Austyns Stancil’s performance during the knockout round of “The Voice” brought coach Snoop Dogg to tears.
On the November 11 episode of the singing competition, Snoop brought Stancill, Christina Eagle and Jake Tankersley together for his first-ever knockout on the show, where singers are allowed to choose their own songs.
Stancil, who is from Oakland, California, told Snoop and guest judge Sting during rehearsals that he would be singing Luther Vandross’ “Dance With My Father,” before sharing the meaning behind his choice.
Sting and Snoop Dogg react to Austin Stancil’s performance of “Dancing With My Father.” Tyler Golden/NBC
“Yesterday was the one-year anniversary of my father’s death,” Stancil told Snoop and Sting. “It’s going to be tough, but we’ll get through this.”
Snoop immediately rose from his chair to give Stancil a big hug, before asking him to sing it for his father, and not sadly.
“Don’t cry, keep it,” Snoop said. “Sing it, yeah give it to me.”
Stancil gave an excellent performance of the R&B track, which clearly moved Snoop. After the singer concluded the concert, Snoop got up and hugged him again, explaining how Stancil’s performance made him start thinking about his late mother, and other people he had lost in his life.
Austin Stancil smiles during rehearsals for “The Voice.” Tyler Golden/NBC
“Look, he’s gone,” Sting said, pointing at Snoop as tears streamed down his face. “Me too, but you know, I’m British – we don’t show our emotions.”
Stancil then asked Snoop how he’s been coping with performing in front of a crowd since his mother’s death in 2021. The rapper recalled breaking down during one of the performances, but then remembered what his mother wanted — for him to continue pursuing his passion for music.
Snoop replied, “After that, I never cried again on stage for my mom, because I know that’s what she wanted me to do. When she was here, I made her proud. I’ll keep making her proud.”
When Stancil performed the song during the knockout round, coaches Gwen Stefani and Michael Bublé gave him a standing ovation.
“I just came out and sang one of Luther Vandross’ great songs,” Bublé said. “You’ve got to be special if you’re going to do this. If you were Snoop, I’d probably pick you.”
Coach Reba McEntire described Stancil’s performance as “very strong.”
“It’s so amazing how healing music is,” she said. “Your father is not with us, my father is not with us, so this song goes to the heart.”
Snoop singled out Stancil before his decision to declare him the winner.
“Reba was crying, and I was crying, and I’m trying to hold them, and push them up, but…there’s nothing I can do about them, they’ll keep falling,” the rapper said of his tears. “I am truly honored to have you on my team.”
Eagle and Tankersley also remain in contention due to Save and Steal as the show moves towards the qualifying rounds.
“Austins was the winner based on his spirit and his character and how he took all that pain and all that loss to give us a great performance,” Snoop said. “You can’t stop the emotion when the emotion hits you. The tears start falling, and chills run down your back. This is real music, this is real singing.”
