LOS ANGELES • Take his wife and eight children to Disney World. That is one of the things Todd Tilghman, the newly crowned winner of The Voice, is planning to do with his cash prize of US$100,000 (S$142,000).
The 42-year-old pastor from Mississippi, the oldest winner of NBC's music competition show, told People Magazine he had promised his children he would take them to the theme park if he won.
The Disney World parks in Florida and California are currently closed due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Tilghman said this will give them time to plan their trip as well as decide what to do with the rest of the prize money.
He said: "I don't have any immediate plans to make any drastic changes tomorrow. I don't know for sure the direction my life will go in. There's a possibility the money might pay the bills for a little while."
Before the finale on Tuesday night, which was held virtually, Tilghman said he had to prepare his children for the eventuality he might not win.
"I wanted to try to prepare my children, like, 'Listen, we probably won't win. Remember to smile and cheer for whichever person wins because all of these people are great'," he said.
"Then there's also a part of your mind that thinks, 'Hey, there's a shot. You're top three now.'"
The family celebrated with a victory cake at home after the finale.
Tilghman pointed out that the win has given him confidence and recognition. "I feel a lot more confident," he said. "I've gone from someone no one knew and now I've got a No. 1 song and a No. 8 song on iTunes. And that doesn't feel like my real life."
