‘The Voice’ Winner Jermaine Paul to Duet With Alicia Keys

Former Alicia Keys backup singer and ‘The Voice‘ victor Jermaine Paul is going back to his roots. The soulman is gearing up to record with Keys once more — but in a much different capacity. No longer a backup singer but now a star in his own right, Paul revealed that the pair will do a duet!

Paul chatted with MTV News about the project. “She’s always been supportive,” Paul said of his former frontwoman. “Even while I was singing, I would tell her, ‘I want to go solo,’ and she was like, ‘What are you waiting on?’ and I would tell her, ‘I’m waiting on God to fix things out,’ and she was like, ‘Maybe God is waiting on you.’”

Paul wants Keys to appear on his upcoming debut. “We’ve been working on a song for a while now,” Paul said. “And, you know, what better time than now?” True that!

Paul also gushed about his coach and pal Blake Shelton. “He’s a good guy, he’s a man’s man, he’s a what-you-see-is-what-you-get type of guy, and that’s the kind of guy I try to be,” Paul said. “That was ultimately one of the main reasons I chose him as my coach,” he admitted. “I just felt his sincerity, the realness. He jokes around a lot, you know? When he walks in the room, he definitely has a way of lighting up the air.” He sure does — just ask his bromance partner, Adam Levine!

Paul credits Shelton with keeping him sane after his win. “I was going through a whole emotional, mental shock, and I even physically thought my legs weren’t under me, I had my hands on my head,” Paul gushed. “I had this crazy tingling sensations like going through my head — it’s a feeling I can’t even explain — and he brought me back to reality and grabbed me and was like, ‘You did it, man! It’s you!’ It was an amazing feeling.”

Watch Jermaine Paul + Blake Shelton Perform ‘Soul Man’