By Anna Hughes | Photos courtesy of NBCUniversal

It wasn’t a blind audition for long.

An enthusiastic Michael Bublé turned his chair around just seconds after hearing a soulful, gritty country voice on stage.

His eyes widened at the sight of 24-year-old Tate Renner, whose cow-boy hat was not quite big enough to hide his smile.

Renner didn’t miss a beat. The former Hinsdalean continued strumming his guitar and belting out “Hurricane” by the Band of Heathens on “The Voice” stage. It wasn’t long until he was faced with a choice: whose team he would join. Bublé, Snoop Dogg, and Reba McEntire all wanted him on their team.

“I would have legitimately been excited to work with any of them,” Renner said.

But as he called Reba’s name and hugged her silver sparkly jacket, he couldn’t help but think this could be his golden ticket to the country music scene: something he’s admired ever since he was a little boy growing up in Texas.

“There was definitely a pull towards Reba, just because [of] the country. I mean, she’s the queen of country, and I knew that I wanted to go that route with my music, and I knew she would be able to help a lot.”
“And we both have red hair,” he joked.

Although his audition for Season 26 has over 430,000 views on YouTube and was watched by millions on national television, the Belmont University alum swears the entire experience was a blur.

“I do not remember a single thing that happened,” Renner said. “I remember Bublé turning his chair, which was about three seconds in…Once that chair turned, I was like, oh, okay, this is actually happening. I’ll be here. And after that, I don’t remember anything. Don’t remember the interview, nothing.”Luckily for him, his experience on Hinsdale Central’s forensics team helped keep him calm, cool, and collected during the biggest moment of his life.

“I mean performing in front of those people and everything like that, I credit all my confidence or anything that I have on stage, definitely to those years at speech team,” Renner said. “A lot of people said for my blind audition, I looked very poised and relaxed, but deep down, I had no idea what was going on.”

Although his time on The Voice was cut short after being eliminated in the Knockouts, his music career is only beginning. He’s headed back to Nashville, the place he now calls home, to write some songs and hone in on his identity as an artist.

“[Success in the industry is} definitely just finding a niche, which I wouldn’t say that I fully found yet, but I’m still looking, and it’s still obviously a never-ending journey,” Renner said. “You got to make yourself stand out … It’s finding that group of people that not only support your performances and support your music, but they definitely support you in a lyrical sense or even as a human sense.”

In a sea of budding hopefuls, Renner has one thing most people don’t: Reba McEntire’s advice in his back pocket. It’s one of the many things he’s taking from his life-changing experience on the show. With enhanced confidence in his talent and thousands of new fans following along his journey, Renner is taking the next steps—in his cowboy boots, of course—towards his dream.

“I’ve been doing music for about five or six years, where it’s my own music. But what I’ve realized is you really aren’t starting until you fully commit. And so I’ve just recently fully committed,” Renner said. “It’s really just the beginning of my music career. It [doesn’t] matter until you really give it your all.”

To follow along with Renner’s music journey, visit his Instagram and TikTok accounts @taterennermusic, or listen on Spotify.

Tate Renner on the latest season of The Voice on NBC