Barrington father and daughter sing on The Voice

Patrick and Ruby McAloon aim for chair-turns during blind auditions

By Josh Bickford
Posted 3/20/19

It took Patrick McAloon a full day to reply to all the tweets and text messages he received after he and his daughter, Ruby, appeared on NBC's The Voice. 

Initially, the Barrington resident …

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Barrington father and daughter sing on The Voice

Patrick and Ruby McAloon aim for chair-turns during blind auditions

Posted

It took Patrick McAloon a full day to reply to all the tweets and text messages he received after he and his daughter, Ruby, appeared on NBC's The Voice. 

Initially, the Barrington resident typed out individual responses to friends and family who had watched him impress the celebrity coaches on The Voice, earning three chair-turns and advancing to the next round. 

But after hours of sending individual replies on his phone, Mr. McAloon eventually tired and resorted to a mass response. 

Stardom, it turns out, can be a bit time-consuming. 

"I got a tweet from somebody today, I have no idea who they are. They were like, my hometown is Barrington, RI, thanks for bringing it home!" said Mr. McAloon during a recent interview. 

The last couple weeks have been pretty exciting for the McAloons. The local family was the center of attention on Monday night, March 4, when NBC aired the episode of The Voice featuring and Patrick and Ruby auditioning during "The Blinds." 

Mr. McAloon, a veteran musical performer, took the stage first. In the 90 seconds allotted him, Mr. McAloon delivered a strong rendition of Soul Asylum's Runaway Train. 

"The moment leading up to my audition, personally, for whatever reason, I was super-Zen," said Mr. McAloon. "There was anticipation, but I was surprising myself with how much I had it in check at that moment."

Just off-stage, Ruby and the rest of the McAloon family watched intently as Patrick delivered a powerful performance. Ruby quietly cheered for her dad to win chair-turns, her nerves growing as the song continued.

"I was nervous for him," said Ruby, who turns 17 next month. "I was … I don't know. I was excited." 

Eventually, three of the four coaches — John Legend, Blake Shelton and Adam Levine — hit their buzzers and spun their chairs. A smiling Mr. McAloon listened to the coaches and then chose to join Adam's team. 

A few feet off-stage, the McAloon family cheered and danced, sharing hi-fives with The Voice host Carson Daly. 

Just moments later, Ruby went from fan to performer. The Barrington girl sang a Selena Gomez song while her family watched and waited and hoped for more chair-turns. 

"Even though I wasn't nervous singing, I could tell my voice was a little shaky," said Ruby. "I was just trying to push through it."

While performing, she could not help but think how "cool" the experience was of singing in front of some of the biggest names in the music industry and in front of 10 million people watching on television. 

"Even at the end, even though I didn't turn any chairs, I was OK. I was happy," she said. 

The Voice coaches asked Ruby her name and where she was from. 

"I said 'My name is Ruby McAloon, I am 16 years old and I'm from Barrington, Rhode Island.' And when I said Barrington, and McAloon, I saw John (Legend) look at Kelly (Clarkson) like, 'Huh?'," Ruby said. 

John Legend and the other coaches then realized that both Patrick and Ruby were from Barrington and that they were related. The surprise twist was very likely what The Voice producers were hoping for when they first invited Mr. McAloon and his daughter to audition. 

Mr. McAloon first auditioned for The Voice about 10 years ago, but failed to earn a ticket to the "the blinds." However, show producers stayed in contact with the Barrington resident, emailing him and checking in periodically. Last spring, the producers sent an email to Mr. McAloon and asked what he had been doing.

"I just let them know what I've been up to. We had just gotten off the road with Train," he said, recalling his email. "I've been writing music, and In addition to all that cool stuff, I'm writing music and performing with my 16-year-old daughter.

"I think I hinted at, 'What do you think of a dad-daughter duo or something?' They came back pretty quickly and said 'We'd like you guys to come out. What do you guys think of coming out on your own, since you're a generation apart? And similar, but not so similar genres.' What a great adventure. We were like, 'Yeah, we'll do it.'

"…we were being considered for Season 15. This is Season 16. It was the previous season, but it was literally weeks before the blind auditions were going to happen. We were going to jump on a plane and go straight to the blinds."

The timing last spring proved problematic, however. 

The McAloons had too much going on and were not able to make the west coast trip last spring. So instead, show producers invited the McAloons to compete on Season 16. Last fall, the family traveled to California for the show. The shows that were filmed in the fall are airing now and offering the McAloons a new taste of stardom. 

After their blind auditions aired on March 4, people all over town began tweeting and texting them and days after the show, Mr. McAloon found himself the center of local attention.

"I went to pick up sushi at Miku the other night, and it was before I even made it to the cash register, people at the bar were like, 'Dude I saw you on TV!'" Mr. McAloon said, adding that he received a big thumbs-up from the owner of Bagels Etc. when he went into the shop to grab a bite to eat.

Ruby said the owner of Friskie Fries in Barrington also tweeted at them.

The reaction from people they know and folks they don't know has been eclipsed only by the shared experience.

"To have something that your child is passionate about, that you're passionate about, and then to have an opportunity of this magnitude that's crazy," said Mr. McAloon. "We can sit on the couch and play guitar together all we want, and that's a total blast. But to take that joy of playing on the couch and amplify it to 10 million people watching a TV show that you're on…"

Mr. McAloon said he was very proud of his daughter.

"I mean, as a dad, I've seen her work so hard for so long already. At 16 years old, she's already, I mean, how many 16-year-old kids are lucky enough to have already found their passion? Right? There are kids that finish college and haven't found their passion. So, to see her find that passion and she's just an overall artistic person … with fashion, with music, with drawing. She's just an overall Renaissance woman," Mr. McAloon said. 

Ruby, who plans to release a single soon, said she was very happy for her father. She was also very excited to receive feedback from the coaches.

"All their feedback was nice… and Adam Levine hugged me," she said. 

Want to connect with the McAloons?

Patrick McAloon and his daughter Ruby share regularly on various social media platforms. 

Patrick

FB: @patrickmcaloonmusic

Insta: @patrickmcaloon

Twitter: @patrickmcaloon

Ruby

FB: @rubymcaloon

Insta: @rubymcaloon

Twitter: @rubymcaloon

Break from fashion

Two years ago, Ruby McAloon made her debut on reality television. The Barrington teenager was selected as one of 12 contestants for the second season of Project Runway: Junior. Ruby, who was one of the youngest contestants on the show, said she is currently taking a break from fashion to focus on her singing. She plans to release a single soon.

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