Matthew Johnson didn’t hold back during the blind auditions on The Voice. In fact, his incredible rendition of Kirk Franklin’s gospel song ‘I Smile’ won over all four coaches by the time he was done.
Award-winning artist Kirk Franklin first released ‘I Smile’ in 2011. And when Matthew Johnson brought the gospel song to the stage of The Voice, his velvety voice paired beautifully with the upbeat tempo and powerful lyrics.
“I smile,
Even though I hurt, see, I smile
I know God is working so I smile
Even though I’ve been here for a while
What you do? I smile
Come on, smile
It’s so hard to look up when you’ve been down
Sure would hate to see you give up now
God’s people, you look so much better when you smile, so smile”
Impressive Blind Audition Turns All 4 Chairs
Florida native Matthew Johnson certainly has an incredible voice. And it didn’t take long at all before his golden voice wowed the coaches.
Coach Blake Shelton recognized Matthew’s God-given talent from the get-go. Matthew hardly got through the first note before Blake hit the button to turn his chair around! Adam Levine followed soon after. And eventually, Kelly Clarkson and John Legend followed suit.
Once Matthew’s audition came to an end, each one of the coaches began duking it out over who would get to have this talented singer on their team.
But it was John Legend who won out.
“Is that a gospel song?” he asked Matthew.
And once Matthew confirmed, John Legend went on to fill him in on his family’s deep roots in the church.
“I grew up in the church,” musician John Legend explained. “My grandfather was a pastor, my grandmother was the organist, my mother was the choir director — I took over as a choir director eventually. I know where you come from.”
So, Matthew Johnson is all set for the next round and I, for one, can’t wait to see what he does. If it’s anything like his blind audition, we are all in for a treat!