By John Spinelli
MONMOUTH COUNTY – Two young singers from Monmouth County are continuing the Jersey Shore musical tradition on NBC’s hit singing contest show “The Voice.” The season’s first audition episode aired Sept. 21, and the two have made it through each successive round so far.
Mia Leberknight, or Mia Knight as she is known professionally, is a sophomore at Holmdel High School. Knight has written her own music and shares the songs on social media.
She drew the attention of fans across the country when she performed “You Stole the Show” by Sienna Spiro. She also drew the attention of a New Jersey legend, Queen Latifah, who chose to coach her for the season.
All four coaches turned their chairs for Knight before her audition song ended, which usually means the contestant can choose among the four mentors. Under Season 30’s new “first-in” feature, because Queen Latifah was the first coach to turn her chair during the blind audition, she could choose Knight without competing with the other coaches.
The other local contestant, Middletown resident Connor Closs, is also no stranger to the spotlight. He is currently the lead singer of the band The Cliffs, which covers songs from the 1970s to today.
The band has played local venues such as Donovan’s Reef, The Sandbox, Red Rock, and Monmouth Park Racetrack, as well as venues in other states. The band has over 14,000 Instagram followers.
Closs graduated from Mater Dei Prep in 2021 and earned a Bachelor of Arts in musical theater from Catholic University in 2025.
His coach on “The Voice” is singer Adam Levine.
This season is not the first time Monmouth County has sent a contestant to “The Voice.” In 2013, Ranney student Jacquie Lee was featured on the show. She has since started a solo career. Lee, originally from Colts Neck, made it to the final round of the competition, where she finished as the runner-up. She was coached by pop singer Christina Aguilera.
Lee returned to the reality genre in season 24 of “American Idol” and advanced to the Top 30. That show also featured Freehold’s Julia Sienna (Santiago) and Jake Thistle of Paramus.
On this season of “The Voice,” Kelly Clarkson and Riley Green round out the coaching panel. After the audition phase, the show will air every Monday night (and sometimes Tuesday nights) at 8 p.m. on NBC. To learn more, visit NBC.com.
This article originally appeared in the October 8-14, 2026 print edition of The Two River Times.
