The Voice UK 2019 Recap – The Knockouts 1 Live Blog (VIDEO)

The singers will rehearse with their coach and guest mentor. Years & Years’ Olly Alexander will join Jennifer Hudson, Anne-Marie will work with Olly Murs, James Arthur will team up with Sir Tom Jones and Nicole Scherzinger joins Will.i.am.

In tonight’s episode, three singers from each team will perform, but only one will be chosen to go through to the live shows.

The remaining trio in each team will perform next Saturday, where the coaches will select a second finalist for the live shows.  However, viewers will send through onc contestant more next week, via the “Life Line” twist. 

Team Tom

Deana Walmsley – Dusk Till Dawn by ZAYN ft. Sia – James felt an immediate connection to Deanna. Tom notes how she’s able to convey her personality through her voice. “That’s not easy to do” he says. She accompanies herself on an acoustic guitar. Her style is really effortless. It never feels like she’s trying too hard. I really like her strong, clear tone.  Jennifer says she’s a star, in a league of her own. Will calls it powerful and compliments the song choice. 

Roger Samuels – Grace by Lewis Capaldi – Tom loves Roger’s big, gospel voice. He has 8 children and a grandkid! Roger is having trouble learning the words, unfortunately. He looks really nervous. Oh noes. He’s struggling. He literally stops singing. Jennifer stands and claps along. He comes alive on the chorus. This is a shame, because Roger can sang. After that initial stumble, he gets it together for the rest of the song. Afterward, he is obviously disappointed. Will admires the way he fought through the performance. Jennifer reminds him that real life isn’t perfect. “It was like an earthquake at the end,” says Olly. Tom knows he’s a great singer. Roger apologizes to Tom. “My mind went blank.” Olly runs on stage to give him a big hug. 

Equip to Overcome – When Love Takes Over by David Guetta ft. – This trio met at University and sing beautiful harmonies. The girls admit it’s a song they would never choose. The gospel singers will put their own spin on it. Tom is pretty dang good at choosing songs! It allows the trio to show off those harmonies. They approach the coaches chairs and it’s like a party breaks out. “That is the best performance you’ve done so far,” says Olly. Jennifer says they definitely brought the spirit to the song. 

Results: Tom chooses Deanna Walmsley! YAY! Equip to Overcome and Roger Samuels are eliminated.  Tom made the right choice here. 

Team Jennifer

Connie Lamb – 2002 by Anne-Marie – Jennifer stole the young singer from Tom in the Battles. Connie is thrilled with the song choice. Olly Alexander feels that she’s holding back a little bit. He calls her a “dark horse.” There are pitch problems in this performance, as pop singers go, she’s OK, but nothing special.  Olly  calls it “strong.” Will calls it “really awesome.” Jennifer believes Connie was definitely worth the steal. 

Moya – Woman by Neneh Cherry – She had a major label record deal, wrote and recorded one album and then stepped away. She’s trying to come back! Moya was unsure about the song choice. But once she dug in, she changed her mind. Olly admires her control. He saw her battle scars. Ohh. This is so good. Moya is a real pro. Love her tone, phrasing and stage presence. She hits some really big notes. Her delivery is really emotional. Will says she walks the stage like she owns it. “That was a stellar performance. Olly calls it “unbelievable…you control your emotion when you sing.” Jennifer admires how she set the tone. “You really want it, it really shows.” 

Sarah Tucker – The Edge of Glory by Lady Gaga – She’s a suburban mom who sings. Sarah’s initial reaction to the song choice was “fear.” Olly notes that the song is not in her comfort zone. Sarah, however, is determined to conquer the performance. Aw. Her little daughter is singing along. Her control and range are spot on. She hits a couple of crazy high notes at the end. The singing mom has done good. It’s choice is between Sarah and Moya, in my opinion. Tom calls it “wonderful.” Will says, “My eyebrows is gone…that was super awesome.” Jennifer is proud and happy for her. 

Results: Jennifer chooses Moya. Sarah Tucker and Connie Lamb are eliminated. Jennifer chose Moya because of that “passion” she talked about earlier. She’s the most professional of the three singers. 

Team Will

Will leaves the song choice up to his contestants. 

NXTGEN – Runnin by Naughty Boy ft. Beyonce and Arrow Benjamin – SO Nicole was a judge on X Factor UK the year they competed. Reunion! Will says he’d work with the trio, regardless of being on the show. When they add a rap to the song, Nicole is impressed. The boy on the left is NOT a strong singer. The harmonies are pretty good though. Surprisingly, the rap is is the best part–the song drags otherwise. The dude on the left is bawling his eyes out. Will thinks they have all the ingredients to succeed. Whoa. No other comments from the coaches?

Callum Butterworth – Mirrors by Justin Timberlake – Callum is starstruck by Nicole. He was stolen from Olly in the battles. His mom talks about his shyness. Nicole loves his tone, but feels he needs to connect emotionally. Callum chose this song, and he did himself NO favors. The performance is flat both tonally and performance-wise. The song is WAY too big for him. Really amateur. He goes for a big note. It does not help. Olly says “You absolutely smashed that.” Jennifer says, “It gave me so much joy to watch you.” Will compares him to Peter Parker and Clark Kent. 

Gabriel Dryss – Just Got Paid by Sigala, Ella Eyre, Meghan Trainor and French Montana – He’s the 16 year old artist who is a better dancer than singer.  Nicole calls him the most natural performer of everyone she’s seen. Will notes that his vocals suffer when he dances. “You’ve got to build your stamina,” says Nicole. Her French grandpa is coming to watch his performance. Will said he needed to choose between dancing and singing.  In the end, Gabriel works the stage without jumping around too much. And it does help his vocals. That was his best performance yet. “Brilliant performance,” says Olly, “Best yet.” Jennifer thought it was full of electricity. “You really brought that energy, bro,” says Will. 

Results: Will chooses NXTGEN. Callum Butterworth and Gabriel Dryss are eliminated. When Will said he’d work with NXTGEN no matter what, that took all the mystery out of his choice. Also Will, says the trio reminded him of his relationship with his group, Black Eyed Peas.

Team Olly

Eva Campbell – Unstoppable by Sia – Eva is a huge Anne-Marie fan. When I was 17, I sang rubbish, says Anne-Marie after hearing Eva’s rehearsal. “She just needs to feel it the whole way through,” she adds. She’s a little pitchy, and lacks some urgency. Sia is hard to sing! But otherwise, she’s delivering a pretty strong performance. Good stage presence! Jennifer loves her commitment. Olly thinks she can only get better as she gets older. 

Harrisen Larner-Main – You Get What You Give by New Radicals –  Anne-Marie calls his voice “naturally good.” She warns him not to do too much “He needs to chill,” she says. Olly advises him to watch his control. Hm. An iconic classic rock song might have been a better pick? This performance falls flat for me. Olly says the way he sung was “fantastic…that’s the way I always want you to sing.”

Jimmy Balito – High & Dry by Radiohead – Jimmy was a no turn audition last season. Olly didn’t turn for Jimmy’s audition, but stole him from Tom in the Battles. Oh. His dad died from cancer shortly after The Battles were filmed. He breaks down talking about it. Jimmy delivers a very raw and emotional performance. He’s on the verge of losing it in the first verse, but then he gathers his strength on the second. Olly will surely choose Jimmy for the lives. HE BETTER. This is the performance of the night. Mom is crying in the audience. He rushes up to hug her. The other two singers might as well pack it up right now. “You made him proud,” says Tom. Jennifer says the best way to honor loved ones is to keep doing what you’re doing, “I felt you.” And Jennifer would know. Olly remarks, “Stunning. World class.”&nbsp

Results: Olly chooses Jimmy Balito. Harrisen Larner-Main and Eva Campbell are eliminated. 

Moving on to the Semi-Finals

Deana Walmsley – Team Tom
Moya – Team Jennifer
NXTGEN – Team Will
Jimmy Balito – Team Olly

Eliminated:

Equip to Overcome and Roger Samuels – Team Tom
Sarah Tucker and Connie Lamb – Team Jennifer
Callum Butterworth and Gabriel Dryss – Team Will
Harrisen Larner-Main and Eva Campbell – Team Olly

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