Welcome back! Round 2 of The Voice in 2016 brings us two new coaches, a fresh group of talent, and another reason to ask "why don't Blake and Adam get a room already?" Tonight we kick off the last phase of the competition as the blind auditions, the battles, the knockouts, and the playoffs have all transpired. The Top 12 take the stage this evening and with the help of Garth freaking Brooks, they hope to win over America and step one week closer to victory. Let's see if any of the teams have an advantage right out of the gate.
Artist: Sundance Head
Team: Blake
Song: "My Church" by Maren Morris
Whenever I see Sundance on screen I am always taken back to his performance of "Mustang Sally" in his American Idol days. I've always wondered what happened to him and was thrilled when he popped up on The Voice. Sundance certainly has the vocal chops to take us to church and he opens the show with a fun, energetic, soulful performance that puts a big smile on my face. Love this guy.
Coaches Say: Alicia calls Sundance spectacular and tells him he continues to raise the bar each time he sings. Miley thinks Sundance was meant to play on a big stage because of his energy. Vocally, Blake says he would put Sundance up against anyone in the world and I've hit my first "whoa cowboy" of the season. Sundance is good, but let's not get crazy.
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Artist: Darby Walker
Team: Miley
Song: "Ruby Tuesday" by The Rolling Stones
Miley saved young Darby last week hoping to one day hear her voice on the radio. After an emotional coaching session with Mr. Brooks, Darby takes the stage with a flowery mic stand and transports us back to the 60s. She's looking to show her vulnerable side in this performance and while her voice waivers at times, I do really enjoy how she throws herself into the choruses. Here's hoping the voters don't forget about her this week.
Coaches Say: Blake can't express enough how important this performance was because Darby gave us the full power of her voice. Miley agrees and says Darby completely represents "Ruby Tuesday." And now I suddenly have a craving for an endless salad bar.
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Artist: Christian Cuevas
Team: Alicia
Song: "The Scientist" by Coldplay
Christian is dedicating this song to his girlfriend and she must be one lucky lady. He definitely puts his own spin on "The Scientist" but I think he sounded much better in his rehearsal package. Christian's last couple of "I'm going back to the start!" belts are great but based on the rehearsal video I was expecting something pretty amazing.
Coaches Say: Adam says the performance was unbelievable and Alicia is beaming with pride. She loves Christian's ability to take songs and own them and tells him he nailed it.
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Artist: Sa'rayah
Team: Alicia
Song: "Livin' On a Prayer" by Bon Jovi
Oh the things my spellcheck wants to do to this girl's name. Alicia saved Sa'rayah last week and the sassy singer is looking to wow America tonight with her take on this Bon Jovi classic. The key here is for Sa'rayah to tell the story and not just belt out the song. I think she does that...and she also reallllly belts out the song. She threw herself into it 100% and I thoroughly enjoyed the performance.
Coaches Say: Miley loves seeing Sa'rayah do rock music and is so excited she went out of her comfort zone tonight. Miley also makes kind of a side comment about how when Sa'rayah was on her team, these are the types of songs she wanted Sa'rayah to sing. She's just being Miley (had to be said at some point). Blake's favorite part of Sa'rayah's performances is the face she makes when she hits the big crazy notes, like "I can't even believe what's coming out of my mouth." Coach Alicia continues to be wowed by her artist and she wants Sa'rayah to continue to show the world who she is.
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Artist: Billy Gilman
Team: Adam
Song: "The Show Must Go On" by Queen
Taking on Freddy Mercury is super gutsy but Billy identifies with this song and really has an emotional connection to the music. Billy's voice is haunting and wonderful and I'm mesmerized during the entire performance. Alicia talked earlier about setting the bar high...the other contestants should now consider the bar officially raised. Amazing!
Coaches Say: All four coaches stand and Blake says Billy is unbelievable. Adam says Billy epitomizes the whole point of the show and tells Billy this is only the beginning for him.
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Artist: Austin Alsup
Team: Blake
Song: "Do Right Woman, Do Right Man" by Aretha Franklin
Wow. Another very tall order...and unfortunately Austin doesn't quite deliver. With the band behind him trying to give the song a southern rock vibe, Austin ends up screaming most of the song. Austin probably just should have chosen a different tune but perhaps he has built a big enough fan base through the previous performances to get him another shot next week.
Coaches Say: Miley says this was her favorite Austin performance and I guess I was hearing something else. Blake tells Austin there is a new generation of outlaw country music artists rising "and I'll be damned if there's anybody in that group that can sing like you do."
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Artist: Wé McDonald
Team: Alicia
Song: "Take Me To Church" by Hozier
Team Alicia's 17 year old powerhouse is also taking us to church tonight and holy hell is she incredible. The look on Garth's face when she starts to sing during rehearsals says it all. She's crazy talented. I have the goosies (shout out to JLo) within 10 seconds of the performance and I cannot WAIT to see what this kid has in store for us for the rest of the season.
Coaches Say: Why Alicia seems to be the only coach standing is beyond me. Miley says she gets emotional when she sees Wé surrounded by the audience in her performances. She turns to Alicia who is almost coming out of her seat with giddiness. She tells Wé "you are the real deal."
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Artist: Aaron Gibson
Team: Miley
Song: "Hollywood Forever Cemetery Sings" by Father John Misty
Mmmkay, so I don't know this song at all. Aaron is not really enunciating so I also can't follow along with the lyrics to see if he's selling any kind of story or not. I do applaud Aaron for wanting to sing songs that have not yet been done on the show (seriously dude - thank you), but this just isn't my favorite performance of his.
Coaches Say: Adam says Aaron's voice is so special, it would be a disservice if he was not a singer. Blake likens Aaron's voice to "if Godzilla could sing" and Miley sees Aaron as a Father John Misty type of artist. I guess I need to go google who the hell this guy is.
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Artist: Courtney Harrell
Team: Blake
Song: "I Don't Want To Miss a Thing" by Aerosmith
Whyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy? Blake, why would you do this to us? WHY do we need another rendition of this damn song? And what's worse? This isn't even a good rendition of it. Once poor Courtney gets to the first chorus, the notes start going all over the place and she doesn't really get back on track through the rest of the performance. Please...retire this song already.
Coaches Say: Alicia felt like Courtney settled into such a great place at the end of the song (not sure what place that was...I sure wasn't invited). Blake says what Courtney just did justifies his decision to save her last week.
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Artist: Josh Gallagher
Team: Adam
Song: "Why" by Jason Aldean
Newlywed Josh opens the song on a stool in the midst of the audience and I swoon a little when I hear him sing "It's 3am." I'm thinking this is going to be awesome. And then as the bad notes start coming at us like a meteor shower...I'm super bummed. Josh does get himself back on track toward the end of the song but I think the emotional background of the song got the best of him in this performance. I am a huge, huge Josh fan though and I hope to see him on this show for many weeks to come.
Coaches Say: Blake is kicking himself for letting Josh go and Adam is so happy he did. He says he learns a lot from Josh and is so proud to have Josh on his team.
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Artist: Ali Caldwell
Team: Miley
Song: "Did I Ever Love You?" by Leonard Cohen
Thank you, thank you, thank you for honoring the late, great Leonard Cohen but not choosing "Hallelujah." He has SO many other amazing songs and this is one of them. Ali's delivery of "Did I Ever Love You?" is effortless and she's got me "woo"ing and clapping from my couch almost immediately. When Miley and Alicia stand and dance during the chorus, I'm right up there with them. Hot damn. This girl should have closed the show! Please excuse me while I go to iTunes.
Coaches Say: Everybody stands! Yay! Alicia says Ali just had a real "moment" because she let everyone in to a special, precious place inside of her. Miley is beaming and thanks Ali for always putting trust in her.
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Artist: Brendan Fletcher
Team: Adam
Song: "Whipping Post" by The Allman Brothers Band
I'm always going to think of Bo Bice's rendition of Whipping Post when it's covered on these other shows, but Brendan does a great job with the song. He grabs on to the angst and desperation of the tune wholeheartedly, and while I have not been the biggest Brendan fan this season, I'll say that I think Adam definitely made the right call in saving him last week.
Coaches Say: Adam is amazed by Brendan and says he deserves to be voted through. We're out of time now and my Tivo cuts off.
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Tomorrow night one of these hopefuls will be sent home and really there are several contestants who should be worried. Wé, Billy and Ali were my faves tonight, though Brendan and Sundance held their own as well. Can Courtney bounce back from her Aerosmith misstep? Will voters remember Darby's flowers when they go to their phones, apps, websites or whatever the kids are using these days? Did anyone else notice Josh's struggles or will he sail right on through? And can we all agree that Miley and Alicia have been awesome so far? If I had a foam finger I would be using it to cheer them both on. Can these ladies keep their teams in tact and give Blake an Adam a run for their money? We'll find out during the results hour. Til then!
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