‘Wild ride’: Newtown duo talk ‘The Voice’
Father-son team has moved on to ‘knockout’ stage of competition
When Jim Allen received an email announcing open auditions for NBC’s “The Voice” in April 2020, he suggested to his son Sasha that they submit a video. Then they “kind of forgot about it,” Jim said, such is the glacial pace of network television production.
Then they learned that they’d moved on in the process. They made another video performance and moved on once again, each step more surprising than the last.
“It’s just such a wild ride, it’s been amazing,” said Sasha, who recently turned 20. “Every part of it has been so much fun, even the nerve-wracking parts.”
If either of the father-and-son duo were nervous by the time they got to the televised blind auditions, which aired Sept. 21, neither showed it. Their performance earned a vote of confidence from judge Kelly Clarkson, who pressed the button indicating her interest in having the pair join her team for the show about midway through the song.
Then, in the waning seconds of the duo’s final harmony, judge Ariana Grande followed — much to Sasha’s elation.
“The thing about your voices together, the harmonies were so perfectly knit and peaceful that it really transported me, I felt like I was at Woodstock or something,” Grande told the pair after their performance.
Jim and Sasha said they didn’t expect Grande to opt for their folkand-country style, but couldn’t turn down the offer to compete on her team moving forward in the competition.
“Aside from even being a coach, [Grande is] so much fun, and she’s truly a really funny and down-toearth person who just radiates kindness, and we love her,” Sasha said.
“Yes we do,” added Jim, 57. Grande hasn’t been the only one supporting them on the show. Jim heaped praise on the entire production staff and crew for their warmth and assistance, calling their involvement “an incredible gift to the performers.”
They’ve also received an outpouring of support from the Newtown community, where they’ve both lived for virtually their whole lives. Jim has deep roots in the area’s folk and bluegrass community, and also runs his own music lesson studio where he
gives guitar, mandolin and voice lessons.
Jim started teaching his son how to play guitar when Sasha was only 6 or 7; “He took to it like a fish to water,” Jim said.
Lessons began in their Newtown home with beginner guitar classics: songs like Joni Mitchell’s
“Carey” and John Denver’s “Take Me Home, Country Roads.”
From lessons and jam sessions at home to performances at shows like the Flagpole Radio Café, a variety show Jim co-founded in Newtown, or the famed Clearwater Festival, held on the Hudson River, Jim and Sasha have played Denver’s “Leaving on a Jet Plane” together countless times. Doing so in this year’s season of NBC’s “The Voice,” however, in front of superstar judges in a performance to be broadcasted to millions of people, was obviously a bit different.
“It’s a joy to be sharing the fun aspects of this with so many friends who would have never expected this to happen but always wanted success for us, so we’re really grateful for that enthusiasm,” he said.
“Everybody’s just really excited, and having this common feeling of pride in Newtown, in our hometown,” said Sasha, who recounted messages of support from friends both close and distant. “Being here and getting to watch it unfold with everyone is
really nice.”
The opening round of “The Voice” is structured as the ultimate meritocracy: artists perform for four judges who start with their backs turned to the stage, and the judges decide on vocal talent alone whether or not to turn around and bring the artist onto their team for the following rounds.
Sasha, who came out as transgender during high school, said he connects with the format on a deeper level too.
“I think it’s a really beautiful concept,” he said. “It’s
a statement about not judging people for what they’ve gone through or who they are, and just listening to ... what they have to offer.”
Many young trans people, particularly those considering taking hormones, experience anxieties over how their speaking voice will change. There’s a particular worry among young trans men, Sasha said, with regard to how testosterone will impact their singing voice. Several young trans people have reached out to him asking about his experience, and how his singing voice changed during his transition.
The biggest difference, he said, was the change in his confidence. Now, he’s more comfortable with his voice “by a long shot.”
“I’ve definitely experienced feeling like I would never ever be comfortable,” Sasha said. “I would have never imagined that I’d be in this position doing the things now that I’ve done.”
“For people to see that in a lot of ways that I’m comfortable enough to go up on that stage and comfortable enough to sing and talk about my experience . ... I’m hoping it can be a glimmer of hope for some young trans people,” he said.
“I’m so proud of my son, and so proud that part of
what we’re doing might be a benefit to enlarging this conversation and giving it the perspective that it needs,” Jim added. “These are our families, and that’s the only way this subject can really be approached intelligently.”
After this week’s “Battle Round” episodes, which are prerecorded and aired on Monday and Tuesday, viewers learned Jim and
Sasha are moving on to the knockout stages. The duo will be paired head to head against another contestant, each singing separate songs, and Grande will select who moves on.
“There’s a lot of great performances coming, and we’re very excited about that,” Sasha said.
The next episodes of “The Voice” air Monday and Tuesday at 8 p.m. on NBC.