally didn't play guitar until you know,
(09:56):
the last episode, it was prettycrazy. But you know, I
definitely would think you see a lotof that Virginia grit, you know,
a lot of you know soul.I mean, whatever I do has a
lot of soul behind it. Butyou know, I think a lot of
the elements that you saw for meon the show is going to come out
on stage for sure. Awesome.Do you do any covers that the songs
(10:18):
we'd know? Uh? Yeah,I mean I just don't want to keep
some of it a surprise for theshow Saturday. But I try not to
play a lot of the songs thatI did on the Voice just because I
don't want to get stuck in thatin that realm, right happing to do
those covers for the rest of mylife. But I do. I do
like to play my favorite song thatI did on the show, which was
(10:39):
Knocking on Heaven's Door, which Idid with my coach Nile, which I
thought was a really phenomenal chance tokind of kind of say you know,
thank you and goodbye and see youlater. And it was an incredible performance.
Right before we started talking, Iwas watching it again. It was
just so great. Well, listen, I'm taking up so much of your
time. We both appreciate it somuch, and best of luck to you.
(11:01):
We will see you here in Winchester, Virginia for the Apple Blossom Festival.
Everybody Huntley here on the Chris andLori Show. Thank you so much,
buddy, awesome. Well see youguys Saturday for sure. Sounds good
man, all right, talk toyou later, yea, God bless you
guys. Talk you soon.
Good morning, Chris and Laurie Show. Is this Huntley? Hey? What's
up? Hey? Man? Itis so good to talk to you,
Huntley. We're so excited you're comingto the Apple Blossom Festival here in Winchester
and you're going to be the GrandMarshal of the Firefighters Parade and we are
just thrilled that you are. Man, have you ever been to the Apple
(00:21):
Blossom Parade? I mean you're fromFredericksburg, right, Yeah, I'm from
Fredericksburg, But I'm so I've beensuch busy as a like musician that I
really don't get to attend events unlessI'm playing the I gotcha. And You've
been a musician for a long time, right yeah. I mean really,
I've been doing this since I wasfourteen, starting here at Casey's Alley here
in Fredericksburg, playing all the hardcorebands. I want to know what made
(00:44):
you decide to go on the VoiceThose of you who don't know Huntley not
just was on the Voice, buthe won Season twenty four of the Voice.
So, Hunty, what made youdecide to just go for it?
Well, you know, I've beentrying to fight for this for a very
long time. And you know,I'm thirty three years old, and you
know, I know that's not old, but in music, years are kind
of like dog years. You know, as you start to get older,
(01:06):
it starts to dwindle down. Andyou know, I started taking a little,
you know, back seat to beinga performer, and I was actually
kind of considering being a substitute teacherand getting into speaching. And literally right
when I filled out the form,this lady found one of my vis like
five hundred views on it, andshe was with the casting team and they
said that they really liked what Idid and they'd like to consider me.
(01:29):
And you know, I actually didn'tmake it. I was supposed to be
in the season before. That's whenI got the message. And then I
was cooking spaghetti dinner with my daughterand I got a call that they were
interested, and I made it tothe blind auditions, and uh, that's
when I flew out to La.Everything works out the way it's supposed to
write. Yeah, it's just it'sit's really crazy because it's like it's kind
(01:51):
of like one of those those momentswhere it's like you kind of you know,
I feel like I've just gotten kindof the short straws out of the
three, and I've kind of beenjust fighting for a spot to be in
this industry. And you know,I don't think that, you know,
the nos are going to stop justbecause I won the voice. You know,
I think that this is a reallycool opportunity and I didn't think I
was gonna win this, But youknow, I the reason I have that
(02:14):
mentality is because, I mean,I've been fighting for this for a long
time, and I know, nomatter what talent you have or how hard
you're can to work for, youcauld still get to know and you know,
not make it in this industry.To the fact that, you know,
I got an opportunity to show theworld like what I do, but
also who I am, I thoughtwas a great opportunity, just you know,
to step in front of the AmericanI think I think it did pretty
(02:35):
well. I think so so alot of folks may not have watched The
Boys. If you missed it,you really missed something. Huntley's got a
real voice. It's affected it,it's not put on. He is the
real deal. And a lot offolks compare you to Chris Stapleton. The
thing that I really enjoyed was watchingyour audition. I can still remember it
because you had a four chair turn. Everybody turned their chair. That was
(03:00):
most brilliant watching you. And I'mgoing to paraphrase what I think John Legend
said later. He said, you'realready ready for this. You were already
set to go, right. Youreally were, because when they all turned
around, You're just like, allright, now, let me just sing,
and you just just relaxed right intoit. And I mean owned the
stage, owned the room, ownthe crowd. It was amazing. What
(03:23):
was it like when you saw allfour chairs turn. You know, I'm
not really the type of person toget nervous. I get really excited before
doing anything. But you know,this time was a little bit different because
my daughter was standing on the sideof the stage. So when I first
walked out there, I saw mymom and my daughter there and it was
just kind of more of like asa dad. It was like, all
(03:44):
right, it's time to take careof business. And when I got there,
I just took a deep breath andI started singing. And how fast
they turn around. It was unbelievable. Oh you guys wanted to see the
show, Well, here we show. And I just felt like, you
know, the thing about music that'sawesome is that you know it. It
doesn't matter what age you are orlike, it doesn't really it doesn't matter.
Like you know, humans, welove music, and I just felt
(04:06):
like it was a time for meto show them how much I love singing
and how much I really felt likeI belonged to be on that stage.
Well, they really enjoyed it,obviously, and they were all hoping that
you would choose them, and ultimatelyyou choose Nile. Now here's the fun
thing that if you haven't watched thisclip and maybe we can get it up
at chrisnlaurishow dot com. You hadyour daughter come out. I'm not sure
(04:28):
if she picked for you or ifyou did you guys have a little conversation
because she was the one who announcedit's Nile, right. Did you have
a conversation backstage here's who I wantto work with or was it really her
pick? Well, the thing is, man, is that like you know,
I, you know, I wasseparated. We've been separated for our
families for quite a while before this. That's why you know, it's seeing
our families that's pretty emotional when weget to see them and I know that's
(04:51):
the longest, you know, inthe beginning, that was the longest that
I've been away from my kids,you know, a month that was insane
to me. And you know,I had a bot right before, maybe
three days before I got to seemy family that my daughter got on stage
and I had four chair turns andmy daughter got to get up on stage
and pick who my coach was.And I, you know, the whole
(05:13):
time, you know, I waskind of stuck. I mean, first
I wanted John Legend, and thenGwen Stefani and Riba were on there,
and I was like, oh,man, like you know, No Doubt
was like one of my favorite bandsgrowing up in Ribak. I mean,
I grew up watching her, youknow, her shows and you know,
my mom listening to her music mywhole life. And John Legend, I
mean, he's John Legend. He'she's an icon, you know, and
he's so knowledgeable and such a greatguy. And you know, Nile was
(05:35):
the one who I kind of knewthe least about, but I had so
much respect for what he's done withthe opportunity that he was given, you
know, and you know, andwhen my daughter was going up there,
you know, when I first sawhim the day before we actually had the
blind auditions, she looked at nowand was like, I really like his
eyes. I was like, ohno, I was like. I was
(05:58):
like, I was like, Idon't know, I got to read this
guy before. I like let herpick, and I just researching him from
last season. I was really reallyimpressed with just the way he composed himself.
He's a really fun guy and youknow, uh, he's definitely grown
into a friend now. But Iwould say that she was walking up the
stage and I wanted her to reallyyou know, and I whispered in her
(06:19):
ear and I said, you know, I really want you to remember what
all these you know, nice peoplesaid about Daddy, and I want you
just to pick from your heart.But when she was walking up there,
she was like, now, Iwas like, dude, just wait.
She just wanted to get she knewwho she was picking from the get and
I just was leaving it all toGod. And I felt like that was
(06:40):
you know, a long this journey. You know, one of the things
I got to say is that,you know, I've always been a spiritual
person, and I, you know, kind of I wouldn't say Sir,
away from my faith, but definitelyit's been wavering for a while, and
on this trip it just more thanI got of winning the voice, just
my connection with the people I madeon that show and how close they were
to God. God showed me somany signs while I was on that trip
(07:00):
that I belonged to be there,and I'm so grateful, and I felt
like giving the opportunity to give mydaughter to be a part of this and
just trusting in what was kind ofjust happening unfolding, and trusting the show
and just trusting you know, thecool people that were on the show with
me, I felt like it wasbigger than just winning the voice. That's
incredible. That's incredible, all right, So look what's going on now?
(07:25):
You win the big money and thenyou win a recording deal. So what
are we expecting? Are you workingon an album, working on some new
music? Well, you know,right now, I'm definitely working on I
mean, I've had a lot oforiginal music for a while right now,
and I think that, you know, I've taken some time back to kind
of feel out the industry a littlebit and see where my place is.
(07:46):
And it's definitely a learning game.You know, it's you know, I
think that when people get on theshow, they expect like a Kelly Clarkson
moment, yea. And I thinkthat I didn't think I was going to
win for one second that I wason that show, and my mentality was
and I was gonna have to workfor this after like I'm I'm thirty three
years old, I'm not you know, you know that that Kelly Clarkson dream
was kind of like a pipe dreamin my eyes. So you know,
(08:09):
I'm ready to work for what,you know, I get. And I
just also want to stay a localguide in Virginia and I want to I
want to you know, keep asmuch local as I can while also you
know, traveling the world and spreadingmy music. You know, right now,
we're working on the album, butI think a few single releases to
get people a little taste of whatI'm about to release is uh going to
kind of be the track that Igo on. And I have a lot
(08:30):
of shows planned for this year andI can't wait to release my schedule.
Well, we are excited because wehear you might actually show up at the
country music party and sing a littlefor us. Oh, we shall see,
we shall see what happened. That'dbe fantastic. That's Saturday night.
You're gonna be down here Friday nightthe Grand Marshal of the Firefighters Parade,
which is the world's largest firefighters parade. By the way, it's insane.
(08:50):
I'm really grateful because you know,I'm not even sure that they know,
but my my uncle Ray, whowas like probably the biggest male role model
in my life. He actually passedaway years after, but from nine to
eleven complications, and he was afire chief, and so it's really special
to me that I get to bea part of this. And I know
there's a lot more people that youknow, probably have a lot more you
(09:11):
know that I feel like deserve todo this. I'm way more than me,
but you know, just to honormy uncle Ray, I'm really grateful
to be a part of this.Well, we can't wait for you to
be here for it. What canwe expect it when we see you on
stage and you're performing, because it, like we saw you on the Voice,
you were in a lot of differentgenres making them your own. I
had read it at someplace that Nilereally pushed you into different places. You
never probably would have gone, whatis it gonna be like when we see
(09:33):
you on stage? Huntly, onething that you see is I'll have my
guitar, which was pretty crazy becauseduring the whole season I didn't want to
use the guitar because that was Iwouldn't say it's my safety net, but
that's what I've been doing for solong. But when I had the you
know, the world's best band behindme playing, I just wanted to rock
out. And then the fact thatI literally didn't play guitar until you know,
(09:56):
the last episode, it was prettycrazy. But you know, I
definitely would think you see a lotof that Virginia grit, you know,
a lot of you know soul.I mean, whatever I do has a
lot of soul behind it. Butyou know, I think a lot of
the elements that you saw for meon the show is going to come out
on stage for sure. Awesome.Do you do any covers that the songs
(10:18):
we'd know? Uh? Yeah,I mean I just don't want to keep
some of it a surprise for theshow Saturday. But I try not to
play a lot of the songs thatI did on the Voice just because I
don't want to get stuck in thatin that realm, right happing to do
those covers for the rest of mylife. But I do. I do
like to play my favorite song thatI did on the show, which was
(10:39):
Knocking on Heaven's Door, which Idid with my coach Nile, which I
thought was a really phenomenal chance tokind of kind of say you know,
thank you and goodbye and see youlater. And it was an incredible performance.
Right before we started talking, Iwas watching it again. It was
just so great. Well, listen, I'm taking up so much of your
time. We both appreciate it somuch, and best of luck to you.
(11:01):
We will see you here in Winchester, Virginia for the Apple Blossom Festival.
Everybody Huntley here on the Chris andLori Show. Thank you so much,
buddy, awesome. Well see youguys Saturday for sure. Sounds good
man, all right, talk toyou later, yea, God bless you
guys. Talk you soon.
Popular Podcasts
The Breakfast Club
The World's Most Dangerous Morning Show, The Breakfast Club, With DJ Envy And Charlamagne Tha God!
Dateline NBC
Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Follow now to get the latest episodes of Dateline NBC completely free, or subscribe to Dateline Premium for ad-free listening and exclusive bonus content: DatelinePremium.com
Decisions, Decisions
Welcome to "Decisions, Decisions," the podcast where boundaries are pushed, and conversations get candid! Join your favorite hosts, Mandii B and WeezyWTF, as they dive deep into the world of non-traditional relationships and explore the often-taboo topics surrounding dating, sex, and love. Every Monday, Mandii and Weezy invite you to unlearn the outdated narratives dictated by traditional patriarchal norms. With a blend of humor, vulnerability, and authenticity, they share their personal journeys navigating their 30s, tackling the complexities of modern relationships, and engaging in thought-provoking discussions that challenge societal expectations. From groundbreaking interviews with diverse guests to relatable stories that resonate with your experiences, "Decisions, Decisions" is your go-to source for open dialogue about what it truly means to love and connect in today's world. Get ready to reshape your understanding of relationships and embrace the freedom of authentic connections—tune in and join the conversation!