One of the final songs Fort Lauderdale singer-songwriter Adam David performed on the live finale of NBC hit “The Voice” was the searing Brandon Lake anthem “Hard Fought Hallelujah,” a story of darkness and redemption that left the TV audience dazzled and David emotionally drained.
“That song, man, I resonated with so deeply, with the choir behind me … I could cry talking about it. When I got off stage … I had to go sit in a room for a minute. And I just kind of bawled,” says David, 35, his voice breaking. “I was just thinking about … whoo … all the things that have happened to get me to that point.”
The next night, on May 20, David — saved from elimination in the first round of blind auditions by judge-singer Michael Bublé — was named the winner of Season 27 of “The Voice,” which included a contract with Republic Records.
In his first South Florida show since the big win, David will bring his soulful, multioctave voice and his band to intimate lounge Revelry in Pompano Beach on Saturday.
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David’s unlikely victory (he avoided elimination again in a later round only thanks to viewer votes) was the most recent chapter in his against-the-odds saga.
As a budding musician in his early 20s, David scuffled between the gritty stages at the Poorhouse and Fat Cats in Fort Lauderdale’s Himmarshee District, his requests to sit in initially rejected by bands led by local music-scene heavyweights such as Jimmy Powers, Billy and Michael Vazquez, Julius and Felix Pastorius.
“I was in awe of them. I just wanted to sit in and get better. I went enough, and I asked enough and they said no enough that eventually they said yes,” David says, with a laugh.
While studying music at Broward College, then Miami Dade College, gigs became steady enough that he could leave school and set off on a professional career playing clubs, lounges and private events throughout South Florida.
Fort Lauderdale musician Adam David: “I had tried getting clean on my own for a while. I found myself in this loop that I couldn’t escape.” (Nat Santander/Courtesy)
The peak of his musical success to that point was followed immediately by the lowest point in his life: After a performance at South by Southwest in Austin in 2019, David found himself out of money and, more critically in his mind, out of drugs. He flew home, his body twisted in painful withdrawal symptoms.
“I was so deep in the destructive nature of addiction. I had been awake for days even before we went. So I’m coming down, I’m feeling sick, and I’m watching ‘Elf’ on the plane — it’s my favorite movie — and I’m bawling. That’s where I was at, watching ‘Elf,’ crying on the plane. I was just in so much pain,” David says.
“I got home and I really didn’t have any money. My car had been broken down for a couple of weeks. I’m stranded at the airport and I’m like, ‘I’m exhausted. I don’t want to come home and keep doing this s—.’ I couldn’t see any way out of it. So, I called my mom, and I cried. That was my bottom.”
David reached out to a friend who had gone through treatment at Recovery Unplugged, a music-based organization with seven locations, including Fort Lauderdale, West Palm Beach, Austin and Nashville. He entered treatment with a grant from MusiCares, operated by The Recording Academy, the community of music professionals that hands out the Grammy Awards.
Sober ever since, the humble David is a spirited crusader for the benefits of clean living, performing at Recovery Unplugged shows all over the country organized by songwriter and guitarist Richie Supa of Aerosmith. David also hosts an annual concert on his personal sobriety day, March 28.
In that role, he is candid about his story.
“I’m open. I had tried getting clean on my own for a while. I found myself in this loop that I couldn’t escape,” he says. “They saved my life, you know what I mean? I’m eternally grateful.”
IF YOU GO
WHAT: Adam David concert
WHEN: 8 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 20
WHERE: Revelry, 227 S. Federal Highway, Pompano Beach
COST: $30.52
INFORMATION: RevelryFla.com or AdamDavidOfficial.com
