The Voice season 17 Battles continue with coaches Blake Shelton, Kelly Clarkson, John Legend and Gwen Stefani, and featuring special celebrity mentors who will help the teams prepare for competitive duets.
Former Fifth Harmony member and X Factor USA alum Normani will help Team Kelly. Country and pop singer Darius Rucker lends a hand to Team Blake. R&B singer and former The Voice coach Usher assists Team Legend. And Black Eyed Peas member, producer and The Voice UK coach will.i.am joins Team Gwen.
Carson Daly hosts.
The Voice 17 Spoilers: Second Week Battle Pairings and Songs Revealed!
The Voice Season 17 Contestant List Spoilers: Blinds, Battles, Knockouts
The Voice Season 17 TV Schedule: Blinds, Battles, Knockouts, Lives
New this season: Each coach gets One Steal and One Save (instead of the typical two steals).
Jared Herzog vs Will Breman – Team John Legend – Treat you Better by Shawn Mendes – Jared’s girlfriend LOVES The Voice. It’s why he auditioned. Will has aspergers and sang a jazzy number for his Blind Audition. Back home, he performs live with a loop machine. Usher says Jared’s voice has a “youthful” texture. Will reminds him of Dave Matthews. But John and Usher worry that Will isn’t connecting to the song. He feels awkward and at a disadvantage. Usher helps Will with stage presence, while coaching Jared on breath control. The song is better suited to Jared. Will’s audition was inventive, the conventional song choice holds him back Still, Will becomes more confident throughout the performance, working the stage and eventually loosening up. Jared has the sweeter tone and bigger range. Will has the better stage presence. The harmonies are very nice! Gwen feels Jared is gifted, but she couldn’t stop looking at Will. Kelly notes Jared has the bigger range, but Will has more style. She calls them sexy! Blake calls Will “unbelievable.” John picks Will. Jared had a great voice, but Will had the passion, says John. Jared is Eliminated.
Marina Chello vs Ricky Duran – Team Blake Shelton – Valerie by Zutons and Amy Winehouse – Marina is originally from Uzbekistan. She learned English from imitating Mariah Carey. A few years ago she was signed to Bad Boy records, but it didn’t work out. Now she’s a mom. Ricky lives in Austin, Texas. He’s had some tough breaks. His dad committed suicide and a few years later, his mother lost her battle with breast cancer. Ricky was an impressive four chair turn in the Blinds. Darius calls Ricky a star and compares him to Chris Robinson. But he believes Marina can sing anything. The two struggle a bit to stay in the pocket together, but they eventually work it out. NBC previewed this battle over the weekend, and it’s a pretty good one! Both have rich, soulful voices. Marina’s vibe is soulful pop, while Ricky leans more to R&B. But they work to accommodate each other’s styles, and it works. Marina could dominate here, with her big rangy runs, But Ricky holds his own. His vocal texture really stands out. John would pick Ricky! Gwen thinks Ricky is a star. Kelly calls Ricky “amazing” but she really likes Marina too. Kelly hints that she’ll steal the loser. Blake picks Ricky. And saves Marina. Kelly Steals Marina. Kelly notes their similar musical styles. Blake warns that its not time to start over! After a commercial break, Marina Picks Blake
Jake Hoot vs Steve Knill – Team Kelly Clarkson – Always on My Mind by Willie Nelson – Jake is a sales rep for a radio station and has a young daughter. Steve lives with his partner Don in San Francisco. He and Kelly chat about keeping the pronouns true to his life. Jake is pure country while Steve is adult contemporary. Both were one chair turns. Kelly picks a good song for singers with such different styles. Kelly encourages both singers to make surprising choices. Steve has a really pretty tone, while Jake is twangy as heck, but strong and clear. His intonation is impressive. He’s overpowering Steve for the most part. Blake says Jake’s “nasal” is perfect and compares him to Willie. Because he loves country, he’d pick Jake. John was most impressed by Jake’s performance. Gwen liked them both. Kelly Picks Jake. Not a surprise. He’s her country dude. Steve is eliminated.
Montaged Battles!
Brennan Lassiter vs Gracee Shriver – Team Kelly Clarkson – Blue Ain’t Your Color by Keith Urban – Kelly Picks Gracee Brennan is Eliminated.
Damali vs. Brooke Stephenson – Team Kelly Clarkson – Set Fire to the Rain by Adele – Kelly Picks Damali Brooke is Eliminated.
Kiara Brown vs Royce Lovett – Team Gwen Stefani – Turn Your Lights Down Low by Bob Marley & The Wailers – Royce covered Bob Marley in his blind audition. Kiara studied audio engineering in college. She’s also a songwriter. Gwen thinks the two have chemistry. Like she and Blake. Hm. Gwen and Will encourage Kiara to stop being “polite.” Will says, “Make this your home!” Royce is the more confident, experienced singer. We see a bit of them performing at stage rehearsal. Gwen compliments Kiara for ditching “polite girl.” But now Royce might be holding back a bit. The song is right in Royce’s wheelhouse. He is a reggae singer, afterall. Kiara is hanging in there, and manages some good chemistry with Royce. I really like her voice. Her style is probably too laid back to go far, however. Kelly loved Kiara. Blake felt Kiara had the taller mountain to climb, but he’d go with Royce. John would pick Royce. Gwen Picks Royce. Gwen calls Royce the “total package. OH YAY. Gwen Saves Kiara Kelly Steals Kiara Kiara Picks Kelly! I’m a little surprised, Gwen helped Kiara so much. But Gwen did hint that she wanted to save someone else.
Joana Martinez vs Matthew McQueen – Team Blake Shelton – High Hopes by Panic at The Disco – Matthew is the dude with family members who dreamed Blake would turn for him. Joana is a pro sounding 15 year old. She knows the song well. Matthew doesn’t know it at all. Joana voice is so strong! Blake warns her not to run out of air. Darius is impressed with her control. Matthew is struggling to hit notes. Blake and Darius encourage him. Joana is so clearly the better singer. Poor guy is scared to “be beaten by a 15 year old.” Get ready for it, dude. Joana is a prodigy, seriously. I usually don’t care for the teens. But she’s good. Great tone, strong range, confidence and control. Matthew is holding his own here. He’s got a nice raspy quality to his voice. But Joana. Wow. John loves Matthew’s growly quality, but Joana blows him away. Gwen compliments Matthew, but Joana of course. Kelly couldn’t take her eyes off of Matthew. She claims she would have stolen him, if she had one available. Blake Picks Joana Matthew is Eliminated
James Violet vs Kyndal Inskeep – Team Gwen Stefani – I Could Use a Love Song by Maren Morris – Oh wow! They just HAPPENED to be listening to “Be Nice” in the car. SONGLAND PLUG. Gwen blocked Blake from Kyndal. She’s struggled with anxiety and depression. Neither singer knew the song at all. Will lectures both for not knowing the lyrics after two days. Gwen and Will both advise the singers to learn the song first before attempting to change it up. It’s important to “hit those emotions,” says Will. I really like James’ voice a lot. He’s yet another singer I like who won’t go far. James upper register is surprising, gorgeous. Kyndal is soulful and has a unique tone. I hated her Blind Audition song pick (I’ve Never Been to Spain. Blergh). Finally, I appreciate her talent. Maybe Gwen will keep both. Kelly can’t choose! Blake would go with Kyndal. John would lean toward Kyndal. Gwen Picks Kyndal. Gwen Saves James! John Steals James John has no one on his team like him. Oh. James was the singer Gwen wanted to save. The crowd is chanting for John. Heh. OH TO BE CONTINUED TOMORROW NIGHT CLIFF HANGER YALL
RESULTS:
Advancing to the Knockouts
Will Breman – Team Legend
Ricky Duran – Team Blake
Marina Chello – Team Blake Saves
Jake Hoot – Team Kelly
Gracee Shriver – Team Kelly
Damali – Team Kelly
Royce Lovett – Team Gwen
Kiara Brown – Team Kelly steals from Team Gwen
Joana Martinez – Team Blake
Kyndal Inskeep – Team Gwen
James Violet – Either Team Gwen or Team Legend
Eliminated
Jared Herzog – Team Legend
Steve Knill – Team Kelly
Brennan Lassiter – Team Kelly
Brooke Stephenson – Team Kelly
Matthew McQueen – Team Blake
