Idol Chatter & Voice Views

His audition: Anthony Paul, 18, of Twinsburg, Ohio, sang Chris Brown’s “With You” for his blind audition — viewers saw only a tiny glimpse of it — and got Cee Lo Green to spin his chair.

His background: The Voice website tells us that Anthony was a standout in show choir throughout high school, but hasn’t done much in terms of performing as a solo artist. His family stresses education, but Anthony decided to put college on hold to pursue music and compete on The Voice.

On being on Team Cee Lo: Anthony said he was thrilled to hear Cee Lo say he could possibly win The Voice with “a little bit of guidance” and said he’s anxious to receive that guidance.

What the show didn’t show: Anthony participated in a show choir at Twinsburg High School called “Great Expectations.” And, at some point, he tried out for The X Factor, judging from the video below. During a conference call interview after his audition aired, he confirmed that “I never did gigs or anything like that. It was just singing in choir.” His preferred genre is pop and R&B. “I grew up with the names Beyonce and Chris Brown and Usher. That’s what I woke up to and those are the songs I love to sing.”

Quote: “When I was performing, I was really excited. Then my voice cracked. When that happened, fear struck me. ‘Oh, no, all this hard work and they’re not going to turn for me.’ Then on the last note, Cee Lo hit his button. I literally went down on one knee. It meant so much to me that he heard through my nerves and my awful mistake at the beginning.”

On iTunes: The full-length studio version of his audition song.

Keeping up with Anthony: Twitter — @AnthonyCPaul

For profiles of other Season 5 contestants, go here.

Anthony Paul, “Creep” with Great Expectations

Anthony Paul, “Sweet Dreams”