A Voice Contestant's Daughter Got Kelsea Ballerini's Name Wrong, And It Was The Cutest Thing I've Ever Seen On This Show

Kelsea Ballerini is shown on The Voice Season 27.
(Image credit: Trae Patton/NBC)

Spoiler alert! Minor spoilers are discussed in this story for The Voice Season 27 episode that aired February 24. You can stream it with a Peacock subscription if you need to catch up.

The teams are filling up on The Voice Season 27, as the fourth night of Blind Auditions aired on the 2025 TV schedule. We’ve seen some impressive artists, but I find it interesting that some of the best moments so far have come from the contestants’ children. First we saw a previous finalist return for his daughter’s audition, and on February 24 I witnessed the cutest moment I’ve ever seen when a young kiddo had Kelsea Ballerini vowing to change her name after an adorable mispronunciation.

Adam Levine may have what the other coaches don’t in multiple winning seasons, but Kelsea Ballerini has held her own in her first season as a full-time mentor. When country singer Robert Hunter took the stage to audition with the Cody Johnson song “‘Til You Can’t,” Ballerini quickly turned her chair and warned the others to let her have him. Michael Bublé didn’t listen, though, and Hunter brought out the big guns — his wife and daughter Mary Blake — to help him choose whose team to join.

Not that there was much to decide. The little girl’s face lit up when she saw Kelsea Ballerini, and when Robert Hunter asked Mary Blake who her favorite singer was, she adorably responded:

Kelsea Ballerina.

The audience and The Voice coaches alike didn’t know what to do with themselves. The crowd let out a delighted cheer as Michael Bublé jumped to his feet, smiling at Kelsea Ballerini. John Legend got up and walked over to the new coach, muttering, “Oh, Lord! Oh, Lord!”

It got even better for the country music star when the auditioning contestant asked his daughter what her favorite song was, and Mary Blake started singing, “If You Go Down (I’m Goin’ Down Too).” Kelsea Ballerini couldn’t take it any longer, as she started singing along with her and rushed the stage to hug the little girl.

Michael Bublé wasn’t too upset that he wasn’t able to pull the artist after witnessing what he said was the “No. 1 cutest moment,” and I would have to agree. Kelsea Ballerini was still high on her little adoring fan backstage, as she said:

I mean, can we talk about what happened? Robert’s daughter made the best choice. I think she said, ‘Kelsea Ballerina,’ so I’m now officially changing my name. She could have said ‘Broccoli,’ and I would have gone by ‘Broccoli.’

I love that the family has this happy memory, and who knows how many cool things await Robert Hunter after he takes this journey on The Voice? You can watch his emotional audition below, with his daughter coming in at the 5 minute mark:

Robert Hunter's Passionate Cover of "'Til You Can't" Inspires His Daughter | Voice Blind Auditions - YouTube Robert Hunter's Passionate Cover of
Watch On

This awesome family moment follows a surprise in the Season 27 premiere, when John Legend’s finalist from Season 25, Bryan Olesen, returned to his old stomping grounds to watch 23-year-old Jadyn Cree try her hand at the singing competition. She also got to decide between Kelsea Ballerini and Michael Bublé, but unlike little Mary Blake, she chose the tutelage of the “Just Haven’t Met You Yet” singer.

We aren’t likely to get anything cuter than the contestant’s daughter getting Kelsea Ballerini’s name wrong, but I’m still here for any family fun and good singing that awaits. Tune in for the final night of Blind Auditions at 8 p.m. ET Monday, March 3, on NBC and streaming the next day on Peacock.

Heidi Venable
Content Producer

Heidi Venable is a Content Producer for CinemaBlend, a mom of two and a hard-core '90s kid. She started freelancing for CinemaBlend in 2020 and officially came on board in 2021. Her job entails writing news stories and TV reactions from some of her favorite prime-time shows like Grey's Anatomy and The Bachelor. She graduated from Louisiana Tech University with a degree in Journalism and worked in the newspaper industry for almost two decades in multiple roles including Sports Editor, Page Designer and Online Editor. Unprovoked, will quote Friends in any situation. Thrives on New Orleans Saints football, The West Wing and taco trucks.

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