An incredible journey came to an epic end last night for Jake Hoot from Putnam County. He was named champion of the television show “The Voice.”

Right after the win, Jake issues a statement on Facebook:

“I don’t even have words. Utterly speechless. Thank you. From me and my family, thank you. This trophy, this win, this ride is just as much yours, as it is mine.”

As the final four stood on stage awaiting the decision, it came down to just two after Rose Short was named 4th place finalist, and Katie Kadan came in at 3rd place.

Only Jake Hoot and Ricky Duran stood on the stage encouraging each other on. When the announcement was made that Jake won, he bent over overcome with emotion.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=41&v=IZGIe9q-0xo&feature=emb_logo

Jake is the season 17 winner of The Voice. Hoot will receive $100,000 in award money and a record deal for the win.

Jake’s journey could be called a Cinderella story. He went from receiving only one chair turn during the Blind Auditions to becoming champion.

During the journey, Jake spoke about a recent divorce, and cried when he talked about how much he loves his young daughter, Macy.

“Macy’s everything to me, so it’s very scary to step away from all that and come out here and take the chance of doing this full time,” he told the camera in the premiere. “I would hope that when she gets older, she can look back and say, ‘Well, Dad chased his dreams.’ Maybe it will inspire her to chase hers.”

It seemed like every episode that aired of “The Voice” Jake picked up steam as well as fans. Viewers responded to Hoot’s story, as well as his powerhouse vocals that drew comparisons to country legend Ronnie Dunn. His songs had the highest streams on Apple Music of any artist this season, and the tracks typically shot to the top of iTunes download chart.