The Voice 5 Finals begin tonight as the Top 12 hits the stage for YOUR votes! I’ll be live blogging the performances right here.
Click to Download The Voice Top 12 performances from iTunes
The power NOW is COMPLETELY IN YOUR HANDS. The coaches take a break. The contestants families are in the audience tonight.
This is easily the best season of The Voice so far. Tonight’s performances were solid across the board. A pretty entertaining night of performances, for sure. My favorite performances tonight were from James Wolpert (OK, I’m glad Adam saved him) who is charmingly quirky and a great performer (he reminds me of Michelle Chamuel from last season) and the wonder kid, Jacqui Lee and her amazingly soulful vocals. Matthew Schuler gets an honorable mention. But if I never hear another version of Hallelujah in my lifetime, I’d be totally OK with that. But what do I know. The song is sitting at #6 on iTunes as I write this.
Kudos to the singers who can stay on pitch and on time while surrounded by distracting swaybots. I hate them on Idol and I hate them here too.
Caroline Pennell – Team Cee Lo – “Wake Me Up” by Avicii – Cee Lo wants to PICK UP THE PACE. He chooses an upbeat song, the folksy “Wake Me Up.” He tells her to keep her chin up, literally. And to recognize the pain in the song. This tune has a brisk tempo compared to Caroline’s past performances, but the folky Americana vibe is not much of a departure. Still, her tone, timing and pitch are spot on. She continues to be an engaging performer. Good news: She’s not annoying me like she did at first. Twee girls for the win. Cee Lo loves her soooo much. Blake thought she did a great job staying in the pocket, despite the studio audiences off time clapping. Adam LOVES THE AUDIENCE. He thinks there is a purity to what she does. – 1-877-553-3701
Josh Logan – Team Christina – ”Man in the Mirror” by Michael Jackson – Christina believes in Josh! She’s going to help him dial back the ad libs and sing something from the heart. Josh did a good job taking Christina’s notes. He dialed back the runs. But I’m not jumping up and down about that performance. It felt a little bit dialed in? Too much like a performance, and not enough connection to the lyrics. Personally, I find his fancy runs engaging. But that’s just me, clearly. He could be in trouble this week. Christina understands how hard it can be to pull back, but she thinks the restraint was worth it. Adam loves the song so much and thought he did a beautiful job. He likes the way Josh took Christina’s advice. Cee Lo feels tonight’s performance was much improved. Blake thinks America would have saved him if he had performed the song last week. – 1-877-553-3702
OH LOOK IT’S MATT LAUER VISITING THE VOICE SET. Pimping the Today Show and No Shave November. There will be a behind the scenes tour featured on Today tomorrow. Carson runs something called the Orange Room on the show. I’m not quite sure what that is.
James Wolpert – Team Adam – “Mr. Brightside” by The Killers – Adam gave James The Killers because he thinks the song is in his sweet spot. And it’s time to get back to rock. Adam encourages him to hit the high notes. Well, I liked that very very much! James manic performance captured the state of obsession perfectly. He played crazy, but never out of control. His phrasing was full of surprises and hit all the right emotional spots. Another winner from James. Just stay away from terrible classic rock songs, James, no matter how much your Dad likes them, and you’ll be fine. Adam thought every single second was dynamic, blistering, yet controlled. He just turned into a rock star, he says. Christina has seen his growth, and liked the advice Adam gave him. His pitch was spot on, despite his energetic performance, she says. Cee Lo loved the staging, and the way he acted it out. He saw, in him, a legacy of great entertainers, like David Byrne. – 1-877-553-3703
Austin Jenckes – Team Blake – “It’s a Great Day to Be Alive” by Travis Tritt – Oh Yay. Austin’s back story has moved on from dead daddy, to his girlfriend, whom he loves very very much. Blake picked this song for Austin. wwho is no stranger to country music. Blake encourages him to “explore different notes.” Austin’s got an American flag guitar strap. Smart move. Yup. Austin is completely believable singing country. That’s because he always sings from his heart, and can tell a story. He doesn’t have the best voice, but his passion cannot be denied. He also has an impressive range. He hit a high note in the chorus that punctuated the song perfectly. The dude feels what he sings. Blake says he’s solid every time Austin hits the stage. Blake swears he’s not steering him to country, but he’s hoping to pick up some country fans. His Oklahoma homies want to have a beer with him. Cee Lo liked the added twang. Adam was impressed with the big note he hit, and his diversity. Adam says Cee Lo is giving him Zorro vibes. Christina says it just felt good. She says Austin keeps it real. – 1-877-553-3704
Jacquie Lee – Team Christina – “Love is Blindness” by U2 (Jack White version) – Oh. What a smart song choice Christina! KUDOS. Jacquie is determined to make it to the Top 10 and I think she will. Holy crap! This little girl is amazing. A brave performance, Jacquie crawled right inside that song and done tore. it. up. She is like a woman possessed. Mesmerizing, and wise beyond her years. Amazing vocals. She reminds me of Allison Iraheta. Jacquie has that same preternatural maturity when she performs that Allison had. Christina says she set the stage on fire. The song had vocal depth, and Jacquie brought the soul. A force of nature, she says. Adam says she just cut through when she opened up. It was pretty beautiful, he says. Cee Lo forgets to think when she sings. He gets lost in it. – 1-877-553-3705
Ray Boudreaux – Team Blake – “All of Me” by John Legend – Blake still believes Ray can win the whole thing. Maybe if Ray sang about love, he’ll connect with America (Blake had to save him last week.) Ray is worried about the song choice. He’s scared to connect emotionally. Well, that’s not going to do. The adorable daughter is in the audience. That was a lovely performance. Even if there was some pitchy stuff, it didn’t matter. His phrasing was good, and he connected. You could practically see the tears in his eyes as he finished. Blake says he was wrapped up in that. Ray is sexy, and you can’t blame him! Blake thought it worked in a big way, and the type of song they should do moving forward. Oh, once Blake finds a formula for a singer, that’s pretty much it. Christina teases that Blake has a crush. She felt it fell short pitch wise. She wanted to hear more technical prowess. She’s not just judging with her lower region. You mad Christina? – 1-877-553-3706
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Kat Robichaud – Team Cee Lo – Sail by AWOLNATION – The feedback Kat got on her performance last week was that it was OK, but they really wanted to see the “rock Kat.” Cee Lo believes he’s got the perfect comeback song, the edgey “Sail.” This was a GREAT song choice. Kat got to play the tough and fierce rock chanteuse, She played it to the hilt, riffing off of the audience, falling back into the crowd to surf for a bit. VERY dramatic. A major improvement over last week’s weird, confusing performance. Cee Lo coins the term “Katitude.” Hm. Cee Lo is all like “LIFE IS HARD AND IT’S ABOUT PAIN.” But music is healing…blah blah blah. Blake loved watching the performance. He compares her to a lion walking through a herd of antelope. Christina says “Kat came to play today.” She loved the darkness. – 1-877-553-3707
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Jonny Gray – Team Cee Lo – “Another Day in Paradise” by Phil Collins – Cee Lo does not want Jonny to be predictable. He chooses a song that he loves, one that will allow the singer to show his heart. Jonny is down with the song. He relates to it. They do a little work on the bridge, and he’s good to go. Yeah, it was a little wonky in the beginning, but Jonny recovered nicely. I was a little concerned that he was stuck with a mainstream AC song, but the arrangement fit his style. It was folked up and given some tempo. Jonny added vocal flourishes that made the tune his, and he conveyed the song’s message with heart rather than schmaltz. Cee Lo is ready for him to become a big star and write his own music. He blah blah blahs about songs and narratives. OK Cee Lo. Adam noted some technical issues, and loved that it didn’t set him off. Carson thanks him for his service on Veterans Day. – 1-877-553-3708
Tessanne Chin – Team Adam – “My Kind of Love” by Emeli Sande – Tessanne reveals that she will dedicate the song to her husband, who was her best friend before she fell in love with him. Adam advises her not to back off the mic. “The mic is your friend,” he says. He calls her talent “Otherworldly.” Wow. Tessanne has it going on. That performance was a vocal masterclass. But it was more than just technical. She was able to bring passion and emotion, while performing with astonishing control. I hope viewers appreciate her skill and keep her in the game. Adam says every time she sings, his mind is blown. The bar is high for her. Christina felt the passion. She liked the reverb effect on the verses. She heard Rihanna, Kelly Clarkson and her own vocal power. – 1-877-553-3709
Matthew Schuler – Team Christina – “Hallelujah” by Leonard Cohen – Oh geez Christina. C’mon with this song. Let Matthew pick his tunes! He knows what he’s doing. He approaches the song like a hymn, as he comes from a line of preachers. He has to be fearless, says Christina. OMG. Swaybots with heart hands. Oy. Still, Matthew sprinkles magical fairy dust on everything he sings. His raspy, warm tone wraps this song up in a prayer. I heart Matthew just like the swaybots do. Matthew sings the spiritual verses, and not the sexy ones. Well. His parents are out in the audience. Christina is so moved, she can barely speak. You make people feel something special and rare, she says. She thanks him for choosing her as his coach. Now Blake is thinking Matthew is her front runner, rather than Jacquie. AMEN, he says. Ha. The coaches were teasing Adam because of his nerdy clothes, and he went off and changed into a leather jacket. The legacy of that song is important to Adam and he’s glad Matthew preserved that legacy. – 1-877-553-3710
Cole Vosbury – Team Blake – “Adorn” by Miguel – His older sister was killed in a car accident. He tears up a little talking about it. Blake’s brother was killed in a car wreck (I did not know that) and they bond. Blake wants people to expect the unexpected from Cole, so he hands him an R&B song. Cole is a Miguel fan, but he knows viewers will be skeptical. Blake talks him into putting his guitar down. Cole knows the song is a big risk, but he pulls it off. I’m not surprised, though. Cole’s sweet, soothing, soulful voice was perfect for the song. He didn’t seem the least bit awkward without his guitar, either. Cole always sings with confidence, and his ad libs are as gentle as his tone, with just the right amount of rasp. I thought his performance last week was generic, but he kept himself in the game by pulling off a song outside of his genre. The coaches give him a standing ovation. Blake feels like Cole brings a gun to a knife fight every time he takes the stage. He can’t praise him enough. Cee Lo is very excited for his ex-team member. – 1-877-553-3711
Will Champlin – Team Adam – “Demons” by Imagine Dragons – Adam believes Will can still have his moment and they’re aiming for it this week. The goes nuts as he performs. What is more crowd pleasing than a pop rock song with a soaring chorus? Will has a rangy voice that he uses effectively, hitting some impressive high notes in the right places. He sings as if his life depended on it. Not being saved by America last week shook him up, I’m sure. Will has what it takes to be a pop rock singer. This week will put him back in the game. Adam admires his passion and love of music. And no more coaches comments…we’ve run out of time! – 1-877-553-3712
