by Gina Scarpa

When Avery Wilson took the stage at the blind auditions for The Voice, it seems he solidified himself as a frontrunner to win the competition. His performance of Without You had all four coaches fighting over him, but he ultimately went with Cee-Lo, feeling he connected the most with him. He took the battle round after an impressive duet with teammate Chevonne, but fell short in this week's knockout round against Cody Belew. In a surprising turn of events, Cee-Lo chose Cody, eliminating Avery from the competition, but promising to help him with his career going forward. We talked to Avery today in an exclusive interview about his time on The Voice and what he's hoping to do next.

Q. Gina, RealityWanted: How did you go from singing in your local McDonald's to auditioning for The Voice? How did your musical career shift as you went through high school?
A. Avery: Well, honestly, starting from such a humble beginning and working towards The Voice hasn't been easy. There have been a lot of ups and downs, people telling you no, and doors shutting in your face. You have to constantly try and never give up. It's very easy to run away from that door when people tell you no and they don't accept you. To get to The Voice has been amazing and a life accomplishment. It's changed how high school is. You gain some friends that you never had before. You get more attention because kids like to talk! I've been a popular person but it's been more.

Q. Gina, RealityWanted: David Guetta was clearly a good choice for your blind audition - you had all four judges turn around for you! Were you debating any other songs or did you know that was the one?
A. Avery: I didn't know that was the one but I didn't have any backups! I thought it was a good song because I like Usher and David Guetta and that was the best of both worlds. I've sang it in previous auditions to get on the show. I had never sung the full song so I didn't know how it would go.

Q. Gina, RealityWanted: You seemed genuinely taken aback by the fact that you had all the judges turned around and fighting for you. What were you feeling in that moment?
A. Avery: In that moment? I just thought, "This is for you!" When I sang in the past, people listened but didn't care as much. Just to get that attention and love from celebrities that have been in my shoes in the beginnings of their careers, that's unbelievable to me that they could care. All I wanted to do was touch their hearts and I feel that's why they turned around.

Q. Gina, RealityWanted: Why Cee-Lo as your coach? What did he bring to the table that appealed to you the most?
A. Avery: For me, I know it's easy for contestants to say, "My coach cared about me as a person," but Cee Lo really showed that. He went all out. At the blinds, he said, "Avery, I feel I could become better by having you on my team. I feel you could learn from me as well." Right there, we were on an even playing field. It's not like he's a superstar and I'm not on his level. He showed me it's not about the lights and camera, he was there for me. During the battle and knockout, he really helped me, as an individual, grow and accept who I was. That was my thing. I felt like I had to be a robot and perfect, and cookie cutter. He let me know it's good to be imperfect. He actually did care about me as an individual.

Q. Gina, RealityWanted: You and Chevonne gave such an awesome performance of Titanium in the battle round. Were you nervous going into it against her?
A. Avery: From watching the show, you see how I react. We've sang before but never like that. I was like, "Somebody means business in this room!" I was actually sick the whole week before the battle. Even the morning before, I was sick. Singing Titanium was out of this world. It's high range, it's all these different things. I had to carry some of the song by myself at some points and she did as well. Just making it past that was beautiful.

Q. Gina, RealityWanted: The coaches felt that your performance in the knockout round against Cody Belew was not your best this week. What do you think happened?
A. Avery: You know, it wasn't my best. The main thing that I kinda wanted people to see, even if it took losing that spot in the live shows, was that I'm not a robot. I'm a human being, I'm 16. Though I can sing and perform very well, I don't want people to think that I'm perfect. People got to the point where they thought i was perfect or unreal. I'm not perfect at all. I'm young and there's things I'm gonna do that I'm gonna mess up. I need time to learn. I didn't do it on purpose but it just happened. Watching the performance, I didn't think it was as bad as it seemed. It wasn't that serious. Don't lose sight and make fun of it. It's a tv show. Have fun, and that's what I wanted to bring forth.

Q. Gina, RealityWanted: Are you going to go back to Connecticut or do you want to stay in California?
A. Avery: Honestly, I'm really undecided right now. I'd like to come back to Connecticut but I will probably move to California. They put forth so many opportunities for you out there. I'm ready to really work and give the fans music that projects who I am.

The Voice airs Mondays and Tuesdays on NBC.

(Image courtesy of NBC)

Follow Gina @ginascarpa