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Which coach won over OK3 on ‘The Voice’? Here’s the music icon the Oklahoma trio picked

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Which coach won over OK3 on ‘The Voice’? Here’s the music icon the Oklahoma trio picked


EGOT winner John Legend won over OK3 following the Oklahoma pop group’s attention-grabbing blind audition on the new season of “The Voice.”

On the Monday, Feb. 26 “The Voice” Season 25 premiere episode, the Oklahoma City-based vocal trio achieved a coveted four-chair turn with their charming cover of the Meghan Trainor hit “Made You Look.”

The Season 25 coaches — Oklahoma Country Music Hall of Famer Reba McEntire, who is in her second season as a “Voice” coach; Legend, who’s in his ninth season; three-time Grammy winner Chance the Rapper, who is returning for his second season; and three-time Grammy-winning country duo Dan + Shay, who are first-time coaches on “The Voice” and sharing a double chair this season — vied fiercely to convince OK3 to choose their team as the blind auditions got underway.

But Monday’s episode ended on a cliffhanger, so viewers had to wait until the opening moments of Tuesday’s installment to find out which coach the OKC trio will be working with this season.

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“I’ve never had a trio before (on Team Legend); this will be fun,” Legend said after OK3 picked him. “I love how vibrant and tight OK3’s harmonies were, and I just felt like they’re going to be so much fun to work with — and so much fun for our audience to watch.”

Which previous ‘The Voice’ contestants inspired OK3 to reunite?

As the group’s name indicates, OK3 consists of three singers from Oklahoma.

The new season of the NBC singing competition is just getting started, but the Sooner State performers are already gaining a lot of attention for their stellar vocal harmonies, sassy stage presence and coordinated choreography they showed off in their blind audition.

Sierra Sikes, who was 23 when the trio auditioned for “The Voice,” is a University of Central Oklahoma alumnus who earned her bachelor of music degree in musical theater in 2021.

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Kenna Fields, 22, is a senior at the Academy of Contemporary Music at UCO who is majoring in contemporary music.

Courtney Hooker, 25, is an ACM@UCO graduate who received her bachelor of applied technology in commercial music in 2020. She also earned an associate’s degree from UCO in performance in 2019.

The singers met through their vocal coach, Amanda Earhart, whom they brought onto “The Voice” stage to help them pick their celebrity coach for the show.

The Oklahomans revealed on the series that they have been best friends and musical collaborators since they were teenagers, performing together at various shows and competitions.

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They broke up in 2017 because they were in different phases of their lives. After not seeing each other for four years, they were inspired by successful “The Voice” runs for groups like Girl Named Tom and Sorelle to reunite at the Oklahoma Opry and then audition for the NBC music contest.

Coaches battle hard to win OK3 for their team

OK3’s blind audition set off a fierce and funny battle among the Season 25 coaches, who all proved eager to add the trio to their team.

Fellow Oklahoman Reba pushed her button about seven seconds into the group’s performance, followed quickly by Dan + Shay and Legend. Chance the Rapper didn’t turn his chair until late in the trio’s blind audition.

“I loved your performance. … I grew up arranging songs for groups, and then, when I went to college, I was an award-winning a cappella arranger. If there’s nothing else that I do, I do this,” Legend said. “I feel like there’s a lot of space for a big pop girl group right now, and I would love to be your coach.”

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Dan + Shay’s Shay Mooney gushed that the trio’s singing made his heart race and declared OK3’s audition “my favorite performance that we’ve seen so far.” He noted that Trainor is a good friend.

His musical partner, Dan Smyers, added, “I don’t want to bash John too bad early. He was saying he’s an award-winning arranger for groups. We’re an award-winning group. We have a double chair.”

“We have two (chairs). We could get a third,” Mooney added with a grin. “I have two sisters. I grew up singing in the church and doing exactly what you guys are doing right now. Your voices are phenomenal.”

To neutralize what he called Dan + Shay’s “unfair advantage,” Legend introduced his “partner,” pushing a button to deploy a blue inflatable tube man emblazoned with the words “Pick Team Legend.”

Despite claiming that Legend’s inflatable tube man had “taken all of my spirit away, it was so loud and distracting,” Chance the Rapper also praised OK3.

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“You guys did great. A couple seasons ago, I worked with a trio, and I have a lot of fun working with harmonics, with arranging for groups. I could kind of expand your palette in terms of what genres you want to play around with,” he said, adding that his signature “3” cap matched the trio.

Reba addressed OK3 as “fellow Okies,” reminded the group that she started out performing in her family band The Singing McEntires and praised the trio’s harmonies.

The Oklahoma Hall of Famer also brought props to bolster her argument, pulling out one of her three Grammys as well as a sparkly scepter.

“I would love to have you gals on my team. We’d have a blast,” Reba said. “I am the Queen of Country Music. I’m just saying, I would love to have you in my kingdom.”

Ultimately, OK3 opted to become the first act this season to join Team Legend

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“I got my first artist, and it was a four-chair turn. Usually, you see these inflatable guys at the car wash. They’re like, ‘Come get your car wash.’ And I’m like, ‘Come to Team Legend.’ And it worked,” Legend said on Tuesday’s episode. “I’m back: my mojo has not gone anywhere.”

“The Voice” airs at 7 p.m. Mondays and Tuesdays on NBC. Episodes stream the next day on Peacock on-demand. The streaming service offers full episodes from the show’s previous 24 seasons, too.





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Oklahoma State Live Score for NCAA Baseball Regional Opener vs. USC Upstate

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Oklahoma State Live Score for NCAA Baseball Regional Opener vs. USC Upstate


The Oklahoma State Cowboys and the USC Upstate Spartans meet in the first game of the Tuscaloosa Regional on Friday.

The Cowboys (37-20) and the Spartans (33-28) have never met on the diamond. Both enter the game on hot streaks. Oklahoma State didn’t win the Big 12 Tournament, but the Cowboys have won 11 of their last 14 games. The Spartans won the Big South Conference Tournament champions and have won 14 of their last 16 games.

The game is the first of two in Tuscaloosa. The second game features the host school, Alabama, facing Alabama State. The winners of the first two games will meet Saturday for a trip to the regional final on Sunday.

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Oklahoma State fans can keep up with the game here, including lineups and inning by inning details on the game. Check out Oklahoma State On SI’s NCAA Tournament Central for everything related to the Tuscaloosa Regional.

Game Details

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Oklahoma State head coach Josh Holliday. | STEVE SISNEY / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Oklahoma State vs. USC Upstate

Time: 1 p.m. central

TV: ESPN+ (Derek Jones & Jared Mitchell on the call). NOTE: TV is subject to change without notice. Game times and TV for games played after Friday will be announced.

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Radio: Cowboy Radio Network & The Varsity Network App/93.7 KSPI-FM or okla.state/GetVarsity (Rex Holt on the call)

OSU Batting Order

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Oklahoma State Cowboys catcher Campbell Smithwick. | BRYAN TERRY/THE OKLAHOMAN / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

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The batting order for Friday’s game will be posted here when it is released by the team.

Tuscaloosa Regional

Location: Tuscaloosa, Ala. Venue:  Sewell-Thomas Stadium (5,867).

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Friday’s Games

Game 1: USC Upstate vs. Oklahoma State, 1 p.m., ESPN+

Game 2: Alabama State vs. Alabama, 6 p.m., ESPN+

Saturday’s Games

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Game 3: Game 1 loser vs. Game 2 loser, TBA (elimination game)

Game 4: Game 1 winner vs. Game 2 winner, TBA (advances to Sunday’s final)

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Sunday’s Games

Game 5: Winner Game 3 vs. Loser Game 4 (elimination game)

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Game 6: Winner Game 4 vs. Winner Game 5

Monday’s Game

Game 7: Winner Game 6 vs. Loser Game 6 (if necessary)

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(Times subject to change for TV purposes) 

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Oklahoma barbecue restaurant owner Brent Swadley found guilty in fraud trial

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Oklahoma barbecue restaurant owner Brent Swadley found guilty in fraud trial


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A jury convicted Brent Swadley, owner of a string of popular Oklahoma barbecue restaurants, at his fraud trial and chose prison time as his punishment.

The 12 jurors reached their unanimous verdict Thursday, May 28, in a felony case that focused on Swadley’s inflated bills for the renovation and operation of restaurants at six state parks.

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Jurors found Swadley, 55, guilty of one count of conspiracy to defraud the state and all five counts of presenting fraudulent claims to the state.

They chose five years in prison and a $25,000 fine as his punishment for the conspiracy. They agreed on one year in prison and a $10,000 fine as punishment on each fraudulent claims count.

Oklahoma County District Judge Susan Stallings could order Swadley to serve the time back to back for a total of 10 years.

Jurors voted for the maximum fines but showed leniency on prison time. Jurors could have chosen prison sentences totaling 20 years.

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Sheriff’s deputies led Swadley from the courtroom in handcuffs to be taken to jail. Formal sentencing was set for July 16.

His defense attorney, David Smith, said, “We are not done fighting.”

Still to be decided by the judge is restitution. Prosecutors said Swadley defrauded the state of at least $3.1 million.

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The owner of Swadley’s Bar-B-Q did not testify at his trial but has been outspoken in the past that he is innocent.

“The state attorney general … is pushing a false, politically motivated narrative accusing us of purposely misleading the government. Nothing could be further from the truth,” he wrote in an open letter to Oklahomans in 2024 after he was indicted.

Jurors took only 90 minutes to reach their verdict. “It was pretty easy,” one juror told prosecutors afterward.

Attorney General Gentner Drummond, who is running for governor, told reporters outside the courtroom that the case was never political.

“Mr. Swadley broke the law. His arrogance has been illustrated for the last four years, and I’m very happy that justice has been done,” Drummond said.

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Swadley trial ends in guilty verdict, AG Drummond ‘proud’ of prosecution

A jury unanimously found Brent Swadley guilty of defrauding the state, sentencing him to five years in prison and $25,000 fine.

“I think we in state government have a tendency to trust Oklahomans,” he added. “I think it’s a lesson for state actors. We need to not trust as we have before.”

In a news release, the attorney general said, “Today is a win for Oklahoma and for the rule of law.”

Swadley signed a contract with the state in March 2020 to remodel and operate state park restaurants. The agreement was finalized weeks before COVID-19 shutdowns began across the world.

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Swadley went ahead with the remodeling, completing work at four of the parks in months. His restaurants became a huge hit as Oklahomans spent more time outdoors because of the pandemic.

Jurors heard testimony that many of the invoices sent to the state for reimbursement of construction and other costs were marked up. Some were inflated as much as 300%.Swadley operated the state park restaurants under the company name Swadley’s Foggy Bottom Kitchen. The last one opened in 2022. 

The Oklahoma Tourism and Recreation Department in April 2022 canceled its contract with Swadley’s Foggy Bottom Kitchen due to “suspected fraudulent activity and questionable business practices.”Much of the testimony centered around meat smokers sold to the state in 2021. The cancelation of the contracts came after tourism officials learned the smokers were used.

Swadley put the smokers in at Robbers Cave State Park and Quartz Mountain State Park. They had been in storage after he removed them from a Swadley’s Bar-B-Q in Ardmore.

He paid $23,680 each for the smokers in 2018, according to evidence in the case. He billed the state $51,346 each for the smokers in 2021.

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A restaurant supplier testified at trial that he faked paperwork that Swadley used to support the bill to the state. “He told me to make them as expensive as I could,” Mike McWhorter told jurors.

Swadley’s defense attorneys maintained at trial that it was an understood standard business practice to inflate invoices.

“Their case is − and this is no joke − Brent Swadley was supposed to do all of this construction work and not make a dime,” Smith told jurors in his closing argument.

The attorney said Swadley became the fall guy for a mess created by Jerry Winchester, the executive director of the Tourism Department at the time, and Gino DeMarco, the deputy director.

Smith argued that Winchester knew the smokers were used and lied at trial. Winchester told jurors he thought the state was buying brand new smokers.

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The defense attorney also told jurors, “What we’ve got here is a paperwork dispute, not fraud.”

Prosecutors told jurors Brent Swadley was greedy and had said the state contract might save his business during the pandemic.

“Brent Swadley believes the rules do not apply to him,” Assistant Attorney General McKenzie McMahan said in his closing argument.

The key witnesses against Swadley were former employees.

His former vice president, Curtis Breuklander, and former chief operating officer, Tim Hooper, testified invoices were marked up at Swadley’s direction.

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Breuklander, 51, pleaded guilty to the conspiracy count and four of the fraudulent claim counts. “I did all of this at the direction of Brent Swadley,” he said in his plea paperwork.

Under a deal with prosecutors, Breuklander was sentenced to probation for 10 years. He stopped working for Swadley in September 2021.

Hooper, 57, also pleaded guilty to the conspiracy count. He pleaded guilty to one fraudulent claim count and no contest to another fraudulent claim count.

Under his deal, Hooper was put on probation for five years. He was fired by Swadley in 2023.

Under the state contract, Swadley’s Foggy Bottom Kitchen was reimbursed for the costs of improvements to the restaurants, up to a limit. The state also covered the company’s operating losses, at first up to $1 million a year and later up to $2,116,900 a year.

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The state further paid the company management fees, at first $571,808 per year and later $1,332,000 per year.

Swadley is expected to appeal. His defense attorneys are expected to complain about the judge’s refusal to let two expert witnesses testify at trial.

(This story was updated to add new information.)



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Oklahoma City house fire causes roof collapse; no injuries reported

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Oklahoma City house fire causes roof collapse; no injuries reported


OKLAHOMA CITY –

The roof of a home in Oklahoma City collapsed following a fire early Thursday morning, according to firefighters.

The Oklahoma City Fire Department says firefighters were called around 2 a.m. to the scene of a fire at a home near Southeast 29th Street and South Shields Boulevard.

After arriving at the scene, firefighters reported flames coming from the home and serious structural damage, including the roof, which had collapsed due to the fire.

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Additionally, OKCFD reported this was not the first emergency services response to the home, with a call for medical services being placed to the same address only a few hours earlier.

“We know that earlier today, they’d made a medical call over here,” OKCFD Battalion Chief Greg Lindsay said. “Somebody was staying in that building, so we’re being extra careful to check and make sure that everybody got out.”

No injuries were reported. Fire investigators believe the cause was related to a cooking incident.





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