St. Francis grad to appear on ‘The Voice’ tonight

St. Francis High School alumnus Michael Lynch, of Wheaton, will audition on Monday night’s episode of NBC’s “The Voice.”

He’s one of three singers from the Chicago area — including Sam Cerniglia of Chicago and Lupe Carroll of Bourbonnais — to do “blind” auditions this season in front of celebrity judges Blake Shelton, Adam Levine, Christina Aguilera and CeeLo Green.

The judges listen with their backs to the singer. If at least one judge turns his or her chair around, the singer can advance to the next round.

Last week, Cerniglia was chosen by judge Shelton for “Team Blake.”

The show’s contract prevents Lynch, a 27-year-old singer-songwriter, from talking about how he did until after the show airs. It starts at 7 p.m. Monday.

However, Lynch did say he was unsuccessful in his first audition for the show last year. He made it through the first cuts but never appeared on camera.

“‘Good luck and keep working’ was the advice they gave to me,” Lynch said. “It made me want to work even harder, and it got me more motivated.”

Lynch spent the past year singing in an Evanston-based band, The Ken Arlen Orchestra, playing weddings and small Chicago-area gigs, where he practiced his stage presence and worked to get his vocals stronger. “The Voice” producers invited Lynch to a private audition this season, he said.

Though he’s 100 percent Irish, Lynch is fluent in Spanish, and sings in both English and Spanish. He discovered his love for music and Spanish in high school, and pursued both interests at the University of Iowa. He even lived in Mexico City and Miami for a short time.

Regardless of what happens on “The Voice,” Lynch is optimistic about his future.

“It’s hard to make it onto these reality TV shows, because there are a lot of factors involved,” he said. “My long-term goal is to launch myself as a solo artist. I want to use the momentum from ‘The Voice’ and TV to take me to the next level.”