Finding her ‘Voice’: South Dakota’s Rowan Grace looks back and ahead after national competition

South Dakota’s high school singing contestant went all the way to the top 10 on “The Voice” and now is looking ahead to a career that appears ready to launch.

Rowan Grace Hibbard, who goes by Rowan Grace as an artist, watched this week’s finale of the NBC singing competition from her Rapid City home as her teammate, Bryce Leatherwood, won the show’s 22nd season.

“I wish I could have been there, but I had school, and I couldn’t make it out. But it was still really good to watch,” she said.

For the Rapid City Central high schooler, it has been a whirlwind fall as episodes she recorded during the summer introduced her to a national television audience and she advanced to several weeks of live performances in Los Angeles.

“There’s no way to mentally prepare yourself for the live shows,” she said. “I tried the best I could, but the whole experience is something so brand-new and something you just have to experience to know.”

She had tried out multiple times before landing a spot on the show and said she went in thinking: “I don’t even care about what happens. Whatever happens, I will be happy, and that’s how I kind of got myself through the whole thing.”

Her performance in the blind auditions drew chair turns from three of the four coaches, but when facing elimination heading into the live shows, she was “stolen” by coach Blake Shelton.

“All five of us as a whole team, including Blake, were all really close with each other,” she said. “I was a little nervous going on Team Blake because everyone loves Team Blake so much, and I was the newest member and I didn’t know where I would fit, but I fit perfectly with the guys, and they took me under their wing.”

Her teammates became a combination of brothers and mentors, she said. Leatherwood provided on-stage support as she nervously awaited results of the first elimination show.

“I just reached back and held his hand, and he was like, ‘Rowan, I’m so proud of you. No matter what happens, this is amazing, and you’re going to kill it no matter what,’” she said. “He’s just the kindest person ever, and he really helped me in that moment, and he is just the greatest guy. He deserves the win so much, and I’m really happy and proud of him.”

A typical week on the show would include filming with Shelton on Tuesday night after the current week’s show aired, doing media interviews Wednesday, band rehearsals and vocal lessons Thursday and staging Friday.

“Saturdays were my day off, and Sunday was one last rehearsal,” she said. “It was insane that after Tuesday I was already working with Blake on next week. It was so quick and crazy, but it was so fun to work with Blake specifically, and I loved working with the band as well.”

The demands of the work combined with lack of sleep likely contributed to her getting sick for about two weeks at the end of her time on the show. Before the episode when she was eliminated, “that whole day I was not speaking and asking every contestant for vocal tips,” she said. “I was chugging warm water, but it helps soothe your throat right up until I had to sing.”

Her last performance, to Fleetwood Mac’s “Landslide,” was the note she wanted to end on, she said.

“That was my favorite,” she said. “I had a lot of closure with it and was so happy my voice decided to show up for it.”

She’s planning to release an EP of singles “as soon as I possibly can” while continuing to write songs, and she’s booking performances this summer, with the hope of expanding beyond her home market, including to Sioux Falls.

“I’ve met some cool people throughout this, which is just so amazing, and I’m grateful for that, so I’m excited to see what the future holds.”