The Voice 24 Playoffs: Niall Horan advances Huntley to the Top 12 after powerful “Daylight” cover
The Voice Season 24 Playoffs kicked off on Monday night with performances from Team Niall Horan. The Playoffs are the final pre-taped round of the season before the Live shows begin. All six members of Niall’s team impressed, making it an extremely tough decision for the coach. One standout is particular, is Huntley, the Virginia rock tinged singer.
Joking in rehearsal that he’s the only guy left on the team, the singer asks Niall why he chose him. “Your tone is amazing,” Niall responds. Huntley is performing David Kushner’s viral Tik Tok hit “Daylight,” which served as Kushner’s breakout song, peaking at 33 on the Billboard Hot 100. Niall states, “This song requires an emotional person and a big voice, and with Huntley, we’ve got both of those in abundance.” The two agree to take the key up a half step.
“The music industry is missing a big soulful rock voice like Huntley’s”
Huntley hasn’t been home for two months, and notes that the song is one of his daughter’s favorites. “She gave me something to fight for. Her and my son,” says Huntley, adding that he is doing this for his kids. Niall says, “The music industry is missing a big soulful rock voice like Huntley’s.”
Huntley opens his performance showcasing a more restrained style than we are used to seeing from him as the song starts very low. The dynamics of this performance show a new side to Huntley that is refreshing. His tone is distinct and raspy, and this performance feels like the emergence of Huntley as an artist, as it feels very current and relevant. There are a few vocal imperfections that we haven’t seen from Huntley in the past here. The performance isn’t pitch perfect and he has a few minor tuning issues with some voice cracks, but the emotion comes through more than his past performances. It’s my favorite performance of his to date. His voice is one that simply cuts through, and that’s why he could go deep into the competition.
“That’s the best you’ve ever sung it”
Gwen Stefani calls Huntley’s vocals “masterful,” adding, “I can’t believe you don’t already have a whole album. If I had a label I would snatch you.” John Legend says, “You are already a star. You carry yourself that way with confidence, that distinctive voice.” He proceeds to compare him to Grammy-winning artists who sing on The Voice finales. Niall says, “I wanted to see if he would step up to a song that he wouldn’t necessarily pick.” Niall, impressed, declares, “Wow, Huntley, that is some performance. That’s the best you’ve ever sung it.” He feels that America will love him. He finishes by saying, “When you have a voice like that, that’s going to be one hell of an album, and I’m going to buy it.” Reba McEntire agrees that she would buy it.
Niall in the end had to choose three out of the six Playoff members on his team to advance to the Top 12. He advanced Huntley along with alt pop powerhouse Nini Iris who gave a showstopping performance of Bishop Briggs’ “River,” and soulful singing competition vet Mara Justine who gave her best performance to date on Florence + The Machine’s “You’ve Got The Love.” Niall’s team was stellar which meant talented singers had to go home. Niall sent one very deserving singer, Alexa Wildish, was after a stunning rendition of Sting’s “Fields of Gold.” He also sent Knockout Save Claudia B and Super Save recipient Julia Roome packing.
Niall’s playoff team got things off to a strong start, so let’s hope Monday continues this trend with Team Reba and Team Gwen whittling their teams down.
