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“I


said to the receptionist, ‘Look, we’re really tired of getting told no…could we please sing for you?’ So she said, ‘Sure, it won’t get you anywhere, but you can sing


for me.’” Colton Swon tells the tale of hitting the pavement for


record labels in Nashville, Tenn., on the way to a family vacation. Both he and his older brother Zach slung their guitars over their shoulders and went door to door, ready for their music careers to take fl ight before they were even teenagers.


“We’ve had a ton of people tell us ‘no’ since we were 12 years old,” Zach, now 28, said, recalling the venture. Family video camera in hand and parents chuckling be- hind the lens, young Colton accepted a dare from his dad to petition a record label’s offi ce receptionist. There was no deal, but a friendship was forged, signifying one of the Swons’ fi rst “yeses” in the music business. Coming from a musical family, the Swons knew their dream of breaking into the music industry would take time. “It was a commitment to each other,” Colton, now 25, said. “At various points over the years we’ve thought maybe we should just get a job, start families; maybe we should go to school or do sports. We could have done a lot of things, but we decided a long time ago we were in it together for the long haul.”


By Hayley Leatherwood SONG


The Muskogee, Okla., natives may have sung their last duet on NBC’s “The Voice,” but it’s likely not the last Oklahoma has seen of the sibling songbirds.


More than a decade later, the brothers are glad they didn’t say no to a suggestion from their piano player. At his behest, on a return trip from Nashville the Swons decided to audi- tion for NBC’s “The Voice” in Memphis, Tenn., the night before tryouts were held.


The vocal competition, now in its fourth season, begins with a round of blind auditions during which the show’s four celebrity coaches select artists to mentor who become members of their teams. “The Voice” separates itself from other singing competitions in that the fi rst impression is on vocals alone: The coaches sit in chairs facing away from the stage. If a coach wants a voice on their team, they have to push a button without seeing the contestant at all. At that point, the coach’s chair automatically swivels to face the stage and reveal their team member. However, if more than one coach turns around before the end of the audition, the artist gets to choose which coach’s team to join. Colton admitted he thought they didn’t stand a “fat chance” to be selected for the show, but the pair ended up getting one of the biggest “yeses” of their career to date. In fact, three of the superstar coaches—Blake Shelton, Usher and Shakira—couldn’t resist turning their chairs to see who harnessed the blended voices.


Zach and Colton said they will never forget how hum- bling it was to see three of the four coaches turn their chairs


AUGUST 2013 17


around—but they already knew their plan going into the audition.


“Even from the past you could bring up any superstar or legend and we would take Blake Shelton any time. No doubt,” Zach said of their chosen coach and self-proclaimed “Okie Brother.”


After the blind auditions, the show moves on to “battle rounds” and “knockouts,” which pit members of the same team against one another in vocal competition. The coach decides which artists remain and which are sent home. In a fi nal stage of live performances, artists rely on votes from the television audience to advance to the next round. The Swon Brothers not only survived the stages—they thrived with America’s support all the way to a spot in the fi nals. “They’re very special people and I’m just trying to stay out of the way,” Shelton said of his team members after a performance on the show.


The brothers’ fun-loving nature and smooth harmonies struck a chord with competing coach Adam Levine as well. “How can you not enjoy that?” Levine remarked after watching the brothers. Later in the season, Levine said, “I’m working on my Swon salute,” while raising his hands in a bird-like fashion.


The Swons earned the third place title in season four, and they also made their mark as the fi rst duo in “The Voice” history to make it to the fi nals.


“It’s all centered around one thing, and that’s be authentic and be who you are,” Zach said in their “Final Say” video for NBC. “A lot of people say being on a show is overnight success,” Zach said. “My dad said it best—‘If this was overnight it sure has been a really long night.’”


“The Voice” happened to be the right path, right now for the Swon Brothers. However, the Muskogee natives’ emer- gence onto the national country music scene is fueled by a history of hard work, thick skin and good-natured teasing.


Migrating Swoncerts


Many may not know this about Zach, but Colton revealed a secret that may stink for some fans: Zach actually enjoys the smell of skunk.


“Now, don’t take that in context—we don’t want a skunk to come spray us,” Colton said with a laugh. “Traveling on a bus a lot of our lives, he doesn’t mind the smell of the road.”


The pair of Swons traveled with their parents, who are also singers, on weekends when they were growing up. Both said their parents always made the family a priority, so the travel- ing and performances were about more than the music. “Luckily we’re best friends, whether we have music or not,” Colton said. “We feel blessed to work together and have that advantage of someone to rely on.” Both brothers said they couldn’t imagine going through “The Voice” experience without each other. Having the emotional support and someone to talk to when days get stressful was a huge plus for them. However, having two people is also twice the work.


“When I’m singing harmony with my brother I have to really listen to his voice,” Colton said. “But that’s what we signed up for.”


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