Gay former NFL player stuns The Voice judges in blind audition – WATCH
By Will Stroude
The Voice US
returned earlier this week and the new season started off with a bang as a New York City drag queen stunned all four judges.
Now, former NFL player Esera Tuaolo took to the stage for his blind audition in the show.
He amazed the judges with his rendition of ‘Rise Up’, leaving both Jennifer Hudson and Blake Shelton fighting over him.
After wowing the judges with his vocals, he also won their hearts after revealing he’s gay.
Tuaolo came out over a decade ago in 2002 on HBO’s Real Sports after retiring from sports and has only now spoken out about his experience.
“When I finished in the NFL, I came out to my family. When I said those words for the first time; when I said that ‘I was gay’, it was like this huge mountain just crumbled.”
“I felt light as a feather but when I jumped on the scale I was still that 6-foot-4-inch, 300-pound Samoan that’s gay and played in the NFL.”
Hudson declared that ‘Rise Up’ is one of her favourite songs, which is part of why Tuaolo’s performance caught her attention.
However, when it was time for Tuaolo to pick his judge for the competition, he went with Blake Shelton.
You can watch Tuaolo’s performance below:
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