It’s been a couple of days since 20-year-old Aiden Ross from College Station, Texas, took the top prize for Season 28 of The Voice and the reality is sinking in.
“It’s been a lot to take in,” he tells Parade. “It’s almost like my subconscious when I was on that stage for the finale, it didn’t know how to process it. I’d never experienced anything like that before. It was such a new territory. But it was incredible, and I’m incredibly thankful.”
The Texas A&M college student, who admits to having watched The Voice with his family since he was a 6-year-old kid, is now the one hoping his win will help take his music career to the next level.
“I have one song out right now called Everything and More,” Aiden says, “but a new song will be coming out within the month, I think, so stay tuned.”
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In what was a surprising bit of news to me, Aiden shared that the winner of The Voice is no longer guaranteed a recording contract, just the $100,000 prize, but he is talks with labels about getting signed. And since “pop” describes such an overarching theme of music, Aiden uses artists as examples to define what speaks to him.
“I feel like there’s a hole in the industry for a Lizzie McAlpine–Olivia Dean-type male,” he says. “I hope to be that. I think my music speaks to that. There’s something hopeful and honest about it that I think will really excite people.”
As for how much his coach Niall Horan will be a part of it, he explains, “It’s less about exact plans for the future, but more so just like a trust thing. Niall has been in my corner throughout this whole process. It’s less about reaching out and being like, ‘Hey, what are you going to do,’ and more so a relationship thing. He’s been like a mentor and a big brother to me. And I’m really excited for our future together. You will definitely see more of me and Niall together in the future, I can tell you that.”
As for the $100,000 prize money, Aiden very sensibly plans to invest that into his career.
He says, “I think I owe it to myself, I owe it to those who voted for me, my loved ones who sacrificed for me to invest it into my music career. So, whatever that may be, whether it’s outreach, whether it’s writing and production, it’ll probably be things of that nature. I owe it to music, I won that with music, I should use it to support music.”
Related: Niall Horan Breaks Down His History-Making Third Win on The Voice (Exclusive)
Aiden is also being sensible when it comes to college. He isn’t going to chuck getting his engineering degree in his pursuit of music, but rather, he plans to juggle both with the focus on music.
“I went to Niall about it and asked him because he’s just great to ask about advice,” Aiden says. “I was like, ‘Well, how do you think this is a Plan B? Do you think I can do it?’ And he was like ‘Dude, do it. Not really because of a Plan B.’ Niall never had the opportunity to go to college. He said, ‘You should go to college just to stimulate your brain, just to learn. Education is a great thing. It’s a great space to be in.’”
Photo by: Griffin Nagel/NBC
So, for now, as Aiden pursues his music career, he will continue to take college courses as long as they don’t stop him from pursuing the music career.
“Last semester, I took one online class, and I was totally able to give everything to music,” he explains. “So, this next semester, I’ll probably do one or two online classes just to continually stimulate my brain using something that isn’t music, furthering my education, but also be giving everything I have to music. I owe it to myself to do that.”
Staying in college isn’t the only advice that Niall passed on to Aiden. In fact, Aiden credits his win with Niall keeping him grounded.
“I’d get a little bit like lost in the sauce or whatever, and I’d go into that first rehearsal doing all these runs and all these big notes, and I would lose the interpretation of the story. I would lose sight of the message of the song. Niall would say ‘Aiden, find the heartbeat of the song and let that anchor you.’ That really helped me convey and relate to people, because honestly, I think music is used to relate and feel.”
The Voice returns for Season 29 with a two-hour premiere of The Voice: Battle of Champions on Monday, February 29 at 8 p.m. ET/PT on NBC. Streams next day on Peacock.
Next, The Voice Returns for Season 29 With New ‘Battle of Champions’ Format and Fan Favorite Judges
