The Voice Australia Crowns Its First Indian-Origin Champion

In the United States, season 26 of The Voice is currently being broadcasted, while Australia celebrated the grand finale of its 13th season on October 27, 2024. During this exciting finale, the four coaches each selected one artist to represent them, offering the chance to win a $100,000 cash prize along with a recording development deal.

The finalists included Reuben De Melo representing LeAnn Rimes, WeYE as Guy Sebastian’s representative, Annie Jones for Adam Lambert, and Jaedyn Randell, who stood for Kate Miller-Heidke.

Each finalist performed both a solo piece and a duet alongside their coach. Notably, this finale was unique in that the audience had the sole power to determine the winner through public voting, a shift from the previous four seasons where coaches had the final say.

Ultimately, Reuben De Melo was crowned the winner after delivering a striking rendition of “The House Of The Rising Sun”for his solo act, followed by an emotional duet of Coldplay’s “Fix You”with coach LeAnn Rimes. This victory marks LeAnn’s first win as a coach and makes Reuben the first singer of Indian descent to triumph in The Voice Australia history.

Unveiling Reuben De Melo’s Journey on The Voice Australia

Reuben De Melo, a proud Perth resident, works as a FIFO employee and is a father to three children. As mentioned earlier, this 32-year-old achieved victory in this year’s edition of The Voice Australia. Reuben first emerged in the premier network promo for the season. During his auditions, he impressed the judges with Ed Sheeran’s “I See Fire,”securing a four-chair turn from the coaches.

In a revealing interview with 7NEWS.com.au on October 28, 2024, Reuben confessed that he nearly missed out on the competition altogether. It was actually his wife who secretly entered him into the show, firmly believing in his potential.

“She applied for me without telling me, and the rest is history,”Reuben shared.

The singer, who hails from Goa, advanced through the battle rounds aired from September 15 to September 29. In these rounds, each coach paired two artists to perform a single song and impress the jury. The victor would move on to the knockout phase, while the other artist would risk elimination or could be saved or stolen by another coach.

During the battle rounds, Reuben partnered with Larissa Kovalchuk to perform Leonard Cohen’s “Hallelujah.”Reuben prevailed in this round, allowing him to progress to the knockout stage while Larissa faced elimination.

The knockouts took place on October 6 and 13, with only three available slots on each team for the remaining seven artists. The three successful artists from each team proceeded to the showdown, while the four who did not succeed were eliminated. The first night showcased Team Adam and Team Kate, followed by Team Guy and Team LeAnn on the second night.

In this crucial round, Reuben was required to adhere to the theme of “Emotional singers.”He chose to perform “Use Somebody”by Kings Of Leon and triumphed over Duncan Toombs and Laura Glynn, who sang “Human”by Rag N’ Bone Man and Ed Sheeran’s “Perfect,”respectively.

After successfully advancing to the Showdowns, where coaches selected two of their three knockout winners to head directly to the Semifinals, Reuben delivered a stunning performance of Chris Isaak’s “Wicked Game.”He was saved by LeAnn over Letitia Butler, who sang Dusty Springfield’s “Son Of A Preacher Man.”This victory led him to clinch the competition, earning praise from all the coaches beholden to his talent.

Kate Miller-Heidke commended Reuben’s performance that night as “exceptional,” while LeAnn expressed her enthusiasm over his “insane”stage presence.

Reuben has now etched his name in history as the first Indian-origin winner of The Voice Australia, walking away with $100,000 and a record deal.

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Image Credit: We.com