In fact, Bryce, who was a three-chair turn during his Blind Audition, says even he was surprised, and he admitted to Parade that there was never a point at which he thought he would walk away with the Universal Music Group recording contract. “I was lying in bed Monday night trying to go to sleep before the big day on Tuesday,” he says in this one-on-one interview. “I was just lying there, and I was like, ‘Man, you have a one in five shot at winning this show.’ Still, even then, I didn’t think that it was possible. But America loved Bryce Leatherwood and it was so incredible to see. It’s so humbling and so beautiful.” Of course, Bryce credits Blake with helping him get the win, crediting his coach with giving great advice when it came to song selection, but also with advising him not to change up on who he is as an artist. “I think my last four songs on the show were very impactful and very meaningful,” the 22-year-old Georgia native said. “I think they showcased everything I needed to showcase to put myself in the position to win, so I’ve got to thank him for that. Also, I have to thank him for leading me down the path of being myself and just sticking true to who I am and never wavering from that. I think that’s something to say, especially in this business where people have a lot of ideas about what you should be, not who you are. I plan to stick true to who I am, but also be adaptable, be flexible to other sounds and other ideas. He’s taught me in a lot of ways to be adaptable but always remain true to who you are.” Bryce knows he wasn’t a frontrunner to win The Voice initially, especially since he had to sing for the Instant Save to make the Top 13, but he feels it was when he performed “Amarillo by Morning” that he got the attention of country music fans, and they began voting him. “I think that put me on the radar and in the minds of a lot of country fans, but I think my favorite performance was ‘If Heaven Wasn’t so Far Away.’ It probably was the most emotionally impactful song I sang, but the most fun I had – 100 percent – was ‘Trouble’ at the finale for sure.” With a recording contract as part of his prize package, it still remains to be seen if Bryce will be moving to Nashville, but, as the winner of The Voice, he’s ecstatic that he will get a shot at finding his place in country music. “I just want to release country music that’s going to impact people, both upbeat songs and fun songs but also slow and more somber songs,” he said. “I want to make music that impacts people. I want to go back to the traditional roots of country, but also include some modern influences as well. I don’t want to be stuck in the mud with just my traditional country lane. I want to incorporate great sounds like Southern rock, great sounds of traditional country, and great sounds of modern country.” Also, during our conversation the morning after his win, Bryce talked about his next steps, the biggest lesson he learned at The Voice, how his college business degree will help him, what it’s like to work with the Paul Mirkovich band, and his plans for the holidays. How are you feeling? It’s only been 12 hours. Have you wrapped your mind around it yet? No, ma’am I have not. I don’t think I ever will. I’m so proud to be representing as the winner for so many incredible people, so many incredible artists. This is such an honor. I’m just so blessed to have known all these incredible artists, the people, the cast, the production team, the coaches, and the voice coaches. I’m just blessed. I’m soaking it all one day at a time. It’s unreal. There has to be a lot of joy in winning, but what’s the scary side of it? The scary side of it is you lose control of timelines; you lose control of what is to be done. As an artist, you have to ride this wave of the show, and so you’ve got to put your foot forward and step up and say, “Hey, let’s get this thing rolling. Let’s get this thing going,” because we haven’t seen an artist break from The Voice and that’s the scariest part. I just want to make sure I do everything I can to put me in the forefront of country music and the forefront of the winners of The Voice. What’s next steps for you? Currently you live in Statesboro, Georgia, will you have to move to Nashville, or will you be able to do it from home? We’re going to be looking at that in the next few weeks. I know that right now, I’m going to try to hang out with family and spend time, unwind, and relax, but I do see myself moving to Nashville in the near future, maybe couch surfing up there with some buddies, saving on money and trying to grind it. It’s a grind. You’ve got to be ready to have hard nights and long days and be ready to write and record and do everything to succeed. You’ve got to be hungry. Doesn’t Morgan Myles live in Nashville? I know she wasn’t on your team, but if you move to Nashville, will you be in touch? Absolutely. Me and Morgan are very close friends. It’s just incredible to be surrounded by so many incredible artists. In Nashville, there’s a ton of people that have already been on the show and all those people have already taken me under their wing and said, “Hey, you ever need anything, let me know,” so Nashville, Tennessee might become a second home. You have a business degree from Georgia Southern University, which might seem like an antithesis to a music career which is a creative thing, but do you think maybe that the business degree will help you stay grounded and understand the contracts and the business side of the business? Absolutely! I think from an analytical standpoint, a lot of my skills have come from door-to-door sales and working with my landscaping company. How to interact with people, how to read people, how to see what people’s intentions are is very important when it comes to business deals, and when it comes to music as well. It’s all about who you know, not just what you know, so I believe that both my business management degree and my experience with my business will help me in the future. Is there one life lesson that you’ll take away from The Voice. Did you learn something maybe about yourself or something from the other contestants that you went, “That’s a really good thing. I need to remember that.” I would say, never judge a book by its cover. I’ve made so many incredible friends that I would never have pictured me making outside of a show like this. When you’re out here for months, spending time working, trying to stay sane out here during this whole madness, it’s incredible the people you meet and fall in love with. Man, I fell in love with everybody out here. Everyone was such a sweetheart, such a high character note. I’m here as the winner representing all those people and it’s my job to represent them the right way because I see myself responsible for them. I’m happy to carry that torch and be the season 22 winner for a lot of incredible people. What was it like to work with Paul Mirkovich and guitarist Justin Derrico, all these professional musicians? Wow! That’s a great question. Paul and the whole band, it shows you that those guys eat, sleep, breathe music. Seeing them smile every day doing what they love to do, it’s inspiring, because this is all I want to do. Those guys love it, and you have to love it to want to do this because it’s hard, it’s grueling. They’ve shown me that if you want to do it, you’ve got to love it. Those guys have dedicated a lot of their time to little ol’ people like me to make the sound that I want. How accommodating they are, how inspiring they are, it’s been incredible to work with them. Is it home for the holidays after this? What do the holidays look like for you? Holidays should be family time, relaxation, laughing and having a good time celebrating this victory for all of them. This is for my family and I’m here to make them proud. I think I did my job pretty well. The Voice will return for its 23rd season this spring with new coaches Chance the Rapper, Niall Horan, returning coach Kelly Clarkson and Blake Shelton coaching his final season. Next, Read Blake Shelton’s Heartfelt Goodbye to The Voice
