Charlotte Boyer, a 17-year-old junior at Rock Island High School, will be featured as a contestant in Season 20 of NBC’s “The Voice” singing competition, which begins airing Monday, March 1, at 7 p.m.
Last fall, Boyer didn’t know her mom Chrissy had submitted a video of her performing from 2019 to “The Voice.” Charlotte and her father got an all-expenses paid trip to Los Angeles for the month of October, first so she could quarantine for two weeks. It was her first time ever on a plane, and the blind auditions were at NBC studios.
“I wasn’t really, like going into it, expecting anything. I didn’t have any real expectations. I was along for the experience.”
Boyer was not allowed to say what she sang for auditions, nor who she sang for, until her show airs. She was at the auditions for about six hours, and she wore her River Music Experience T-shirt.
“I felt like they were really trying to make this a genuine production. They’re trying to portray everyone’s lives in a good way. There wasn’t anything negative.”
Being gone from school for a month wasn’t too big a deal, since during the pandemic, students were studying remotely anyway. She continued her studies online. Getting on “The Voice” was a dream come true for Boyer, whose mom is a professional singer and the events manager at River Music Experience.
“I definitely never thought that I would have been able to do that. That’s something like people dream of doing and I was able to actually make it. So I think that’s something in itself that is a great accomplishment for me, that I’ll take with me for the rest of my life.”
Because of COVID, Charlotte hasn’t been able to perform at Rocky, and the Redstone Room at River Music Experience remains closed. Another silver lining is that she’s had a lot of time to work alone on her songwriting.
She’s been writing music since she was about 13, and took her first RME program (Winter Blues Camp) at 12. The Davenport-based nonprofit that works to change lives through music has helped Charlotte through its educational programs, scholarships, and financial assistance.
In 2019, Charlotte was the youngest songwriter chosen for the “Amplify Quad Cities: The Soundtrack” campaign from the local United Way. United Way partnered with RME to enlist local songwriters to create six original songs that reflect stories of everyday people, whose lives were changed through the support of United Way.
Rene Gellerman, CEO of the Q-C United Way and board member of the RME, is impressed with what Charlotte has accomplished in her young life.
“It was so moving to see someone that age with that level of compassion. It was really moving and special at that moment. There’s a level of maturity for someone like Charlotte, was really remarkable.”
Gellerman said she was blown away to learn she would be competing on “The Voice.”
“When we had our campaign kickoff and the two girls played for the kickoff, they were a fan favorite – not only because it was inspiring to see young people’s talent and courage, but just the quality of her voice and the song that she wrote was moving to people. She was a fan favorite for sure.”
To see how Charlotte worked with United Way on “Amplify Quad Cities,” visit www.youtube.com/watch?v=weEHYt_0G4o. You can listen to her song “I’ll Be Alright” at https://soundcloud.com/unitedwayqc/illbealright.
