On Monday night, Stephanie Rice took the stage on The Voice and sang a cover of Kelly Clarkson's "Piece by Piece" so heartfelt that both Gwen Stefani and Blake Shelton knew they had an authentic story in their midst.
Blake pressed his button, approving the contestant, within 20 seconds of the start of her performance. Gwen followed suit within 10 seconds, and you can pretty much see Alicia Keys basking in Stephanie's voice from start to finish, though she didn't feel the need to turn around and see her.
"I can feel whatever pain is in there," Gwen told Stephanie. "You can only sing like that if you've lived it."
After being asked by Blake what it was that gave bloom to her artistic side, Stephanie laid herself bare for a moment before the judges.
"When I was 18, I came out to my parents, and my dad's a pastor and…" Stephanie's voice trailed off as she regained her composure. "And they disowned me, and I've been taking that brokenness and emotion, and I've been channeling it into the only form that I knew how, which was through music."
The judges were impressed, and so was a certain fan watching from a distance.
Watch the touching clip below, and follow Stephanie on Twitter for updates on her music!