The odds were 3 to 1 against Blake Shelton's chance of winning another The Voice title as a coach of Craig Wayne Boyd who was the strongest talent in the competition. The result is THEY WON - (NBC photo)

Video Beat EXTRA EXTRA - CRAIG WAYNE BOYD & BLAKE SHELTON WIN THE VOICE

James Loving - National Radio Text Service

On his title run Craig Boyd Boyd was rejected twice. From the outset Boyd put his trust in fellow country artist Blake Shelton to be his coach. What stands out is during the audition rounds Gwen Stefani said to the country singers to beware of teaming up with Shelton since all of his country singers would be fighting over each other and that there could only be one winner. On this issue Stefani proved to be spot on - Former NFL player Keith Carlos is the 1st male winner of America's Next Top Model - Recommended TV Listings

Thursday, December 18, 2014

THE DUO PROVES THAT COUNTRY IS COOL

Country artist Craig Wayne Boyd walked off with The Voice title giving his coach Blake Shelton his 4th coaching title. For Boyd, at 35, his success is long overdue. Having been a working musician since his teens Boyd has paid his dues big time. His dues paying included his The Voice experience throughout his journey to the title.

During his title run Boyd was rejected twice and abandoned by his coaches. From the outset Boyd put his trust in fellow country artist Shelton. What stands out is during the audition rounds what Gwen Stefani said to the country singers to beware of teaming with Shelton since all of his country singers would be fighting over each other and that there could only be one winner. Shelton eventually cut Boyd during the knockout rounds in favor of another country artist.

Stefani then saved Boyd and made a major request to Boyd if he would agree to undergo a slight makeover which was trimming his hair and abandoning his rough edge appearance. The Nashville based singer agreed and things started to turn around for him until Stefani let him go in favor of another singer.

Shelton seized the opportunity to grab Boyd again and this time it was for keepers. Under Shelton's guidance they made a strong bond and a run that gave Shelton his 3rd country singer to win and extend his coaching lead in winning his 4th title. They both have the experience of being seasoned performers and during their careers have experienced rejection which is a part of the territory of being in the music business. Boyd's winning the title is well deserved. The question is will Shelton be involved in his future and take him on tour or produce a record on him? Stay tuned...

FORMER NFL PLAYER is AMERICA'S TOP MODEL'S 1ST MALE WINNER

Former NFL player with the New York Giants and Philadelphia Eagles, Keith Carlos is the first male winner of America's Next Top Model - NFL photo

One of the annoying things about America's Next Top Model is that it is too camp and focuses on selling being gay as much as teaching one how to model. For some it's a turn off for others it's a turn on. We abandoned watching the show since it became too much about host and creator Tyra Banks and less about the contestants as well as its over the top emphasis of force feeding the public on selling being gay.

This cycle was the second with both male and female contestants. We dropped in to check it out from time to time. Given our background in covering professional sports including the NFL it became a driving interest in our paying attention to this cycle to see how a jock and former NFL football player could adjust to a primarily gay business.

The NFL jock and winner is Keith Carlos, 26, 1.85 m (6 ft 1 in). Carlos is a former wide receiver who played for the Philadelphia Eagles in 2011 and the New York Giants in 2013. Injuries factored in to him leaving the sport and he then ventured into being a model.

His journey in professional football was short and not so sweet. Carlos signed with the Philadelphia Eagles of the National Football League (NFL) in 2011. On June 3, 2013, Carlos was signed by the New York Giants. On August 20, 2013, he was waived/injured by the Giants. On August 21, 2013, he cleared waivers and was placed on the Giants' injured reserve list. On August 27, 2013, he was waived with an injury settlement.

The being gay issue repeatedly surfaced during the series most notably between a black male model from Texas and a white extremely tall male model also from Texas. The white model Will Jardell, 23, 1.96 m (6 ft 5 in) from Nederland, Texas is openly gay and on occasion wears 6" high heels.

The black jock model Denzel Wells, 23, 1.79 m (5 ft 10 1/2 in) from Houston, Texas remarked that he would be embarrassed if he lost the competition to a gay model. Wells also was having a sexual relationship with a Serbian model during the show which supported his manhood. The eventual result was Wells was eliminated in episode 9 which will air next week in Asia but has already aired in America. Jardell made it to the final where he lost to Carlos.

The kicker is that during the controversy regarding Wells remark he was somewhat distanced by the other models who took exception to his comment. At that time Carlos revealed that he had no problem with competing with a gay model since his mother was gay. The bottom line is this is a case of one reaps what they sow.

NOTE:

The series has completed being televised in America. The series will continue to be aired in Asia on the Star World channel. Currently repeats of the shows episode 8 is airing in Asia with new episodes being televised on Wednesday's. There are 16 episodes in this cycle. The upcoming episode 9 in which Wells is eliminated is scheduled to air this coming Wednesday December 24.

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