The Voice Finale Part 1: We're Half Way There

This is it! We've reached (the first) 2016 finale of The Voice. All four coaches still have a contestant vying for the title and the competition has really picked up these past few weeks...especially since we saw half of the biggest contenders get the ax last week. Tonight the Final Four will perform three times - a cover song, an original song, and a duet with their coaches. It's a jam packed two hours so let's get to it!

Team: Adam

Artist: Laith Al-Saadi 

Song: "White Room" by Cream

Man I wish the band was closer to Laith on stage tonight. Dude is rocking out and it would be awesome to see that same energy surrounding him with the band. Instead the cameras have to take some strange angles to try to remotely zoom in on anyone besides Laith...and they do so a lot. This is really my only complaint about the performance. Laith, his vocals, his attitude, and his guitar kicked off the finale with a bang!

Coaches Say: Blake tells Laith that he made it to the finale (yup) and mentions the guitar playing to singing ratio again. I agree, but clearly America appreciates musicianship. Xtina is sporting a black widow look tonight and she says it's always a pleasure to see Laith tear that guitar up. Pharrell loves Laith's vibe and Adam says people like Laith have been missing from this show. 

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Team: Xtina

Artist: Alisan Porter

Song: "Down That Road"

Alisan penned this tune hoping the lyrics will help any fans who may be having a tough time following their dreams. The performance is of course full of power vocals, and there's even a lantern carrying choir to compliment the inspirational lyrics. Compared to the many other would be coronation songs we've heard throughout these 10 seasons, "Down That Road" is the most bearable of the motivational tunes. 

Coaches Say: Adam says Alisan has "the voice" that deserves to win, and he stops short of saying other factors should also play into America's choice. Blake tells Alisan it's cool to see her connect with a song that she wrote and Xtina loved seeing her contestant record her own material. She says Alisan is the epitome of The Voice. 

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Team: Pharrell

Artist: Hannah Huston

Song: "Every Breath You Take" by The Police

What I looooove about Hannah's rendition of this song is how creepy it is. The message of the song itself is an obsessive, stalker-ish profession of love, but the original is so upbeat that the creepiness is hard to remember at times. Hannah's performance is haunting and raw, and I give her a standing ovation from my living room. I could not be more happy that she made it to the finale. 

Coaches Say: Adam thinks Hannah's version of the song is cool and calls her a badass. Blake tells Hannah her take on the song was risky but he believes she will see a reward from it. Pharrell thanks the band for the arrangement (yes indeed!) and says Hannah came out tonight with grace and humility and lit the stage up. 

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Team: Blake

Artist: Adam Wakefield

Song: "Lonesome, Broken, and Blue"

Adam wrote this song solo and it's a tearjerker. He does not have to do anything crazy with his vocals in order to sell this song - the lyrics sell themselves and the tune is beautifully written. The performance is subtle, genuine, and lovely. I can't wait to see what Adam does with his cover later on this evening. 

Coaches Say: Pharrell congratulates Adam on the song and loves that Adam has so many different palettes to pull from. Coach Adam rambles about the audience being bad clappers and wastes a lot of time, and Blake is blown away by his contestant. 

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Team: Adam

Artist: Laith Al-Saadi

Song: "Morning Light"

Laith calls himself the "brie cheese" of the competition and I love it. He wrote "Morning Light" and is so excited to sing it for everyone tonight. I'll be honest and say I'm not a huge fan of the song, but I do appreciate Laith and have really enjoyed watching his journey this season.  

Coaches Say: Xtina loved the bluesy vibe of the song and Pharrell compliments the chord changes throughout the performance. Adam says Laith is his favorite of the Final Four because he plays music for all of the right reasons. Says it has nothing to do with Laith being on his team. Eye roll. 

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Team: Blake

Artist: Adam Wakefield

Song: "When I Call Your Name" by Vince Gill

So...I'm glad I know the lyrics to this song because at times I feel like Adam is mumbling. Thank goodness for the second half of the song where the crazy Adam vocals emerge and remind us why he is a contender. I probably prefer Adam's original tune to this cover, but this guy definitely had a good night. 

Coaches Say: Xtina loves what Adam does and she is never disappointed when he takes the stage. Coach Adam compliments Adam's great taste in putting together each of his performances. Blake thinks Adam just blew the roof off the place. Calm down cowboy. 

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Team: Pharrell

Artist: Hannah Huston

Song: "I Call the Shots"

Hannah and Pharrell wrote this song together and it's hands down the most catchy, fun, and radio ready original song of the night. Hannah owns each "I call the woo!" and her sass knows no bounds. This woman has gone from looking very unsure of herself to commanding a stage and I'm thrilled for her. 

Coaches Say: Pharrell runs up on stage and gives Hannah a hug and it's a great moment. Adam loves watching Pharrell work and loves what they did with the song. Pharrell is beaming and tells Hannah it's been a pleasure to see her realize her talent this season. 

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Team: Xtina

Artist: Alisan Porter

Song: "Somewhere" from West Side Story

Alisan receives the honor of closing out the show this evening and she picked a doozy of a song to tackle. Aside from being a plot turning point in West Side Story, "Somewhere" has been covered by artists like The Supremes, Celine Dion, and Barbara Streisand. I know I've been a little over the top at times with my Alisan praise but with this performance...I just can't say enough so I'm just going to post the video. Feels. Chills. Goosies. Tears. 

Coaches Say: Xtina is on her feet well before the song ends. So am I. She's crying and thanks Alisan for trusting her. Alisan starts to cry as well and Xtina pleads with America to give this girl "a second chance."

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As for the duets, they were all pretty fantastic which is never the case on this show. Pharrell and Hannah took on his song, "Brand New" and sounded silky smooth together, while Adam and Laith were super gritty with a Beatles medley. Xtina and Alisan kept it mellow with Carole King's "You've Got a Friend," and I thoroughly enjoyed Blake and Adam's take on Hank Williams Jr's "The Conversation." Really all of the contestants had a great night. I can't say any of the performances were weak and I can't remember the last time I enjoyed a The Voice finale this much. Obviously I want Alisan to win. Obviously I think she deserves to win. But obviously...the other three contestants may make that tough for her. Can she become Xtina's first winner? Will Hannah pull off an upset? Will Adam's heartbreaking original song give him the boost he needs to win? Will Laith's guitar playing musicianship ultimately win over America? We'll find out when part 2 of the finale airs tomorrow. Til then! 

The Voice Semi-Finals Elimination: Give It All That I Have

Tonight's elimination format saw two artists sent home with no second chances, three artists automatically making it through to the finale, and a fight between the remaining three artists for the Stupid Twitter Save. The fact that a finale spot is ultimately determined by Tweeters and not the votes and iTunes downloads is beyond me. Anyway, this was a pretty intense hour. Here are the highlights.

Next season's newest coach Alicia Keys performed tonight, treating the audience to her new song "In Common." That's right - she and Miley Cyrus will be filling Xtina and Pharrell's chairs next season, which is interesting considering Gwen had been taking Xtina's spot pretty consistently. OneRepublic took the stage as well to perform "Wherever I Go," but the whole time I was just thinking about who would be sent home this evening.  

Results! The first person to breath a sigh of relief was Adam as he took a spot in the finale in the first 6 minutes of the show. He was joined by Alisan not too long after and I was sooo happy. The final person to automatically make it through to the finale was Hannah. Yes! My happiness became an immediate happy dance. At the 33 minute mark Carson announced the three contestants who would be singing for the Stupid Twitter Save. In no particular order, Mary Sarah, Bryan and Laith were called to prepare for their performances. We then said goodbye to Paxton and Shalyah and that's totally fine. 

Mary Sarah kicked things off with "Something in the Water" by (you guessed it) Carrie Underwood. I could barely hear her at times and she seemed very nervous and shaky. Not her best performance, which is a shame since it was most likely her last one. Bryan chose "Adorn" for his "save me" song, and he went straight for the sexy and sounded great. Looooved his falsetto. Laith rounded out the performances with "All Along the Watchtower" by Jimi Hendrix and it was SO badass. Sheer badassery. This performance was badasstic. You get the picture. While I still had my fingers crossed for Bryan, Laith ended up winning the Stupid Twitter Save and landed a spot in next week's finale. Laith couldn't have sang/played for his life any better than he did tonight so congrats to him. 

For the first time in a while each coach will be represented in the finale. While I have long thought Alisan had it in the bag, I believe it's really anyone's game at this point. Adam has been a tough competitor all season and Hannah and Laith have both had a slow but consistent build leading up to now. Will Xtina finally get a victory? Will Pharrell's dark horse win it all? Will voters be confused by all the hair Adam and Laith have between them? As the season draws to a close I will say this is probably the best Final Four The Voice has had in a long time and I can't wait to see what they do next week. Til then!

The Voice Semi-Finals: Knock On Wood

Believe it or not, we have already reached the semi-finals on this season of The Voice. Yup, going into tonight we have eight contestants remaining...but when the elimination hour ends tomorrow only four will move on to next week's finale. Why are they continuing in this format you ask? Why not do one or two double eliminations in the Top 12/Top 11 weeks rather than a massive cut just before the winner is announced? Beats me. Maybe that's something for the show runners to think about before next season begins, you know, in a few months. Anyway, the stakes are high for the Top 8 tonight as well as their coaches, so let's get to the performances. 

Team: Adam

Artist: Shalyah Fearing

Song: "And I am Telling You I'm Not Going" from Dreamgirls 

This week's guest mentor is Pink and I looooove her. Aside from being funny, she also gives the contestants great advice. She tells Shalyah, for instance, to cut back on the rasp and "use it as a weapon." Makes total sense. Shalyah of course kicks the rasp into high gear instead. Like, ridiculously high gear. Like, I'm terrified for her throat high gear. It's so distracting that I'm having a tough time appreciating how hard she is trying to kick this song's ass. I'll hand it to Shalyah though - she's not leaving this competition without a fight. Rasp or no rasp, this was an explosive way to open the show. 

Coaches Say: All four coaches are on their feet. Xtina, by the way, has moved on from The Addams Family and is channeling a Men In Black/Anchorman combo tonight instead. She says Shalyah was singing for her life and it took guts to take on a song like that. Pharrell drops the "16 year old" fact twice and thinks Shalyah displayed amazing endurance during the song. Adam is so overjoyed that Shalyah got to have this moment. "This is the first moment of the night." Yup. It's the first performance of the night. 

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Team: Blake

Artist: Paxton Ingram 

Song: "I Would Do Anything For Love (But I Won't Do That)" by Meatloaf

Remember how Paxton redeemed himself in his quest for the Stupid Twitter Save last week? Consider that redemption revoked. He starts off with a super slow intro that's actually kind of working, then attempts to tackle the angry, angsty rock song that Meatloaf put his signature on. Everything stops working then. Shout out to whoever did the pyrotechnics though. That was neat. 

Coaches Say: Xtina never expected this song choice from Paxton but says he pulled it off. Pharrell agrees, complimenting the theatrics. Blake doesn't think he's ever been more proud of an artist as he is of Paxton. Really? Out of everyone? Even the Team Blake contestants that have won?

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Team: Adam

Artist: Laith Al-Saadi 

Song: "One and Only" by Adele

Adele huh? Adam's other remaining contestant knows he has to put his own spin on this song, and he (dare I say it) makes me hear this song in a whole new way. His version isn't an improvement on the original because that would be impossible, but I seriously love his take on "One and Only." Laith's guitar playing was an added wonderful bonus. 

Coaches Say: Blake tells Laith the performance was amazing and he loved the guitar solo. Pharrell wants everyone to pay attention to Laith's success story and support him. Adam would be the most proud if Laith made it through to the finale. Ha! Sorry Shalyah. I guess you'll be living without him after all.  

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Team: Xtina

Artist: Alisan Porter

Song: "Desperado" by The Eagles

Yes! This song is in my top 5 songs ever (yes, I do keep those kinds of lists High Fidelity style) and I go into Alisan's performance praying that she nails it without screeching. This is the first time anyone has performed a tune by The Eagles on this show and Xtina was able to get special permission to use "Desperado." The good news? This is amazing. The bad news? There isn't any. This version is powerful, emotional and best of all...not over the top. If Alisan is not in the finale I will be inconsolable. 

Coaches Say: Adam says Alisan can do everything and Blake tells Alisan she's awesome. Xtina is bursting with pride and admiration of Alisan's talent and calls the performance beautiful and "epic."

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Team: Blake

Artist: Adam Wakefield

Song: "I'm Sorry" by Blake Shelton

Blake loves Adam so much he passed along his own song to him this evening. This is a great move. During rehearsals Adam goes back and forth between wanting to do the song with a guitar or piano and ultimately he chooses to go solo on the piano. Pink says his voice is "heaven" and tonight Adam sounds as close to perfect as he's ever sounded. Love this. 

Coaches Say: Pharrell doesn't even feel like Adam is competing - he's just sharing these couple of minutes with America. Coach Adam agrees, saying the audience was so moved by the performance, you could hear a pin drop. Blake tells his contestant that while he has had several "breakout moments" on the show, he's never had a moment like that. 

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Team: Xtina

Artist: Bryan Bautista

Song: "Hurt" by Xtina

Speaking of coaches saying "use my song," Xtina bestows her power ballad on Bryan and this too was a smart choice. I know I've been saying the guy keeps getting better and better each week, but I think this is his best performance. The vocals are there, the emotions are there, and the audience is captivated. Bryan may very well be a contender when the votes are tallied tomorrow. 

We be places that you need not be. 

Coaches Say: Xtina, Blake and Pharrell are all on their feet and rightly so. Not sure what Adam's deal is. The audience stays super loud as he starts his critique and he says he is impressed by Bryan's courage to put his feelings into this performance. Bryan had related this song to not hearing from his dad this entire team he's been on The Voice. Xtina agrees with Adam, saying Bryan's version of her song was beautiful. She knows how hard it is to deliver that song live (citing her performance on the VMAs in 2006) and she's very proud of him. Xtina wants to hear it again and again and will be downloading it. I should hope so! It's time your team got a damn win!

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Team: Blake

Artist: Mary Sarah

Song: "I Told You So" by Randy Travis and Carrie Underwood

Okay, we get it. There have been Carrie comparisons all season and I don't think we needed another Carrie song thrown in here. Mary Sarah also doesn't do anything different with the tune, though her voice really does soar with each chorus. She struggles a bit with her lower register (still) but overall the performance is lovely. Finale worthy? No. But she's had a good run. 

Coaches Say: Xtina really enjoyed the performance and thinks she's seen Mary Sarah become a woman on the show. Blake wants people to understand that Mary Sarah's performance is "what's good in country music."

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Team: Pharrell

Artist: Hannah Huston

Song: "When a Man Loves a Woman" by Percy Sledge

Wow! Hannah gets the closing spot tonight and man does she bring the house down. Team Pharrell's lone contestant has absolutely proved herself as a finalist in my opinion. Pink encouraged her to "dig" in this performance and Hannah takes that advice to heart. Her vocals are insane and the back bend with the big note at the end? Unbelievable. I just wish she had dropped the mic after. 

Coaches Say: Adam has to wait for the crowd to stop going crazy then tells Hannah we've been taking her for granted. He calls her "the weird, stealth assassin" of the show. Pharrell agrees, saying it's been a slow build, but he proclaims that Hannah definitely deserves to be here. I couldn't agree more. 

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There were also some filler duets this evening as Mary Sarah and Bryan delivered a not so great version of Arianna Grande's "Break Free," and Shalyah and Paxton delivered an absolutely not so great version of Jessie J's "Masterpiece." If people were voting based on those performances alone, the elimination tomorrow would be a no brainer. On the flip side, Hannah and Laith fared much better with their take on Eddie Floyd's "Knock On Wood," but Adam and Alisan completely nailed their rendition of "Angel From Montgomery" by Bonnie Raitt and John Pine. Two out of four ain't bad I guess. 

Going into tomorrow's elimination I am definitely pulling for Alisan, Hannah, Adam and Bryan. A couple of weeks ago I would have put Laith and maybe even Shalyah ahead of Bryan, but he has really won me over at this point. It's going to be close though. Will they be the Final Four? Will all of the coaches keep a horse in the race? Will there be an upset? If so, I hope Xtina brings an MIB neuralyzer to make me forget the details. We'll see what happens during the results show tomorrow. Til then!