A Tennessee Tech alum will return to national television this month to compete in a new all-star format of a popular singing competition.
Jake Hoot, a 2013 graduate and former Golden Eagle football player, is set to join fellow past winners for “The Voice: Battle of Champions” on NBC. Hoot originally captured national attention when he won season 17 of the show in 2019.
“There was just something about Cookeville and Tennessee Tech,” Hoot said in the release. “I walked on the team, and that’s how I ended up playing here and going to school. It was an incredible four years of my life.”
The son of missionaries, Hoot said in the release he spent much of his childhood in the Dominican Republic and Haiti before returning to Tennessee with aspirations of playing college football. He discussed his journey and time at the university during a 2023 interview on the Tennessee Tech “College Town Talk” podcast.
Hoot worked closely with Kelly Clarkson during his initial run on the show according to the release and credited the experience with strengthening his confidence as a performer. The release said that the discipline he developed as a student-athlete continues to shape his music career today.
“I think I walked away from it way more confident,” Hoot said in the release.
Following his season 17 victory, Hoot returned to Cookeville to perform for a capacity crowd at the Hooper Eblen Center. The university recognized his professional achievements and continued connection to the school by presenting him with the Tennessee Tech Alumni Association’s 2020 Outstanding Young Alumnus Award.
“The Voice: Battle of Champions” premieres Monday, February 23, at 8 p.m. on NBC.