INTERVIEW – The 25-year-old singer is one of the vocal gems revealed in the first episode of the blind auditions of season 13 of the telecrochet produced by ITV Studios France for TF1.
It took a minute for Mika, Zazie then Bigflo and Oli to activate their buzzer and turn around to discover Gabriel Lobao during the blind auditions of “The Voice” . His impeccable recovery ofOver my shoulder de Mika also ended up convincing Vianney but the heart of this 25-year-old artist based in London was clearly offered to the Lebanese coach.
“Okay, come on, it’s okay”released rapper Bigflo from the first exchanges between the talent and Mika. “They have the same outfit, he sang her song and they are both from London. Did you understand that it was over for us? There’s no point even talking, guys. » Mika also finished alone on stage when his fellow coaches decided to go and sit in the stands with the public.
Read also“The Voice”, his authorship, his withdrawal from the stage, his relationship with the star system… Vianney’s rare confidences
LE FIGARO. – During your final casting audition in Vitry-sur-Seine, you presented another song to the jury, what happened?
Gabriel LOBAO. – I had to work twice as hard as the others! (Laughs.) There were small disagreements over the choice of my song between Over my shoulder by Mika that I performed in the blind auditions and Can’t take my eyes off you by Frankie Valli that I had sung during my final audition a month before. I liked both titles but Mika’s allowed me to exploit my vocal abilities and the emotional dimension more.
How did you find yourself in this new season of “The Voice”?
It was Charles Yavo from ITV Studios France who came across two short 30-second videos on TikTok that I had published during confinement in 2020. I don’t know how he managed to come across them, it’s incredible and I thank him because everything I experience in “The Voice” from now on is thanks to him. I would never have dared to take the initiative to register.
Why did you choose to leave the Paris region to live in London four years ago?
I wanted more freedom than I felt in France and I wanted to discover London rock. I also created my rock group there and rubbed shoulders with the rock scene which is more important than in Paris. And I wanted to flourish in the field of musical comedies. I’m happy to have discovered other things there but it’s not worth Paris. London was a very formative stage in my artistic life and it is time for me to return.
“I hope I didn’t make Mika uncomfortable by covering one of his songs”
Gabriel Lobao
What are your expectations from participating in “The Voice”?
I hope that the show will bring me new opportunities in France. After my years in London, I want to flourish artistically there alone, make a living from my music and release an album. That would be great. The rock group was a step and I want to continue solo.
Did you have the firm intention of seducing Mika in particular during your blind audition?
(Laughs.) Yes of course! I share a lot of vocal characteristics with Mika, he uses the head voice a lot. I tried to blast his song Over my shoulder using all the techniques that I master: the lyrical voice of my classical years, my pop voice of my years in London… I mixed all of this to try to stand out from the original. Mika had stated in an interview that he was very uncomfortable when a talent covered one of his songs. I hope I didn’t make him uncomfortable!
Were you aware of the moment when Mika’s red armchair turned over?
No because this song is very emotional. I was motionless in front of the camera I was staring at. I could see a light come on in the corner of my eyes, I was aware that chairs had turned over but I didn’t know who. It was only at the end of the performance that I allowed myself to look down and discovered that all four coaches had turned around.
“They didn’t even try to block him, they were very nice to let me work with Mika”
Gabriel Lobao
Bigflo and Oli, Zazie and Vianney did not try to fight to convince you and went to sit in the audience…
It was really fun to experience this television moment on stage with them. When Mika told me that I had forgotten it during my interpretation, I voluntarily added it by saying that I had not forgotten it. (Laughs.) They didn’t even try to block him, they were very nice to let me work with Mika.
What would you have done if one of the coaches had blocked Mika?
It would have been hard for me because I did everything to get there. I would have gone to Vianney and worked more on the simplicity of my singing and my voice.
Were you surprised to find your loved ones backstage, notably your sister who lives in Madrid?
It was wonderful because our family is split in different places: my grandparents live in Portugal, my parents are in Paris and my sister is in Madrid with my niece. It’s complicated to see each other as often as we’d like and “The Voice” was a great opportunity to bring us together. It was magical.
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