Tonight the remaining artists on The Voice participate in the inexplicable 8 person semi-finals. Blake goes into the evening with a full team, Kelly and Alicia have 2 team members left, and Adam (by default) has all of his eggs in the Rayshun basket. Will any of the teams have a clear advantage going into tomorrow's elimination? Let's get to the performances and find out...
Artist: Brynn Cartelli
Team: Kelly
Song: "What the World Needs Now" by Jackie DeShannon (but Andra Day's version)
Last week's closer kicks off the night with one of the best "stop whatever you're doing, sway, and smile" songs I can think of. I know a lot of people (myself included) keep focusing on how young Brynn is, but I really do feel like most girls singing this song at her age could come off very pageant-y. Brynn keeps it scaled back though and doesn't put us through teenage dramatics to try to get the message across. She does a lovely job with the song and keeps me totally engaged even though "What the World Needs Now" is very, very repetitive. Pleeeeeease let this kid be in the final four.
Coaches Say: Kelly is standing as Brynn goes into the final chorus and Alicia, Blake, and Adam join her when the song is over. Blake says Brynn is a master of mastering whatever the song she chooses/is given each week. Kelly thinks Brynn's performances are epic, and beautiful, and tasteful. She calls her contestant "a true artist."
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Artist: Jackie Foster
Team: Alicia
Song: "Here I Go Again" by Whitesnake
Oh how I enjoyed ballad Jackie last week, but rock star Jackie takes the stage tonight and completely switches gears from the group hug vibe Brynn just gave us. Jackie wants this song to be her anthem and she feels so close to her dreams at this point in the competition. Jackie doesn't perform this song like she's covering a tune for a competition. She performs "Here I Go Again" as if she were bringing down the house at the end of a concert tour she is headlining. Sure, I thought last week's rendition of "Gravity" was better (really because it was incredibly moving), but Jackie attacks this performance like a seasoned pro and I can't imagine a finale without her and her fog machine.
Coaches Say: Kelly and Alicia stand and Adam says seeing Jackie let loose and have fun was really important in this moment. Alicia tells Jackie she owned the performance, and she made it hers, and also smashed it...all which are good things.
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Artist: Rayshun LaMarr
Team: Adam
Song: "Imagine" by John Lennon
Sigh. You know why I've always loved this song? Because it's beautiful in a very simple way. This arrangement is jazzy and Rayshun puts his Rayshun spin on it, and for me, ruins the tune entirely. While I have no doubt Rayshun connects with the lyrics and the message, I just don't feel like "Imagine" was meant to be happily and energetically screamed at us in a competition. Next.
Coaches Say: Adam stands for the majority of the performance and the rest of the coaches stand as well when the performance is over. Kelly thinks Rayshun carries so much joy that the world needs right now, and he allows the audience to escape in that joy. Adam says the performance was inspiring and believes John Lennon would be proud of Rayshun's rendition of "Imagine." Ok.
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Artist: Spensha Baker
Team: Blake
Song: "My Church" by Maren Morris
While Spensha may have struggled a bit while out of her comfort zone last week, she finds a song right in her wheelhouse this week with "My Church." She digs deep and lays all of her cards out on the table in this performance and I LOVE IT. If there's ever been a time for this girl to stand out, it's tonight and she soars from the first "hallelujah" to the last "amen." This is Spensha's best performance all season and I'm pretty sure she knows it. I also really like the new hair. Just sayin.'
Coaches Say: Blake is giving us a lot of "yeah!" yells as he stands and claps and Carson goes right to him for commentary. Blake says the dam just broke on everything Spensha has been holding back this season. He thinks she just had "a moment" and will be surprised if she is not in the finale.
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Artist: Kyla Jade
Team: Blake
Song: "Let It Be" by The Beatles
See, this is how you tackle a simple song with a great message. Yes, Kyla takes "Let It Be" to church (shout out to that amazing choir), and yes she does get super loud at times. Like, way loud. But to me she's not here as an entertainer tonight...she's here to share something a little more profound. Kyla stands in one spot behind a mic stand to command our attention and though I can hear the choir, I can't take my eyes off of Kyla. This performance is moving and inspiring and I watch it a few times with tears in my eyes before I can continue with the rest of the show. Best of the night. Easily.
Coaches Say: Everyone is on their feet! Alicia thinks Kyla embodied magnificence tonight and loves the confidence that is rising in Kyla. She also tells Kyla "this was a superstar iconic performance." Blake has never been more honored to be associated with a human being in 14 seasons of The Voice. He also adds she may have won the competition already.
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Artist: Kaleb Lee
Team: Kelly
Song: "It Is Well With My Soul" by Audrey Assad
While Kaleb has improved little by little each week in showing personality, we've been waiting for him to really show emotion in his performances. Tonight he accomplishes that. Kaleb has never sounded better and this is the most connected he's been to a song all season. This is my favorite Kaleb performance and I'm so happy that he gave us such a strong showing tonight. I'm not sure that he will break through to the final four tomorrow, but he should be SO proud of what he's done on The Voice. Also, can we talk about how adorable Kaleb's family is? His son in that cowboy hat? My heart melted.
Coaches Say: We go right to Kelly as we are starting to run out of time on this live show. Kelly says Kaleb has grown so much since the blind auditions and calls music his "purpose."
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Artist: Pryor Baird
Team: Blake
Song: "Change the World" by Eric Clapton
In the rehearsal package Pryor tells us this is his favorite song he's done on the show. I can say with confidence that this is my least favorite song he's done on the show. Maybe Pryor's sound just isn't for me. Maybe I read a review that compared his voice to Eric Cartman's from South Park and haven't been able to hear him any other way since then. Maybe I'm bummed that he and Kaleb have probably been fighting for the same votes and I like Kaleb sooooo much better. Dunno. But I'm ready for Britton to take the stage pretty much as soon as this song starts.
Coaches Say: Kelly thinks Pryor sounds like he is constantly in "this cool state of plea-ing" and Blake says no matter what happens, Pryor really is "the guy next door." I had thought this was kind of Blake's way of saying "My money is on Kyla and Spensha" but then the cowboy follows up with "I'll see you in the finale." Hmmm.
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Artist: Britton Buchanan
Team: Alicia
Song: "The Rising" by Bruce Springsteen
Britton continues his slow and steady climb to the finale with a big song by Bruce Springsteen. Britton has been wanting to take on the Boss for a while now and this performance is well timed. There have been several super strong performances this evening but I'm really happy Britton got the closing spot. The kid has really come into his own, he looks confident, he sounds great, he owns this song, and I really hope to see him next week. The moments when he raises his arms with his eyes closed while the choir sings behind him alone say "confetti shower contender." I think I'll be downloading this tune tonight.
Coaches Say: Alicia is incredibly excited and "woohoos" repeatedly. She tells Britton that when he comes onstage she sees another side of him. She's so proud of her contestant and she closes her critique with: "This rising that you're talking about? This place that we can all go? I'm coming with you man!"
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The Top 8 each had a duet tonight as well, with Pryor and Kaleb taking on a "Hillbilly Bone/Hillbilly Deluxe" mashup to start. In my humble opinion, Kaleb came out on top here...but that could just be because Pryor tends to annoy me anyway. Kyla and Spensha performed the best mashup of the night as they collaborated on a "What's Going On/Rise Up" duet. Kyla was the dominating force here but Spensha really held her own and shined...never mind the fact that the woman sounded fantastic together. This, hands down, was one of my favorite duets on this show in any season. Brynn and Britton had an odd pairing of "FourFiveSeconds/You Can't Always Get What You Want." It's not that the two youngins sang together that was odd - that was a great idea. I just think their songs could have suited the pairing a little better...and what was with the couch? Jackie and Rayshun rounded out the duets with a "Believer/Radioactive" mashup. This was an explosion of energy, as expected, and I thoroughly enjoyed the performance.
Tomorrow night is the semi-finals slaughter where the Top 8 are chopped in half to reveal the last men and/or women standing in the finale. I can't believe the season is almost over! Will Rayshun sail through or have to sing for a spot in safety once again? Will Spensha's breakout night ultimately make her one of the finalists? Will any of the teams be completely eliminated before the finale (what a blow that would be for Team Blake)? Will my personal picks of Brynn, Kyla, Britton and Jackie emerge from the elimination hour as the Final Four? We'll find out tomorrow when Carson puts us through the most agonizing pauses on TV. Til then!
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