A contestant from Season 14 of NBC’s hit show “The Voice” is performing in Sanford Thursday night, and it’s not Britton Buchanan.
Instead, it’s Molly Stevens — the Raleigh songwriter and folk/country singer — who’ll grace the stage at Downtown Sanford Inc.’s third Downtown Alive! concert of the summer. Stevens — a native of Macon, Georgia, who wowed Voice judges Blake Shelton and Kelly Clarkson in the blind auditions with the Patty Griffin song “Heavenly Day” — will perform from 7 to 9 p.m. on the Steele Street stage.
As the city did for the two previous Downtown Alive! shows, the section of Steele between Wicker and Carthage streets will be closed to traffic during the concert, and food trucks and beer vendors will set up near the stage.
Stevens’ music is described as “country Americana;” shortly after her appearance on The Voice (she was knocked out in the battle rounds), she signed a record deal with Huntsville, Alabama-based Marrow MP Records. Later that year, she released her first EP, “Here & Now,” which can be purchased on iTunes or heard on Spotify.
Stevens’ performance Thursday night will mark the halfway point for Downtown Alive!, which will return in August with Southern Voice, with special guest Faith Bardill. Downtown Alive! is a free show — guests are encouraged to bring their lawn chairs.