Denton Arnell, 32, has always used music as his safe space. The Chicago native started playing the piano at four years old, sang in the church his entire life and directed his college church choir. Like most talented singer/songwriters, he used his music as a form of catharsis. But unlike his musical peers, he didn’t seek stardom or share his work with others.
“My colleague at the time accidentally heard me singing one of my songs and convinced me that I should audition for The Voice,” said Denton. After some encouragement, he decided to submit an audition video to the hit television talent competition. The next day, he got the call.
“I couldn’t believe that it was that easy,” he said. “I always hear about how tough it is to make it through to the top rounds of these types of things, so I was blown away by the opportunity.”
He wasn’t the only one that was blown away. Denton was a hit with the judges and even earned the support of one of the show’s musical mentors, John Legend.
The viewers and producers deemed him a hit. The showrunners even went as far as to allow him to use the show as a platform to propose to his longtime girlfriend on air.
“They asked me if I wanted to do it and I said yes immediately,” he said. “I couldn’t wait to ask my best friend to share the rest of my life with her in front of everyone that she loved.”
But the proposal didn’t go as planned.
“When going down on one knee,