The Voice 27: Soulful Roberta Flack Battle From Olivia Kuper Harris and Nell Simmons Earns Adam Levine Save
The Voice Season 27 battles kicked off on Monday night. (Read our Recap) The battles are often a mixed bag with some singers thriving and others struggling to overcome or a wrong song choice. Also, coaches often give away steals and saves too early, resulting in heartbreaking eliminations. One save that was used well involved the final battle of the night, featuring Team John Legend members, Olivia Kuper Harris and Nell Simmons. Not only did the match up feature a save, but a steal as well.
Nell is an R&B singer while Olivia is more of a jazz vocalist. But their two styles went well together, so it makes sense why John paired the two. Nell’s Blind Audition was a one-chair montage whereas Olivia turned three chairs after she sang “Dream a Little Dream of Me,” delivering one of the best auditions of the season.
John picked “Feel Like Makin’ Love” by Roberta Flack for the two to sing. Although The Voice taped the Blinds months ago, the duet served as a timely tribute to the beloved singer who passed away on February 24th. John brought singer and actress Coco Jones on board to mentor his team. John explained that he picked the song for singers who “are both stylish, cool, and soulful.” He was “incredulous” that Nell only turned one chair.
Storytelling and Chamomile Tea
Coco compared Olivia’s sound to a “chamomile tea” due to how “soothing” it was. Coco advised the singers to “storytell” more. She also suggested they harmonize less due to the short verses, in order to allow them both to showcase their voices. John gave Olivia advice on the melody for a run. Coco advised Nell not to try too hard, and to sound “effortless.” John compares her tone to the late Motown singer, Tammi Terrell. Coco answered that “the job is to get them to care” when Nell asked a question about balancing too little or too much.
Olivia actually sang this song at an Oscar party this past year, and Usher complimented her on her rendition. Nell has been touring with Trombone Shorty the past few years. She got emotional when sharing about how supportive her husband has been.
Olivia opened the performance with a light and breezy jazz sound. Her runs were very sound, and when Nell’s harmonies came in, her voice was even more captivating. Nell sounds like an extremely seasoned soul singer, hitting every note with purpose, and she was also able to hit piercing high notes. The two sounded a level above the rest of the night’s competitors. They ended the performance with a tight harmonized adlib. I liked Nell’s approach to the melody a bit better, as it’s more simplistic. But Olivia’s style is more compelling and unique and her voice is one I could likely pick out of a crowd. It was a very even battle.
Steals AND Saves
Adam Levine believed both should move on, but called Nell a “revelation” since only John turned for her. Kelsea Ballerini called Olivia’s voice “intricate and beautiful,” and told Nell, “the way that you sing it’s in your body.” She noted that they both tapped into the “divine feminine” aspect of the song. Michael Bublé gushed, “you ladies transported us into another era.” He leaned toward Nell due to her ability to follow Olivia successfully. John said Olivia “found the spots when to do the runs” and felt that Nell had “poise”.
After John chose Olivia to move on, Adam tried to steal Nell. But then John followed Adam’s move with a save. Adam believed Nell had been “overlooked.” But John wanted to continue to work with her. Nell decided to stick with John even though she joked that not picking her broke her heart.
The night, an overall hit and miss, was filled with steals and saves including the opening battle that found Team Adam’s Britton Moore and Darius J delivering was a solid effort of Radiohead’s “Creep.” Britton won the Battle while Adam saved Darius J after Kelsea and Michael tried to save him. Another effort that I wasn’t sure deserved a steal came from Team Kelsea. Angie Rey beat Tatum Scott after performing Maren Morris’ “Girl.” However, John stole Tatum and both singers moved on to the Knockouts. One of my favorite battles of the night and quite possibly my favorite vocal came from Team Adam’s Fran Posla who left the competition after competing against Ethan Eckenroad on “July.”
