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Louisiana singer Zoe Levert’s path to ‘The Voice’ wasn’t swift, but Taylor still helped

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Louisiana singer Zoe Levert’s path to ‘The Voice’ wasn’t swift, but Taylor still helped


Should Zoe Levert win Season 25 of NBC’s “The Voice,” she’ll certainly thank her celebrity coach, John Legend, but she’s also likely to throw some appreciation Taylor Swift’s way.

After all, it was a video of New Orleans native Levert’s take on Swift’s song “Cardigan” (from her 2020 album “Folklore”) which went viral to the tune of 5 million online views, attracting recruiters for the singing competition series who contacted Levert about auditioning. This eventually led to the Baton Rouge songstress’ current spot on Team Legend as the show’s knockout rounds continue this week.

The key word here is “eventually,” Levert, 20, explained, as she unsuccessfully auditioned two different times when she was in high school.



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Louisiana native Zoe Levert, 20, is a contestant on Season 25 of ‘The Voice,’ competing on John Legend’s team.

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“It just wasn’t meant to be,” she said. 

She tried again for Season 24.

Levert’s third attempt provided a glimmer of hope when she heard from producers.

“But before we even started filming, they were like, ‘We actually don’t need you for this season, but we’ll call you back probably at some point,’” Levert said. “And then I got the call about Season 25 and decided to do it. It’s definitely been a long time coming for sure.”

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‘The Voice’ coach John Legend, back to camera, works with Louisiana contestant Zoe Levert on the song for her battles round.



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A flight to Los Angeles later and blind auditions rolled around at “The Voice’s” home at Universal Studios. Referred to as “the blinds,” in these tryouts, the judges/coaches’ chairs face away from the auditioner, thus they only hear the performance.

Along the way, if one or more coaches are interested in securing the singer for their teams, they press a buzzer and their chairs turn around. One chair turn and that singer automatically joins that coach’s team; two or more turns and the auditioner chooses their coach. No chair turns means bye-bye.

“They do a great job of kind of preparing you for that day because it’s a scary thing and I’ve never done anything like this before,” Levert said.

Her turn to audition came late in the day, thus there were few spots remaining on teams, which added to Levert’s stress level.

Her song choice was Little Big Town’s “Better Man,” coincidentally written by Swift.

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The OK3 trio, from left, and Zoe Levert, far right, listen with host Carson Daly as ‘The Voice’ judges critique the women’s performance of ‘The Bones’ by Little Big Town.



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“I get up and do my song and, you know, I’m going through it and I reached a certain point at the very end and I’m out of high notes — I’m out of cool tricks to do and still didn’t have any chair turns,” Levert recalled. “I was like, ‘This might not be meant to be.’”

She remembers consciously thinking, “OK, you have one more line, do something cool.”

So, she improvised an extra run in the last line.

“And right at that last second, John Legend turned around and I don’t remember much after that,” she said. 

When the episode aired a few weeks ago, Levert said it was nice to watch her audition along with the rest of “The Voice” viewers.

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Following her song, Levert took a moment to tell coaches Dan and Shay how much their music meant to her, and that she and her then-fiancé Ryan Turner (backstage at the time) planned to use the pop singer-songwriter pair’s song “From the Ground Up” for the first dance at their wedding.

“I figured they’d be like, ‘Oh, thank you,’ and just kind of leave it at that, but they ended up coming on stage. I hear Dan say, ‘Does anyone have a guitar?’ They pulled my fiancé up on stage and they sang our first dance song for us,” Levert said. “It was already such a cool moment — and then on top of that, Dan and Shay made it so personal about my life as well as about my wedding. And so that was just really special and I felt so loved.”

Afterward, her new coach welcomed her with an official Team Legend jacket.

“I get in a van (leaving the studio) with my fiancé and I’m like, ‘Did any of that just happen? None of that feels real,” she told him. 

The couple married Jan. 7, and yes, they did dance to Dan and Shay as scheduled.

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“It was funny because when the wedding happened, this (her audition) hadn’t aired yet or anything, and so it was our little secret and then everything aired and it was cool to share that moment with everyone.”

Levert is a student at Leavell College in New Orleans, where her major is psychology and minor is music. With their home now in the Capital City, Levert said she performs often at Le Chien Brewing Company in Denham Springs for open mic nights and weekend gigs.

She also sings at her parents’ church plant, The Mustard Seed, and at Abundant Life Church, where her husband is worship director. Both churches are located in Denham Springs. She’s also taken the stage at Jolie Pearl Oyster Bar a few times, and the couple takes singing engagements at other area churches as well.

A self-proclaimed “Super Swiftie,” Levert said she saw Swift in concert last May in Nashville, Tennessee, but doesn’t have tickets for the superstar’s three-show stop in New Orleans in October.

“But I’m hoping I can score a last-minute ticket and go see her again,” she said.

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In the meantime, look for Levert, a tall, slender blonde who happens to resemble you-know-who, on “The Voice” at 7 p.m. Mondays on NBC. The series also streams on Peacock.

Levert most recently won a “battles” round, singing Maren Morris’ “The Bones” alongside fellow contestants the OK3 trio.

The win advanced her to the knockout rounds, so her next show appearance will be soon, although “The Voice” won’t disclose a specific date. 



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Louisiana

Louisiana has the highest incidence of prostate cancer in the nation. See the parish data.

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Louisiana has the highest incidence of prostate cancer in the nation. See the parish data.


Prostate cancer is the most common cancer in American men, with an estimated 333,830 new cases and 36,320 deaths projected for 2026 for the disease, according to the American Cancer Society. 

In the U.S., there are approximately 116 new prostate cancer cases per 100,000 people annually. Louisiana has the highest prostate cancer incidence rate in the country at 147.2 cases per 100,000 — a rate that has been steadily rising since 2014, according to data from the National Cancer Institute. 






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New prostate cancer drug can extend life expectancy by 8 months, Baton Rouge doctor says


These parishes had the highest rates, in cases per 100,000, of prostate cancer from 2018 to 2022, in descending order: 

  • West Feliciana Parish with 218.6 cases per 100,000; 
  • Iberville Parish with 182.3 cases per 100,000; 
  • Bienville Parish with 179.7 cases per 100,000; 
  • West Baton Rouge Parish with 179.4 cases per 100,000; 
  • Vermillion Parish with 176.5 cases per 100,000; 
  • Iberia Parish with 173.8 cases per 100,000; 
  • East Baton Rouge Parish with 173.6 cases per 100,000; 
  • East Carroll Parish with 172.9 cases per 100,000; 
  • East Feliciana Parish with 166.3 cases per 100,000; 
  • Tangipahoa Parish with 166.2 cases per 100,000; 
  • St. Martin Parish with 166 cases per 100,000; 
  • Jackson Parish with 165.3 cases per 100,000; 
  • and Lincoln Parish with 165.1 cases per 100,000. 

These parishes had the lowest rates, in cases per 100,000, of prostate cancer from 2018 to 2022, in ascending order: 

  • Cameron Parish with 101 cases per 100,000; 
  • Evangeline Parish with 102.7 cases per 100,000; 
  • Union Parish with 106.9 cases per 100,000; 
  • Winn Parish with 108.2 cases per 100,000; 
  • Vernon Parish with 109.4 cases per 100,000; 
  • Grant Parish with 109.7 cases per 100,000; 
  • Franklin and La Salle parishes with 111 cases per 100,000; 
  • St. Bernard Parish with 113.9 cases per 100,000; 
  • Tensas Parish with 115.2 cases per 100,000; 
  • Terrebonne Parish with 117.5 cases per 100,000; 
  • Washington Parish with 121.1 cases per 100,000; 
  • Livingston Parish with 122.8 cases per 100,000; 
  • Sabine Parish with 122.9 cases per 100,000; 
  • Bossier Parish with 123.7 cases per 100,000;
  • and La Fourche Parish with 124.8 cases per 100,000.

Data represents an annual average for all stages of prostate cancer.



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Shavers leads ULM past Louisiana 79-63

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Shavers leads ULM past Louisiana 79-63


PENSACOLA, Fla. — Marcavia Shavers posts 21 points and 13 rebounds to lead ULM Warhawks women’s basketball past Louisiana 79-63 in the Sun Belt Conference tournament.

ULM (15-15, 7-11 Sun Belt) took control early, outscoring Louisiana 17-7 in the first quarter and extending the lead to 41-21 by halftime. The Warhawks never trailed and led by as many as 28 points in the second quarter.

Shavers anchored the inside for ULM, finishing 9-of-15 from the field with 13 rebounds. Jazmine Jackson added 17 points off the bench, knocking down four 3-pointers, while J’Mani Ingram scored 16 points and dished out six assists.

ULM shot 46.9% from the field and held a 42-27 advantage on the boards. The Warhawks also converted Louisiana turnovers into 29 points and scored 26 second-chance points.

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Louisiana (5-26, 2-16 Sun Belt) was led by Mikaylah Manley with 18 points and Imani Daniel with 17 points and seven rebounds. Amijah Price chipped in 12 points.

After struggling early, Louisiana shot better in the second half, scoring 42 points after the break. However, the early deficit proved too much to overcome.

ULM advances in the Sun Belt tournament, while Louisiana closes its season with the loss.
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State Treasurer John Fleming accuses Jeff Landry of interfering in Louisiana Senate race

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State Treasurer John Fleming accuses Jeff Landry of interfering in Louisiana Senate race


BATON ROUGE (KNOE) – Louisiana State Treasurer John Fleming is accusing Governor Jeff Landry of interfering with the state Senate race, which Fleming is a part of.

Fleming took to social media to accuse Landry of working “behind the scenes” to get Congresswoman Julia Letlow elected to the Senate.

According to Fleming, Dr. Ralph Abraham offered him the position of Deputy Director of the CDC shortly before announcing he was stepping down. Fleming said he politely declined.

A week later, news broke that Abraham is now leading Letlow’s Senate campaign.

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“We know that Jeff has been heavily lobbying the Trump campaign team for the endorsement, he is pressuring the Republican Party of Louisiana and the Republican Executive Committees to support and endorse Letlow as well,” Fleming wrote on Facebook. “And, he is personally calling his donors to raise big money to save the Letlow campaign.

Landry formally endorsed Letlow for the U.S. Senate on March 4. Letlow also has the endorsement of President Donald Trump.

“We need a warrior who stands with the President to Make America Great. And there’s no greater warrior than a Louisiana mom,” Landry wrote on Facebook.

Fleming continued his commentary, asking when Landry will stop interfering with the state’s Senate race.

“Who is best to decide who represents you in Washington? Jeff Landry, or YOU?” Fleming asked.

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Also in the heated race is incumbent Bill Cassidy, M.D.

Party primary elections in Louisiana are set for May 16, 2026.



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