The Voice 25: Anya True ‘Runs Away’ with Knockout while Kyle Schuesler earns a steal
On Monday night (April 8), The Voice Season 25 Knockouts began as singers vied for a spot in the Playoffs. Each coach will have 3 winning singers, a steal, and a playoff pass to make up a top five going into the Playoffs.
Monday’s Knockouts featured the singers being mentored by Mega Mentor, Keith Urban, and included some really solid singing and a couple of steals. The last Knockout of the night was from two standout Team Dan + Shay singers, Anya True and Kyle Schuesler. The panel’s newest coaching duo had a tough decision to make. (Read our Recap)
Dan + Shay said they paired Anya and Kyle together as they have a “cool singer-songwriter thing” with an “alt-edge” about them. Anya is excited to see Keith, who has worked with so many artists including Taylor Swift. She is singing “Runaway” by Aurora which is a really cool choice as the artist has never been covered on The Voice in America.
“I really want to just focus on my vocals”
Anya has been writing since she was 8 and noted that Aurora has been writing since she was 11. She opted to perform live without a guitar for the first time ever. “I really want to just focus on my vocals,” she told Dan + Shay and Keith, She connected to the lyrics, which consists of the line, “take me home” because she misses her sister. Dan compared her to Phoebe Bridgers. Keith told her to “center herself” to get through the nerves and deliver the message of the lyrics.
Kyle chose “Say You Won’t Let Go” by James Arthur. The song reminds the singer of his grandma who passed away three years ago. This song made her cry for the first time when he performed it for her. Dan called it a great song choice to show off the “texture” in his voice. Keith added “that little raspy edge is so good,” but he would like to see Kyle’s eyes more. Dan suggested that he “really go for it” on the bigger notes. Shay helped him through the falsetto transition, and Keith advised him to try the song without the guitar.
Anya set the mood by bringing a bit of a mysterious indie vibe in the beginning of her performance. The transitions in her voice from the quiet little breaks to the belts and falsetto were magical. She truly nailed the ending bringing the emotion by hitting impressive notes and showing a side to her vocals we hadn’t seen before. This might just be the best performance of the night.
Beautiful phrasing
Kyle displayed beautiful phrasing as he began his performance. His sound isn’t nearly as unique as Anya’s, but he did a solid job on the song even if it isn’t his best vocal on the show. He nailed the pre-chorus, but a few of his transitions from falsetto to chest voice were a bit choppy. He could have opened his eyes a more. Nevertheless, he still did a great job.
John Legend called Anya’s tone “gorgeous”, and he told Kyle that “the higher part” of his “chest voice has a crunch to it that is really cool.” He would go with Kyle. Reba McEntire called Anya’s voice “wonderful,” adding that she loved when Kyle “went into falsetto and came back into full voice.” Chance the Rapper thought Kyle was thrown off by how low the song started. He called Anya’s voice “delicate” comparing her to Joni Mitchell. He would choose Anya. Shay said he felt Anya’s “heart in the performance,” and Dan felt Kyle had “amazing breath control.”
Both artists head to the Playoffs
In the end, they choose Anya to move onto the Playoffs. Chance, interestingly, stole Kyle even after he critiqued him. John joked that Chance tricked them to pick Anya. Chance admitted he’d been waiting to get Kyle on his team especially after he was unable to turn for him in his audition since his team was full. He believes Kyle can do all genres.
Anya and Kyle weren’t the only competitive Knockout of the night that resulted in a steal. The opener of was a great vocal showcase between Team Reba’s Asher Havon on “Unbreak My Heart” and Tae Lewis singing “Nothin’ On You,” which resulted in Asher winning and Dan + Shay stealing Tae. The other singer of the night that gave a stand out performance was Team John’s Nathan Chester who took on “Fooled Around and Fell in Love” and moved on to the Playoffs as a part of John’s team. Next we will find out the remaining singers moving on to the Playoffs as the singers compete in more knockouts.
