Sea Cliff resident proves he has pipes on 'The Voice'

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“Now that I’ve lost everything to you” — the first line of Cat Stevens’s “Wild World” — were the only lyrics Troy Ramey, 32, had to sing during his audition for NBC’s “The Voice” before Blake Shelton slammed his red button. Turning face Ramey, Shelton made it clear that he wanted the Sea Cliff resident on his team.

But Shelton wasn’t the only coach interested in Ramey. Thirty seconds later, Adam Levine hit his button, followed by Gwen Stefani. And finally, Alicia Keys was onboard too.

Ramey received a four-chair turnaround during his audition — a huge compliment for anyone hoping to be a contestant on the show. Each week, “The Voice” gives talented vocalists a chance to compete for a recording contract, with the assistance of the judges. The judges’ backs are to the contestant as he or she auditions, unless the judges like what they hear. Then they push red buttons that swing their chairs around to face the contestant.

Ramey had the pick of four superstars to coach him through the show, in the hope of winning the grand prize — a record deal with Universal Music Group.

“It was almost like you were indestructible with that really naturally good, beautiful temperament,” Levine said, trying to win Ramey over.

“What woke me up was your intention to the lyric of that song — it was like it was your song,” said Stefani, trying to do the same.

“We all want to gravitate towards your voice because it’s special, man, and I wanna be a part of that,” Shelton added.

Ramey ultimate chose Stefani as his coach.

The opportunity is one that any singer would treasure, but Ramey hasn’t been in the business long. He didn’t start singing until he was in his 20s, and he described himself as a “late bloomer.” Still grieving from the loss of his father a few years earlier, he was looking for an outlet for his grief while attending Boston College. There he joined a rock band — In Like Lions — and channeled his emotions into songwriting. The band became popular among Boston locals, which gave Ramey the confidence to pursue music and songwriting in his spare time.

After moving to Long Island, while working for an engineering company, he was introduced to Dante Lattanzi, owner of Caelum Music Production, in Oceanside. Ramey said it was there that “magic” happened.

Lattanzi, who grew up in Queens and has lived in California, moved to Oceanside a few years ago. He met Ramey through a singer he was working with. “I asked him to sing; I wanted to hear him,” Lattanzi recalled. “I think my mouth just dropped. I was just so blown away. I’ve been kind of looking high and low for somebody of that caliber for years now.”

So the two got to work. While Ramey writes his own melodies and lyrics, Lattanzi, who plays 13 instruments, has helped him with production, mixing, editing and mastering at his Foxhurst Road studio. He helped Ramey put out his first song, “Rosary,” and over the past year he has racked up almost 4 million Spotify plays, Lattanzi says. He added that he wasn’t surprised by the public reaction to Ramey after he appeared on “The Voice,” and that the exposure has helped him grow as a singer and songwriter. Lattanzi said that a Ramey tour in the near future is “very realistic.”

“I think just seeing him on ‘The Voice’ really opened up a whole new dimension to him,” Lattanzi said. “I feel like his confidence level is just at a totally different place at the moment. It’s been very exciting.”

Ramey said he knew his career was going in the right direction when he could support himself with his music. People started to take notice, including the producers of “The Voice,” who asked him to audition for the show. “It’s something I never thought I’d ever do — I never thought it was for me,” Ramey said. “As a songwriter, it was important to me that I make a name for myself with my own songs, but all the success that happened in the past couple of years gave me the confidence to go on the show.”

At the audition, he sang “Wild World” as a tribute to his father. “I have a lot of memories of my dad singing that as a kid,” he said. “It was a big moment in my career, and to be able to give a tribute to him was special because my family was there as well.”

After the performance, Ramey’s cover of “Wild World” hit No. 9 on the iTunes top 10 — a stunning accomplishment.

After the audition, Ramey and the rest of Stefani’s team worked with seven-time Grammy winner Celine Dion, practicing for the Battle Rounds, in which team members compete against one another while singing duets. “Our time with Celine was incredible,” Ramey said. “There was no real instruction except to keep up with what I was doing, which was the craziest part of all.”

He said he was blown away by the support he received after appearing on TV only once. A bar where his band once struggled to attract a crowd was now packed with people singing along to the performance. “I did expect a certain amount of negative energy, but so far everything has been so positive,” he said. “It’s a reinforcement that I’m doing the right thing.”

Even though the days of filming for the show are long, Ramey and the rest of the contestants can’t complain because, he said, “It’s the most exciting thing any of us have done in our entire life.”

He said he plans to continue to pursue music no matter what happens on the show. “I went into ‘The Voice’ just hoping to enhance my career that I already have,” he said. “I know people will connect to the real me. I’m proud of the songs I’ve written and the songwriter I’ve become, and I’m comfortable with people discovering that.”

While his career path may take him in many different directions, Ramey says he plans to stay in Sea Cliff. “I have a lot of gratitude — my career started here,” he said. “I’m happy here right now, and there’s no need to think about going anywhere else.”

Tune into “The Voice” on April 10, at 8 p.m., on NBC, to see Ramey perform in the Knockouts, where team members compete against one another while singing solo.

Ben Strack contributed to this article.