JACKSONVILLE, Fla — Months after making it into the top three on The Voice, Jacksonville's own Paris Winningham is about to release his first single, Tennessee Whiskey, which he recorded on the First Coast.
It's a song that really resonates with him.
“I was probably stuck on the hardest drug that could ever affect somebody, and that's self-doubt,” Winningham said. “That's the one drug that I think personally affected me so much because I doubted myself for so long. It took music to teach me that I am somebody and I can make a difference. And I can do something with this voice of mine.”
Winningham, who says he contemplated suicide before he ever made it on NBC's hit show, is now a voice of hope.
“Just when you want to throw in the towel, your breakthrough could be right around the corner,” Winningham said. “We got enough hatred. We got enough malice. We got enough anger and bitterness in this world. Can we be the beacons of light that we can be and shine some light in this world? Share some love with somebody. That’s what I want people to pull from this, you know, love is what's gonna pull us out of any dark time.”
He plans to release his second single soon, a song Michael Bolton wrote in the 1980s but never released.
“I'm just immensely grateful to be able to represent the great city of Jacksonville. This is doggone awesome. And it's just awesome, the love that I get from everybody, so this is gonna be fun. I can't wait. This is just the beginning.”
His single will be available everywhere you stream music and through his website once it's released.