Nolan Neal, 'The Voice' and 'America's Got Talent' Contestant, Dead at 41
Nolan Neal, a musician who competed on both America’s Got Talent and The Voice, has died. He was 41.
TMZ was first to report that Neal was found dead in his apartment in Nashville, Tennessee, by his roommate. Entertainment Weekly spoke to the Metropolitan Nashville Police Department, and were told that Neal was found dead at 8 p.m. local time in his bedroom after his roommate received a call from the singer's mother, who hadn't heard from him. Police also told EW that a guitar pick was found next to Neal's bed appeared to contain "a powder residue."
A cause of death has not been released pending the results of an autopsy, EW reports. ET has reached out to Neal's reps and Nashville authorities.
Neal was known for his performances on not one, but two of the biggest reality singing competition shows. In 2016, the singer appeared on season 10 of The Voice. During his run, he was selected to be on Adam Levine’s team before he was eliminated during the knockout rounds.
In 2020, Neal made his return to television on America’s Got Talent. The Nashville native auditioned for Simon Cowell, Howie Mandel, Heidi Klum and Sofia Vergara with an original song titled “Lost.”
During his audition, Neal shared that he was dealing with the death of his father who committed suicide, and his journey to becoming a professional musician after being dropped from a record label for excessive partying and drug use.
Before performing “Lost" on AGT, the singer said in the video package, “I’m glad to be here today sober, very clear and focused. My voice is healthy. I’m healthy." Neal earned a standing ovation from the AGT audience before sharing that he “hasn’t touched the hard stuff since" getting sober. Neal said that “Lost” was the first song that he wrote out of treatment.
His run on AGT also included a performance of another original song, “Send Me a Butterfly.”
In 2020 interview with local station WBIR, Neal spoke further about his sobriety and his struggled with addiction while on The Voice.
"I remember I got clean in 2010; May 15, went to rehab. Stayed clean," he said. "I joined the rock band Hinder. They were all about drinking and partying. This is not their fault. I had decided I wanted to drink like a normal person. I remember trying to be normal and fitting in. I remember going to a bar and ordering a drink. I tried to hide it. I remember pretending to be normal. I was just lying to myself telling myself that I could control it."
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