Country singer Craig Wayne Boyd and coach Blake Shelton win seventh season of ‘The Voice’

UNIVERSAL CITY, Calif. – Country fans have spoken again.

Craig Wayne Boyd, the country rocker from Blake Shelton’s team, was named the winner of “The Voice” Tuesday.

Boyd is the third country singer to win the NBC sing-off.

The father from Nashville, Tennessee, was up against three finalists from Adam Levine’s team: Runner-up Matt McAndrew, Chris Jamison, who took third place and Damien Lawson, who nabbed fourth.

This is the fourth win for country star Shelton.

“We went into this thing with the odds stacked against us,” Shelton said Tuesday during a post-finale news conference. “Will I rub it in Adam’s face? He may quit the show before I’m done rubbing this in his face!”

Boyd told reporters of his struggles to make ends meet while pursuing his dreams.

“It truly feels like validation that all the hard work that I put in up to this point has been worth it. I remember more than a year ago … saying ‘listen I may have to quit because it’s not paying my bills. I’m losing my house, lost my pickup.’ I didn’t know what I was going to do.”

Boyd wins a record deal and the $100,000 grand prize.

Jennifer Hudson, Ed Sheeran, Bruno Mars, Mark Ronson, Jessie J, Meghan Trainor and Hozier performed during the two-hour finale.

___

Follow Nicole Evatt at http://twitter.com/NicoleEvatt

News from © The Associated Press, . All rights reserved.
This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Join the Conversation!

Want to share your thoughts, add context, or connect with others in your community?

The Associated Press

The Associated Press is an independent global news organization dedicated to factual reporting. Founded in 1846, AP today remains the most trusted source of fast, accurate, unbiased news in all formats and the essential provider of the technology and services vital to the news business. More than half the world’s population sees AP journalism every day.