Central Texas singer earns 4-chair turn on 'The Voice'

CENTRAL TEXAS (KXAN) — After a six-year hiatus from performing, a Hutto singer made his career return with a blind audition on "The Voice" — and earned a four-chair turn along the way.

Native Texan Savion Wright — whose stage name is NOIVAS — performed Sam Cooke's "A Change Is Gonna Come" in the final audition of the Season 23 premiere. It's a song that Wright said deeply resonated with him, specifically with the loss of his brother, Alfred.

"For my family, that song is a rallying cry," he said. "In order to get justice for all the people, unfortunately, in this country who have lost their lives at young ages."

He attributed music as his outlet and a means of channeling his pain and grief into his artistry. It was those same emotions he poured into his "The Voice" audition that he said helped him resonate with the judges, especially Blake Shelton. Wright said he and Shelton talked about how they've both lost brothers, along with their southern roots.

For Wright, returning to music is a homecoming of sorts, after he'd placed it on the back burner for the last six years. But he said becoming a parent led to all the pieces clicking and inspiring him to pick up a guitar again.

"This whole thing for me is really just a parenting moment, because I want to prove to my children that you can take a break from something that you love and you can find your way back to it," he said. "You never know how you can find your way back to it and what you can do with it."

While he performed an R&B and soul song for his audition, Wright said he's excited to show his multifaceted music tastes as he heads further in the competition. Some of his favorite artists on his rotation include Chris Stapleton, Justin Timberlake, Nina Simone, Aerosmith, The Police and James Taylor, just to name a few.

"I grew up listening to everything on the radio. And that's what kind of made me who I am," he said.

Alongside his range of music taste, he credited the people of Texas — from his hometown in Jasper to his current community in Hutto — for rallying behind his artistry and supporting him during this next chapter of his journey.

Some know Wright from his days competing on "American Idol" in the 2010s. Others have discovered him for the first time.

He said he hopes others who see his audition and follow his journey know dreams can be tangible, even after time away from pursuing them.

"What I want as an artist is to connect to people and make them feel it," he said. "Because that's the goal of music."