‘The Voice’ contestant raised by a single mom breaks down in tears after Adam Levine’s touching surprise
Adam Levine once made a contestant cry happy tears, making for one memorable 'The Voice' moment. It all began when a contestant with a heartbreaking backstory took 'The Voice' auditions. While the singer impressed Levine with his stellar vocals, it was his heartfelt story that grabbed major attention. So much so that Levine made a touching gesture that left the contestant visibly emotional.
The contestant in discussion is Malik Davage, who shared a heartfelt story on 'The Voice' Season 10 about growing up in a tough neighborhood without his father, who has been in prison since he was two. Raised by his supportive mother, Davage, at the time 23 and a father himself, became emotional discussing his baby girl, who would see him perform live for the first time during his blind audition. Despite some struggles hitting high notes, his soulful rendition of Miguel's 'Sure Thing' earned him a chair turn from Levine, who welcomed him onto his team, per 9 News.
As the crowd cheered, Davage was moved to tears and was then hugged by Levine and Gwen Stefani. Levine also made a heartwarming gesture by inviting him to sit in his iconic red chair. The seemingly thoughtful act was too much to handle for Davage, as the singer was visibly in tears. "I'm just a young guy from Washington, D.C., who's trying to do the best for my daughter," said Davage. Levine gave honest feedback, saying, "When you sang in your upper register, I'm going to be honest with you about it, you needed some work. But when you do the work, which I think you can do really easily because you clearly have raw talent, there's no telling where you can go with this."
He further added, "I'm happy I took the risk and turned around, because you're clearly a good dude." After the audition, Davage posted in a now-deleted Instagram psot, "I STILL CAN’T BELIEVE I SAT IN THE @nbcthevoice CHAIR! THANKS FOR TAKING THAT CHANCE, @adamlevine. LET’S GO #TEAMADAM". However, Davage's promising journey was cut short when he was eliminated after losing to Mark Isaiah in the Battle Round. Despite missing the live-performance round, Davage remained positive, telling Washingtonian, "There's no love lost in that situation. I'm just thankful I was able to showcase my talent on a stage like that."
He further talked about the profound moment of hugging Levine and Stefani, then sat in the Maroon 5 singer's chair as his mother and daughter came from backstage to embrace him. Looking back on his journey, Davage said, "I just gave everybody who I was in a moment of life. I didn't think it'd go viral." Calling the experience one of the best moments of his life, he added, "Growing up in the neighborhood I grew up in, having my daughter there, having my mom there, going through years of situations where I had to feel like maybe I'm not the best singer… I grew up hearing so many no's and the moment I got that yes, it came all out."