A contestant on The Voice named Lucia Flores-Wiseman put a jazzy twist on the Soundgarden classic “Black Hole Sun” on Monday night (May 12th), eliciting a polarizing reaction from viewers.
Flores-Wiseman sang the first couple lines of the song a capella in a very stylized vocal reminiscent of Amy Winehouse or Billie Holiday. She continued singing the iconic grunge tune as a minimal string section kicked in, and eventually belted out the song over a heavier orchestral arrangement.
She received praise from her coach, Adam Levine, as well as another Voice coach, Kelsea Ballerini, who called Flores-Wiseman “a star.” However, the commentary on the official YouTube post of her performance is quite divided.
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One person wrote, “Maybe this is an unpopular opinion, but I can’t understand a single word she’s singing. Like she’s good, don’t get me wrong, but she kind of sounds like she’s singing in cursive?” Another commented, “Too much twang in her voice, like she’s trying too hard.”
Yet another commenter noted, “I am absolutely a fan and think Lucia is extremely talented, but I wish she would sing ‘normal’ sometimes, if that makes sense. She has such a nice voice, but the ‘artistic style’ she has sometimes ruins it for me. The lyrics are not clear.”
And one more person remarked, “She is my favorite. Chris Cornell is one of my favorite vocalists of all time. I love this song. I have heard interesting arrangements of this song before. All that said, this just didn’t fit right.”
Others praised her performance, with one writing, “I’m betting Chris Cornell would have absolutely loved this,” and someone else saying, “She is different, amazing, love her voice.”
Flores-Wiseman grew up in Washington state and is based in Seattle, and has described herself as a Soundgarden fan. In a recent Instagram clip she made at Seattle’s Easy Street Records, she picked Soundgarden’s Superunknown, Pearl Jam’s Ten, and Brandi Carlile’s By the Way, I Forgive You as three albums that had a great influence on her.
See Lucia Flores-Wiseman’s performance of “Black Hole Sun” on The Voice, as well as the Instagram clip of her picking albums in a record store, below.
Meanwhile, Soundgarden were recently announced as one of the 2025 inductees into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. A ceremony will take place on November 8th in Los Angeles.