Gwen Stefani makes mistake with young Jaylen Dunham that could come back to bite her

'The Voice' Season 26 contestant Jaylen Dunham is from Charlotte, North Carolina
PUBLISHED OCT 8, 2024
'The Voice' Season 26 coach Gwen Stefani, and contestant Jaylen Dunham (YouTube/@thevoice, NBC/@tylergolden)
'The Voice' Season 26 coach Gwen Stefani, and contestant Jaylen Dunham (YouTube/@thevoice, NBC/@tylergolden)

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: 'The Voice' Season 26 is back with another round of Blind Auditions! In the latest episode of the NBC singing show, a 14-year-old singer Jaylen Dunham took over the stage and performed a rendition of Beyonce's hit track 'Listen.'

Throughout his performance, Jaylen sang in a soft and delicate tone. His low vocals seemed a little rough at the edges. By the end, he switched to a bit higher pitch, however, his efforts went in vain as not a single coach turned for Jaylen. 

Following Jaylen's audition, Gwen Stefani went to the stage and hugged the teen singer. She raved over his performance and said, “They switched out a person, right? Was that you singing? I can’t believe this.”

Along with this, Gwen also mentioned that there were some areas for improvement. “I think as the song went on you were getting more and more worried that we weren’t going to press, and I could hear it," she added. 

Despite everything, Gwen decided to hit the replay button for Jaylen. We think Gwen simply wasted her power move as Jaylen is still figuring out his vocals, musical interests, and more. She could have used her replay button on a powerful singer.

Jaylen Dunham auditioned for 'The Voice' Season 16 (Instagram/@jaylenddunham)
Jaylen Dunham auditioned for 'The Voice' Season 16 (Instagram/@jaylenddunham)

Why did Gwen Stefani hit the replay button for Jaylen Dunham?

Even though Jaylen Dunham had a lot of scope for improvement, 'The Voice' Season 26 coach Gwen Stefani decided to give another chance to the budding musician by hitting the replay button. 

Speaking of her decision, Gwen said, “I had to use my Coach Replay for Jaylen. At that moment I was thinking, ‘Should I use it?’ and then I was like, ‘Yes, you have that feeling right now; you have that regretful feeling. That’s what it’s for.’” 

“My favorite part about his voice was when he was coming in and singing his really low, soft voice. He had a lot of control. To think that is live, on stage, at 14 years old, I can’t wait to see what happens next," she added.

Gwen Stefani hit the replay button for Jaylen Dunham (YouTube/The Voice)
Gwen Stefani hit the replay button for Jaylen Dunham (YouTube/@thevoice)

Who is Jaylen Dunham on 'The Voice' Season 26?

Jaylen Dunham who appeared on the fifth episode of 'The Voice' Season 26 is from Charlotte, North Carolina. He began singing at a young age. By the age of 12, he started releasing song covers on social media which racked up millions of views.

In the last couple of years, Jaylen has hit a few personal milestones in the performing arts. Jaylen is a star already, he has starred in a few commercials, made appearances in movies, bagged modeling and he is a singer. Along with this, he has also featured in several stage productions. 

'The Voice' Season 26 contestant Jaylen Dunham is originally from Charlotte (Instagram/@jaylenddunham)
'The Voice' Season 26 contestant Jaylen Dunham is originally from Charlotte (Instagram/@jaylenddunham)

'The Voice' Season 26 airs every Monday at 8 pm ET only on NBC. 

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