Connor Closs knew exactly what he wanted when Adam Levine turned his chair on The Voice.
The 23-year-old singer from Middletown, New Jersey, joined Team Levine after impressing the coach with his performance of Hozier’s Too Sweet during the Blind Auditions.
For Closs, choosing Adam was an easy decision because of their shared ability to sing in a high vocal range.
“I always admired his voice,” Closs said of Levine. “It was so unique and so high, and he’s able to navigate that part of his voice so effortlessly.”
Closs, who performs with the Jersey Shore cover band the Cliffs, said Levine has mastered the same part of the voice that he often uses in his own performances.
“He’s a master of that part of his voice, which I access a lot in the songs I sing,” Closs explained. “He has that part of his voice dialed down to a science.”
That connection became clear during Closs’ Blind Audition. Levine and country star Riley Green both turned their chairs after hearing Closs tackle the Hozier song.
Levine was especially impressed by the way Closs handled the chorus, where the singer had to move between his regular voice and falsetto.
“I waited for that chorus to turn because that chorus, you got to bounce up and down out of your falsetto and you did such a masterful job,” Levine told him. “That’s one of the hardest things to do if you’re singing in a high register.”
Levine also saw similarities between his own approach to singing and Closs’ style.
“There were things about how you sing that reminded me of how I approach it as well,” he said, calling Closs one of the most unique and efficient voices he had heard on the show.
That was enough to convince Closs that Levine was the right coach for him.
Closs had already caught Levine’s attention before appearing on The Voice. His cover of Aerosmith’s Dream On went viral, eventually leading the show’s producers to reach out to him.
Closs was particularly excited about the chance to learn from Levine because the Maroon 5 singer has performed Dream On and other songs that require a similar high vocal range.
“I know that he’s sung Dream On before, he’s sung all these really high songs I sing,” Closs said. “To learn from somebody like that is amazing.”
Connor Closs already had an impressive music career
Joining The Voice is just the latest chapter in Closs’ music career.
Before the NBC competition, he toured the country with Hits! The Musical, a production connected to Jersey music legend Dionne Warwick. He also spent a year performing aboard the Coral Princess while traveling around the world.
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Closs called the cruise job a dream opportunity, especially because he had never even been on a cruise before getting the chance to perform on one.
After returning home, he began performing with the Cliffs and continued building his career in New Jersey.
His journey on The Voice also connects him with several other New Jersey singers. That group includes 16-year-old Mia Knight of Holmdel, who is on Team Queen, Destinee Monroe of Egg Harbor Township on Team Levine, and 13-year-old Brianna Cameron of Union, who joined Team Kelly.
Closs and Knight already knew each other after performing together on the Hits! The Musical tour in 2023.
His parents, John and Jane Closs, were also shown during his Blind Audition. They traveled with Connor to Los Angeles in June to support him during the filming of the competition.
Now that he has joined Team Levine, Closs hopes to show viewers that he can do more than just rock and high-energy songs.
“I’m really happy to show people what other songs I can sing,” he said. “Not just Hozier and not just rock.”
