Voice Winner Adam David Tells All About His Bromance With Michael Bublé and Inspiring Comeback

The odds were stacked high against Adam David. In The Voice’s Season 27 Semifinals, he had to sing for the Wildcard Instant Save — not a great omen moving into the Top 5. But Team Michael Bublé’s MVP just kept doing what he does — performing with as much feeling as consistency — and gave his coach a second consecutive win. (Read the recap.) How does it feel? TVLine asked David exactly that and lots more.

TVLINE | I can’t tell you how happy I am to be talking to you, because for the longest time watching the show, I thought, “Oh, this guy is terrific.” But I didn’t think you were gonna win.
Me neither. I don’t know if you could tell by my face.

TVLINE | Yeah, I’d like to play poker with you.

[Laughs] Right, right, right.

TVLINE | Let’s go back to the beginning. You were a one-chair turn. Were you thinking, “Well, this’ll be a short run”?
Honestly, for me, one chair was enough. From there, every time I made it through, I just saw it as another chance to do better. I picked all of my performances apart watching them back. I’m a bit of a perfectionist and want to be at 100 percent all the time. But I am learning how to give myself compassion because it’s not a realistic expectation for anybody.

TVLINE | If you were going back and critiquing yourself, was there a performance that you were especially happy with? Or one that you were really dissatisfied with?
I’ll tell you this: With the last two performances, “You Are So Beautiful” and “Hard Fought Hallelujah,” I have not watched them, because I don’t want to pick them apart. The moment to me felt so amazing. So I think that’s something.

TVLINE | Maybe that’s a little gift you can give yourself — not overanalyzing them.
Right. I don’t want to ruin it for myself. That moment was so powerful to me, and the response seemed to be mostly positive, and I’d rather the moment just be that special thing. Maybe eventually I’ll learn how to be truly objective.

TVLINE | There’s gotta be a balance between being thoughtful and critical and just brutalizing yourself.
Right. I’ll give you a perfect example. [Teddy Swims’] “Lose Control,” the Instant Save song. I had performed stronger. But I can watch that back and say that objectively, because only someone who’s been in that exact position knows exactly how I felt.

TVLINE | Your brain had to have been a jumble.

It was such an intense moment. You’re dealing with the grief of not being called to be one of the Top 4 with the fear that “This is it. I’m going home now.” And then you’ve got a little bit of this oomph. I was like, “Well, man, if I’m going home, anyway, I’m going out strong.” So I can give myself the self-compassion of saying, “You know, that was intense. I did my best.”

TVLINE | Obviously, you and Michael get along tremendously well. What made you click do you suppose?
He’s just a really genuine guy. And I feel like that’s something I try to be. He’s also very connected with the music and serving the music, giving back, and those are things that I feel deeply about as well. He’s just a good dude, man. I kept being like, “Is he gonna be this cool all the time?” But that’s just who he is.

TVLINE | Now that you’ve made it, who are your dream collaborators?
Teddy Swims. I just did a Brandon Lake song. Jelly Roll. I’m a huge fan of John Mayer and Gary Clark Jr. Marcus King. Allen Stone. I just love these guys’ music, and they influence my music a lot. And Michael. I really want to do something with Michael. The way that we played together on “The Weight” was so fun.

TVLINE | What was the most surprising call or text you got after your win was announced?
A lot of people I haven’t talked to in a very long time have reached out — some of those are surprising. A lot of the messages that I’m getting are from people that are in recovery, too. I saw one that said she was 29 days clean, you know? And that’s what this is, man. This win’s not just for me, it’s also for the people that are still struggling.

TVLINE | You’ve been very open about your struggle with addiction. Is there message you’d like to get out to people who might be where you were?
There’s something that we say: We do recover. I know what it feels like to be stuck in what seems to be an endless loop, and I can say that it’s possible to get out of it. It can be challenging, but anything worth doing is challenging, you know? And if I can do it, anybody can. There’s a cliché that we say, which is you can get a life beyond your wildest dreams. And right now I’m living that. I hope anyone can take that message and get the help that they need — and there’s nothing wrong with asking for help. There’s something about being vulnerable and leaning into the vulnerability that can change your life.