S07.E19: Live Eliminations

[Tara Ariano]

Two vocalists are eliminated in a results edition.

[photo fox]

Just a reminder that the episode topics are not live twitter-type threads. I'm trying to avoid locking the topics until the show is done, but I need some cooperation from y'all. What that means is:

- Posts should be relevant and make sense to people who read the topic tonight, tomorrow, or next week.

- No "look at that!" posts, because no one will know what you were talking about ten minutes from now.

- Try to avoid making a bunch of one-sentence posts during the show.

PM me if you have any questions - thanks!

[blueray]

I am mostly glad with the people that went through. Though I did feel like the bottom three all did a good job at the end there. I'm also confused on why have the wildcard thing, doesn't that seem unfair to the person that really comes in fourth.

Edited November 19, 2014 by blueray

[glow]

I liked Sugar in the sing off. I could see what Pharell likes about her ... but I'm glad Gwen's team is intact.

Edited November 19, 2014 by glow

[car54]

I think Christina wore those same short shorts that Gwen had on tonight.

I really thought Sugar would be the one to get the twitter save, so that was a little surprise....but a good one.

[buckybruce]

Luke must have thought his number was up, with his "mistake" last night. IMO, everyone got through who should have, but I thought Sugar should have been saved since she had the best last ditch performance. I guess never underestimate the power of a cute boy singing a love song to give all the teen girls some screamin' thigh sweats...

[tmelange]

It's unfortunate that to the bitter end, Sugar (and Pharrell by extension) didn't understand what Gwen was trying to say in her critique last night. Why sing a dated Whitney Houston song? Is that the type of record she would make after the show? If you have to prepare a last-ditch song, why not go out and show where you fit on radio today?

 

I thought all three of them should have gone home.

Edited November 19, 2014 by tmelange

[Keekski]

I really expected Jessie to get the Twitter save. Which I think is stupid. But none of them would have won the show this season, so I guess it doesn't matter. 

[TiredMe]

I was hoping for Ryan to go. He made my ears bleed last night. Damn screamin girls.

[Padma]

It's unfortunate that to the bitter end, Sugar (and Pharrell by extension) didn't understand what Gwen was trying to say in her critique last night. Why sing a dated Whitney Houston song? Is that the type of record she would make after the show? If you have to prepare a last-ditch song, why not go out and show where you fit on radio today?

 

Some people have kind of made fun of Gwen for saying that over and over, but I finally got what she meant last night and I think it's excellent advice. I also think that's what -she's- been thinking when she chooses songs, "Would this be the kind of record s/he would make today?" 

 

I wish --WISH!-- Pharrell would ask himself that question and maybe he would stop giving the old, already-done-well-many-times-over songs to singers who want to have contemporary appeal.

 

Sugar went out with a good performance, but I'm glad she's gone. Jessie? She's no Caroline Pennell and butchered her song so... glad she's gone as well.  And I'm sure Pharrell will help/hangout with Sugar, at least for a little while.

[MaryPatShelby]

I was hoping that Sugar and Jessie would be gone, and their last-ditch performances didn't change my mind. I was a little surprised that Chris made it through.  I was also really confused about the new "twist" - I thought Carson meant tonight! But I rewound and realized he's talking about the final 3 becoming the final 4. I wonder why they're doing that. 

[pivot]

I am mostly glad with the people that went through. Though I did feel like the bottom three all did a good job at the end there. I'm also confused on why have the wildcard thing, doesn't that seem unfair to the person that really comes in fourth.

The 4th place person is eligible to come back as the wildcard right? I kind of just assumed that they would get that slot since they clearly had more support than those eliminated earlier.

I am surprised to say that I thought Ryan had this twitter save easily. His performance was the most enjoyable. I will never understand what Pharrell likes about Sugar. She is one of the worst contestants we've had on this show ever IMO. Jessie's save song was not good.

It seems like an unfair advantage for the twitter save to go last. The first person has almost no time to get control of their nerves and is most likely forgotten after 2 more performances. The last performer is fresh on everyone's memory as they tweet. It seems unfair that the producers get to pick that order.

I thought Gwen looked like an ass during her team's performance. She made them background singers for almost the entire song while she strutted around trying to look sexy. I think every one of the female coaches has done that with their team performances. I think Blake shows what a class act he is by letting his contestants be the stars of their performance.

[Ketzel]

I was also really confused about the new "twist" - I thought Carson meant tonight! But I rewound and realized he's talking about the final 3 becoming the final 4. I wonder why they're doing that.

I think it may be in response to the umpteen million times competitions shows like this one have had a "shocking" elimination around the halfway mark. And then everyone gets all stressed out over having someone leave who should have stayed and someone staying on who should have gone. I'm guessing this will be seen as a way to right a potential wrong -- assuming we admit America can ever get it wrong. :)

[desertflower]

I liked all of Jessie's previous performances but man, that last one was not good. Not sure what happened there. I love that song; maybe I'm just too spoiled by Sara Bareilles' original vocals.

Sugar did a good job but that song is so cheesy and dated, IMO. Maybe the viewers are just refusing to vote her through because she named herself Sugar.

Glad Luke got through, he looked like he was going to cry last night after his performance.

Matt looks just like a very young Paul Westerberg. (Any Replacements fans here?)

[pivot]

Huge Replacements fan here. Maybe the hair, but Westerberg was cuter back in the day. I can't get over Matt's ugly neck tattoo and I say this as someone who has 2 tattoos.

[tmelange]

Perhaps Sugar's voice is something you need to hear live to appreciate. I don't know what Pharrell thought was so remarkable about her voice. She needs to sing a certain type of song that fits her voice, and they never really found that sweet spot or defined her as a singer. I think her name also almost guaranteed that she wouldn't find a fan base, just like Ms Music Box last season. 

[mercfan3]

Sugar is really sharp any time she leaves her lower register, except for one note (I think it might be Eb5, but I'm not sure..). And it's extremely noticeable.

 

I actually wonder if Pharrell is so used to working with singers more like Sugar (with vocal issues)..and therefore..her look and genre of choice was simply appealing to him. 

Edited November 19, 2014 by mercfan3

[Cramps]

Paul Westernerg is still cuter than Matt,

I'd love for Matt to cover Unsatisfied on the show (won't happen). As long as he didn't start slapping hands in the audience.

(Another Replacementa fan, surprisingly addicted to the Voice!)

Edited November 19, 2014 by Cramps

[dizzyizzy01]

I thought Gwen looked like an ass during her team's performance. She made them background singers for almost the entire song while she strutted around trying to look sexy. I think every one of the female coaches has done that with their team performances. I think Blake shows what a class act he is by letting his contestants be the stars of their performance.

 

 

I think Blake works particularly well with his contestant performances because he has an understated performance style in general.  None of the women on this show have really had that.  

[fluffysheap]

I don't even know why I watch these shows, it's pretty much just an exercise in watching my favorite contestants always go home on a week when they had one of the better performances of the night.
 
That said, I can't get TOO upset about the way tonight went down.
 
Sugar's song was probably a bad choice.  I think actually as fun as these big super-well-known popular songs are to do, they probably ought to just be avoided entirely outside of a karaoke bar.  If you do the song the way the original was done, you will get blamed for not doing anything unique.  If you do it differently, you'll get blamed for not sounding like the original.  And in this case, you'll mostly just show that you aren't as good a singer as Whitney Houston was.  Less range in the top, less accuracy in the mids, less excitement in the lows.
 
Ryan's song, on the other hand, was an excellent choice.  The original is well enough known that most people aren't sitting around wondering what you're doing (well most people in their 30s and 40s anyway), but the original is so stripped-down and simple it's almost a blank slate.  You can do, basically, anything with it.  Ryan didn't do all that much, but he didn't need to.  So props to him for that.
 
Jessie's song was a decent choice.  It's a good song, and Sara Bareilles is in the right genre.  It's a song that is neither too hard nor too easy.  But I think it was sort of a microcosm of why so many people didn't like Jessie.  As Padma said:

She's no Caroline Pennell and butchered her song so... glad she's gone as well.

When Caroline would sing, most notes would be clearly distinguished from each other so as the listener you could be sure she was hitting exactly the right one (and she did, always, hit exactly the right one).  With Jessie, there's this lilty-trilly sound to it, where as the listener you're not sure if she doesn't know what the note is supposed to be, or can't find it, or what.  I'm pretty sure she generally was doing what she wanted to, but it isn't really obvious.

 

It's disappointing, but I will grudgingly admit that Ryan did the best tonight.  Still, overall, I think Jessie is clearly better than Ryan.

 

I HATE-HATE-HATE the new four-person final.  That is too many contestants for a final!  If they want to have somebody come back after being eliminated, they need to eliminate one more person along the way.  Really though, between the ever-increasing number of steals, the Twitter save, and now this, I think this show just can't accept that sometimes people get eliminated.  Why not just have all 80 people or whatever that make it past the blinds perform in an epic six-hour final show?  That seems like what they're going for.  Really I think the single biggest problem with this show is that they spend way too much time on the mediocre contestants and not enough on the good ones.  This is just further down that path.

 

And since the Twitter save makes the shock elimination impossible, I'm not even sure what they are even trying to accomplish, except making sure that somebody in the finals doesn't deserve to be there and is just taking up space and time that ought to belong to the actual finalists.  Especially this season, when the overall talent level is lower, there's basically just no way that this wild-card contestant adds any value whatsoever.

Edited November 19, 2014 by fluffysheap

[treebyleaf]

I looked on YouTube and I actually prefer Sophia Louise to Sugar. This might not be the best example of her voice but I preferred her more "real" performance style over the hammy Sugar Joans. I'd rather an original Sophia than a duplicate Whitney.

 

Ryan had the best "Last Chance" performance. It made me wonder if all of them have a "Last Chance" performance in their pocket, OR if those songs would have been the contestants' song for the next week. I think if Ryan had done "More Than Words" for this actual performance this week he might not have been in the bottom 3. The Duran Duran song was just not a great choice.

 

It's interesting, this week's show made me realize that the performers I root for are not usually the performers I'd actually listen to outside the show. They're the performers who I feel "deserve it" and that I feel personally connected to. I voted for Jessie even though I don't listen to her style of music and don't really know if she's a great example of it, because she seemed like a sweet person, and I voted for CWB because I think he deserves a career boost -- but I don't like country and would never go to one of his shows! And I found Sugar/Sophia off-putting and didn't vote for her -- even though I actually like her voice and think she'd put on an awesome live show. Yikes, I'm an easily manipulated Team Blake viewer... Hmmm...

[Padma]

I thought Gwen looked like an ass during her team's performance. She made them background singers for almost the entire song while she strutted around trying to look sexy. I think every one of the female coaches has done that with their team performances. I think Blake shows what a class act he is by letting his contestants be the stars of their performance.

Maybe she was remembering Adam when he performs with his team. He often has them in the role of backup singers to his lead.  Her staging was even worse.

 

On the other hand...I always look forward to Blake performing with his team. He gives the feeling he's going all out, but lets them have equal or more than equal roles. I still remember his final song with Danielle--great version of "Timber" and he did the harmony for her as the lead. So generous.

 

I thought CWB and Blake were fine country-ing up "Sad Songs". I mean, out of their wheelhouse and they were giving their all and having fun with it. But, honestly, I wondered if Reagan and Jessie had ever heard the song before. They were both so flat, so off-key, through it (and Jessie, as usual, didn't even seem to try much with the melody). I love Blake, but I really don't feel anything for Reagan or Jessie and was glad to never have to hear the latter again. I really, really hated how she interpreted every song since the blinds (which I probably tolerated because maybe it was a song I didn't know). Really glad she's gone. "Sugar", too.

 

(But some of these people may show up elsewhere and surprise us. Grimmie was the solo artist on "Dancing With the Stars" last night, singing live the 'unplugged' versions of every song they danced to. They seldom showed her and the music was okay. When they -did- show her, she looked great in a kind of glammed-up way that suited her (if you had never seen her before, loll). I was really surprised to see her there. Hopefully, they will not bring Jessie who rapidly became one of my least favorites of all time, despite my trust in Blake and belief when he says that she is really a nice person. As a singer... just. no. For me, anyway.)

 

ITA that Ryan did the best song for the save. So far America's been getting it right. I wonder who "they're" favoring for the win?

Edited November 19, 2014 by Padma

[fluffysheap]

I looked on YouTube and I actually prefer Sophia Louise to Sugar.

 

It's a better name, anyway. Why change it when your original name is just fine? blah.

 

It made me wonder if all of them have a "Last Chance" performance in their pocket, OR if those songs would have been the contestants' song for the next week. I think if Ryan had done "More Than Words" for this actual performance this week he might not have been in the bottom 3. The Duran Duran song was just not a great choice.

They have it in their pocket. Last season when Kat got the Twitter save every week, she basically had to prepare two new songs each week. And I agree that his last chance song was much better than his actual song, the performance, song choice, and arrangement all.

 

It's interesting, this week's show made me realize that the performers I root for are not usually the performers I'd actually listen to outside the show. They're the performers who I feel "deserve it" and that I feel personally connected to.

It's a reality show, so people pretty much just vote for whoever they want to. I mean, lots of people vote for the actual president of the country based on who they think looks the best, so for something like this, that doesn't really even matter... why not, right?

I usually end up having three favorites. First, somebody who I just personally like, even if they aren't the best; this is usually the Breezy-Voiced Waif if there is one, and this year is no exception as I liked Jessie in this category. Second, somebody who I feel is underrated or is really good but not quite catching on; this usually tends to be the Quirky Girl or Rock Chick (certainly not this year though). Both of the previous years this was whichever Kat there was, plus Caroline. This season that was Bryana. Finally, there's whoever I think is the best serious contender, and that can be anybody in any genre and change from week to week; this year so far it's Reagan.

 

I voted for Jessie even though I don't listen to her style of music and don't really know if she's a great example of it

She's ok. Not the best. Among current artists, IMO Sara Bareilles is the best, but the genre peak popularity was back in the late 90s. Jewel and Sarah McLachlan were huge back in the day, and I wonder why contestants never seem to do Jewel songs (licensing problem maybe?)

[gaPeach]

I agree that Gwen's performance with her team was all about her and had nothing to do with them.  And the diaper looking shorts she had on must have been left by Christina from years gone by.

 

Blake on the other hand actually lets his team sing the song and he just gets on stage and enjoys performing with them.

 

I love Blake.

[Noreaster]

Out of the bottom three, I preferred Sugar both in the live performances and in the instant save singoff. But as long as it was not Jessie, who gave yet another unpleasant performance (to my ears) in the singoff, I was going to be fine with the results.

Jessie's elimination continues a trend on Blake's team that I started noticing in season 5. Blake doesn't seem to do particularly well with contestants unless they're country or very experienced. (Note I didn't watch season 1.) We'll see what happens with Reagan, but I'd suggest that Blake doesn't really know what to do with non-country folks. The experienced guys can overcome this because they can influence song choice and already know how to entertain on stage.

The fun fact that 6 of the top 12 were current/former Gwen team members doesn't really sound that great once you realize that the bottom 3 were also all Team Gwen at one point.

Not sure how I feel about the new wild card twist. The instant save already serves to give bottom contestants a second chance. Since ratings drive everything, I wonder how bad ratings usually fall off later on in the show. This twist should better ensure that another coach is in the mix for the finale (wild card advantage probably goes to eliminated coaches' teams).

Edited November 19, 2014 by Noreaster

[Primetimer]

It's a clean sweep for Teams Adam and Gwen as the Top Ten is revealed.

Read the story

[blueray]

I agree with those people who thought Gwen took over her team performance. I actually thought at first she had no girls on her team so was doing the female part, but then I realized that she had Antoinette. It did seem like they were all just background singers. Blake on the other hand I didn't get that impression.

[pivot]

Not only did she take over the lead, she made her team hang out at the back of the stage half-hidden under the fake trees until most of the song was over. Even Adam doesn't go that far.

[Cramps]

Gwen should have saved that song for an Anita performance. Or at least let her sing more of it.

In other news I liked Gwen's sequin top.

[mercfan3]

I thought Shakira's was worse last time. But I also wonder if the coaches do that to try to limit the stress of having to learn another song, as pretty much every coach other than Blake and Usher do that. (Although Christina's performance with Matthew and Jacquie was awesome. But it was a little later in the show too..) One of the funniest was Usher/Michelle/Josiah simply because Josiah became a backup singer to the two of them quickly...and they even tried to include him. But it turned into a Michelle/Usher duet with a pretty background singer. 

 

I think Blake being an understated performer..and also..typically taking the harmony parts when he sings with other people (in general, not just on the show) helps him there.

[sydneyjane]

 

I thought CWB and Blake were fine country-ing up "Sad Songs". I mean, out of their wheelhouse and they were giving their all and having fun with it. But, honestly, I wondered if Reagan and Jessie had ever heard the song before.

 

Agreed. I think Jessie and Reagan really only do well singing a certain kind of song - you can't just give them any song and expect them to do well on it.  Maybe if they'd had the song individually and had a chance to do something different with it, but you don't get that opportunity with the group songs.  Caroline was a lot better at that, but even with her, there were a few of the group songs where I thought she was rather weak.

 

Re last night's performances, I thought all three of them did okay and seemed to pick songs that focused on their strengths, although, I wish people would just stay away from Whitney.  I thought Jessie might win it, though.

 

And, Sugar?  Well, Pharrell seemed to make it VERY clear that he will be working with her on something in the future. Dude acts as though he's discovered the next big thing.  So I guess we should expect to hear some kind of hip hop Sugar song soon, and of course a video - wouldn't be surprised if Pharrell has already written it. Still, I wouldn't have minded seeing his little puppy dog eyes drooling over here for at least a few more episodes.

Edited November 19, 2014 by sydneyjane

[mercfan3]

Sugar's going to be the first big star off the voice, isn't she. Oh Pharrell..

[Princess Lucky]

I expected the bottom 3, but I also expected Jessie to be saved. I do not get Ryan but maybe I'm too old (though I am only 30 and I certainly get Chris, ahem).

 

Song choice is everything on this show and Sugar paid for it. I hope this shakes up Pharrell because Luke and Danica deserve better. The Taylor boy also faltered a bit chart-wise with a less "popular" song choice, and I think that may confirm my suspicion he may not be a frontrunner at all. I think Craig, Demian and Anita are the ones who benefit from most choices, even cheesy ones, because they're genre singers so they put a twist on most of their songs and they have an audience. Matt always charts high but with mostly current songs (too current, as is Adam's style)) and I've also noticed he rarely puts his own spin on anything. He does have a distinctive voice/style but the song itself is sung as is. Hm.

 

Will the instant save thing keep predicting the next one to go? If so, assuming Ryan will be in the bottom 3, who else will be with him? Again, song choice will be key. At this point it could be anyone except maybe Matt, Craig and Anita.

[Ketzel]

I agree that Gwen's performance with her team was all about her and had nothing to do with them.  And the diaper looking shorts she had on must have been left by Christina from years gone by.

 

Blake on the other hand actually lets his team sing the song and he just gets on stage and enjoys performing with them.

 

I love Blake.

I thought he was more than generous - I thought he was singing in a key that was just a trifle too high for him, because it seemed to suit his team's collective voices better. There was this little bit of strain in his voice that isn't normally there.

[Padma]

I think Blake being an understated performer..and also..typically taking the harmony parts when he sings with other people (in general, not just on the show) helps him there.

I'm not sure that he typically takes the harmony parts but its a very generous choice and a more difficult one than taking the lead. I remember him saying in one past season that it's hard for him to sing harmony and he has to learn the whole thing separately, like he'd learn a completely new song. I really knew so little about him before the Voice but do enjoy his singing, here and elsewhere, now and especially appreciate his personality here. He's funny when needed and serious when needed, warm and supportive but takes what they're doing so seriously, too, while keeping a laid back vibe going. But his generosity on stage is what impressed me the most, especially compared with all the other coaches (if memory serves, I think CeeLo also knew how to take a backseat to let his teammates shine in group sings. Then again, all I can see in my memory is that wonderful "Everyday People". :)  But everyone other than CeeLo and Blake perform with their teams as if giving a clear message that "I'm the star here.")  Anyway, season 7 and my Blake love is undiminished.

[fluffysheap]

From the recap:

 

T3N has a nickname that Taylor Swift gave him, which is pretty much the same thing as being immortalized in song, right?

When Taylor Swift is involved, I think being immortalized in song is pretty much exactly what you don't want.

I'd rate Reagan and Danica higher, and Craig and T3N a little lower. It's interesting just how similar what people say about Danica now, compared to what they said about Tessanne at this point in S5. Not connecting with the songs, not connecting with the audience, frumpy style, lack of originality, but what a great voice. And the next thing you knew, Tessanne was up there getting her victory song cut off by the credits. But Tessanne had the reggae style up her sleeve. Danica may not have anything like that. Maybe Danica is secretly a screaming rocker. Or, you know, maybe not.

If Reagan was really sick this week, then next week I expect a return to form. If not, then her time may be up soon. I'm also wondering if she's one of those singers where the genre she wants to do is not the genre she's actually good at, which would be bad news unless Blake works a miracle.

Edited November 19, 2014 by fluffysheap

[kj4ever]

Not only did she take over the lead, she made her team hang out at the back of the stage half-hidden under the fake trees until most of the song was over. Even Adam doesn't go that far.

I don't know about that....Do you remember the God awful Cure song he did where he had them all sitting around him while he did most of the song?  It was uncomfortable and awkward.

[Noreaster]

I thought he was more than generous - I thought he was singing in a key that was just a trifle too high for him, because it seemed to suit his team's collective voices better. There was this little bit of strain in his voice that isn't normally there.

I always thought Blake sounded strained whenever he sings with other people (his team or other coaches) on the show. I always enjoy his performances but his range seems pretty limited to me.

 

It's interesting just how similar what people say about Danica now, compared to what they said about Tessanne at this point in S5. Not connecting with the songs, not connecting with the audience, frumpy style, lack of originality, but what a great voice. And the next thing you knew, Tessanne was up there getting her victory song cut off by the credits. But Tessanne had the reggae style up her sleeve. Danica may not have anything like that. Maybe Danica is secretly a screaming rocker. Or, you know, maybe not.

I only used to read the TWoP boards, but I remember Tessanne's criticisms to be a little different. I guess I do remember the frumpy comments and lack of originality, but I don't think people really complained about her ability to connect with songs or the audience. It seemed to me that her style just wasn't some viewers' cup of tea.

 

But Tessanne was a pro and knew how to perform. I think Danica is just inexperienced. Great voice but I don't think she has performed much professionally (please correct me if I'm wrong). So she needs to learn how to entertain and not just throw out as many vocal tricks as she can. Maybe she would do better with simpler songs.  Do less, play with different dynamics, etc. Please not so many runs.

[Noreaster]

I don't know about that....Do you remember the God awful Cure song he did where he had them all sitting around him while he did most of the song?  It was uncomfortable and awkward.

Awww, I liked it!

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mr073uGsXmM

[Amy Beth]

I wouldn't say DaNica is a pro, but she won a national Internet singing contest called "Total Popstar" in 2008. It was judged by Debby (call me Deborah) Gibson and Joey Lawremce. Not making this up!

[viajero]

I thought the only one of the three who gave even a half decent save performance was Sugar, even if it was a horrible song choice. Jessie lost it when she went up high, and Ryan was a bit off the entire song (besides giving an incredibly bland and insipid performance), even if not quite as bad as Monday night. So of course Ryan was saved. Did I misunderstand and people were voting on the best looking rather than the best voice?

 

Nice of them me to bring on Ella Henderson as encouragement for Danica.  Ella was another one of those frumpy contestants who looked way older than her real age back when she was on X-Factor UK.  That was what basically cost her reaching the final, because she certainly had arguably the best voice that season.  But look at her now, with a #1 hit in the UK.  A perfect example of how far a makeover, a great voice and the right song can take you. 

Edited November 19, 2014 by viajero

[LoneHaranguer]

 

I think actually as fun as these big super-well-known popular songs are to do, they probably ought to just be avoided entirely outside of a karaoke bar.  If you do the song the way the original was done, you will get blamed for not doing anything unique.  If you do it differently, you'll get blamed for not sounding like the original.

For it to work, you have to put a truly unique spin on it (e.g. Melanie Martinez' version of Toxic).

[TacoBoutIt]

Ryan's a goner sooner or later but I did think he did the best out of the three so I'm ok with him being saved.  That probably should have been his performance.  Sugar wasn't bad but her voice is not my cup of tea.  And the song is just so 80s and outdated, although I've heard a wonderful acoustic version of it before.  Meanwhile Jessie...oh Jessie.  She did no justice to a beautiful song.  What bothered me the most was that she didn't sing the part with the beautiful high note.  To me, that's the highlight of the song, that's the "glory note".  If you can't sing it, you should probably pick another song.  

 

Also, Ella is wonderful.  This season's contestant should look at her X Factor performance because she was great at making songs her own.

[Noreaster]

This week's iTunes rankings at close of voting (source: http://headlineplanet.com/home/2014/11/18/voices-matt-mcandrew-set-score-itunes-bonus-damien-follows/).  Wow, Craig and Damien were really close to the top 10.

 

5) Matt McAndrew – Team Adam – Take Me to Church
11) Craig Wayne Boyd – Team Blake – You Look So Good in Love
12) Damien – Team Adam – He Ain’t Heavy, He’s My Brother
24) Chris Jamison – Team Adam – Jealous
34) Taylor John Williams – Team Gwen – If
37) Luke Wade – Team Pharrell – Thinking Out Loud
42) Anita Antoinette – Team Gwen – Redemption Song
60) DaNica Shirey – Team Pharrell – Creep
92) Jessie Pitts – Team Blake – Don’t You Worry Child
112) Reagan James – Team Blake – It Ain’t Over ‘Til It’s Over
121) Ryan Sill – Team Gwen – Ordinary World
348) Sugar Joans – Take Me to the River

 

I wouldn't say DaNica is a pro, but she won a national Internet singing contest called "Total Popstar" in 2008. It was judged by Debby (call me Deborah) Gibson and Joey Lawremce. Not making this up!

Oh my god, that is too funny. I haven't heard those names in ages. I just googled to try to find more info but only came up with this press release:  http://www.prweb.com/releases/2008/06/prweb1025634.htm.  One of the six finalists was Destinee Quinn who was on a previous season of The Voice.  Small world!  

Edited November 20, 2014 by Noreaster

[DownTheShore]

I thought that Ryan did the best in the sing-off.  It seemed like Jessie simply didn't have the vocal power needed for that song - not to mention her style of singing has never appealed to me.  Sugar didn't impress me with her singing; she's never held much appeal - whatever Pharrell sees in her, I surely don't.

 

All in all, I don't have any problem with who was saved.

 

I'm guessing that Gwen was pushing a song from her new album?  She definitely did hog the stage and relegated her team to backup singers.  When Blake's team was on stage, I had to pay attention to him to see if he was actually participating or just letting them take turns singing.  His teams are always "teams" in the true sense of the world.

 

I am really impressed with Anita Antoinette's voice; it seems much older and stronger than she physically is.  It'll be interesting to see what the next song choice will be for her.  She needs to be more than just a reggae singer, but I don't know if she thinks that she can be, and that's going to be her limiting factor.  This is just my opinion, and I'm no singer or musician, but reggae seems to be one of the easiest types of genres to sing since the beat/rhythm is always basically the same.

[pivot]

I don't know about that....Do you remember the God awful Cure song he did where he had them all sitting around him while he did most of the song?  It was uncomfortable and awkward.

At least he let them hang out at the front of the stage watching him sing. Gwen's poor contestants were in the back under a fake tree. They weren't even on the screen for a large part of the song. Total asshole move on Gwen's part and surprising. I didn't think she'd do that.

[viajero]

I don't know about that....Do you remember the God awful Cure song he did where he had them all sitting around him while he did most of the song?  It was uncomfortable and awkward.

 

Whatever else might be said about that team performance of Lovesong, I think it was then that Adam first started taking Amber seriously.  I still remember the way he turned around and glanced at her in surprise when she opened up on her first verse.  The fact that she out-sung both Judith Hill and Sarah Simmons on that performance was a portent of things to come.

[kj4ever]

Whatever else might be said about that team performance of Lovesong, I think it was then that Adam first started taking Amber seriously.  I still remember the way he turned around and glanced at her in surprise when she opened up on her first verse.  The fact that she out-sung both Judith Hill and Sarah Simmons on that performance was a portent of things to come.

When the three of them did "Shake it Off" was when I went Whooooah about Amber.  She sang the other two under the table on that one.  I wish she wasn't a country singer....I just love her voice.

[abelard]

So pleased that Craig Wayne Boyd did well in the iTunes sales.  After the Knockout round, he and Anita were two of my favorites and I thought they would both be eliminated right away.  I'm very very glad they're both still around and seem to be building fan bases.

 

I was so convinced Reagan would walk away with this whole thing and now I can see that won't happen at all.  Reagan is way too specific in her sound -- Jessie was TOO too narrow in what she could sing but Reagan only has a little bit more breadth than her (and too much "breath" in her voice). 

 

I can see why Matt and Luke are popular and I loved both of their performances, but Damian similarly knocked it out of the park, vocally and performance-wise, and I just *like* him more than Matt and Luke.

 

Even though Danica's voice is incredible, I'm not rooting for her to win.  Even though T3N has a really interesting personality on the stage and in his voice, I'm similarly not rooting for him.

 

So I would say, so far, I think this is the strongest Top 10 on The Voice that I've seen, and now it just comes to who people warm to, not only as singers but as performers and as people (or rather, personas -- who knows how they really are in real life!).

 

For me right now, I'm really hoping the Top 3 is Craig, Damian, and Anita.  But I know that Matt and/or Luke will be in there.

[Padma]

So pleased that Craig Wayne Boyd did well in the iTunes sales.  After the Knockout round, he and Anita were two of my favorites and I thought they would both be eliminated right away.  I'm very very glad they're both still around and seem to be building fan bases.

 

I was so convinced Reagan would walk away with this whole thing and now I can see that won't happen at all.  Reagan is way too specific in her sound -- Jessie was TOO too narrow in what she could sing but Reagan only has a little bit more breadth than her (and too much "breath" in her voice). 

 

I can see why Matt and Luke are popular and I loved both of their performances, but Damian similarly knocked it out of the park, vocally and performance-wise, and I just *like* him more than Matt and Luke.

 

Even though Danica's voice is incredible, I'm not rooting for her to win.  Even though T3N has a really interesting personality on the stage and in his voice, I'm similarly not rooting for him.

 

So I would say, so far, I think this is the strongest Top 10 on The Voice that I've seen, and now it just comes to who people warm to, not only as singers but as performers and as people (or rather, personas -- who knows how they really are in real life!).

 

For me right now, I'm really hoping the Top 3 is Craig, Damian, and Anita.  But I know that Matt and/or Luke will be in there.

Matt does nothing for me either, but I like Luke's voice even though I agree with the person upthread who commented on his lack of charisma. He was one of my favorites in the blinds, voice-wise, but I think it'll be fine if he makes top 5 along with the three you mentioned which are also my current favorites.

 

I've been completely uninterested in Danica from the beginning, but after paying more attention to her voice this week, I think she deserves to be Top 4 and imo is far better than Reagan whose appeal I don't see at all. Is it partly her looks? Because I don't see that either, and she never looks very "nice" to me, kind of like she's reigning in talking back to the judges. I may be wrong, but the bottom line is I don't care for her singing or voice at all (and it didn't help that she absolutely butchered "Sad Songs").

 

I'm wondering if Danica will be a "sleeper" like Sarah or, for me, Amber, (or even Jermaine Paul) someone who really shines--suddenly--simply because of song choice and comes on strong at the end. I hope she'll round out Top 4 and they won't bring back instead a "favorite" like...oh, Sugar. :) so every judge has a contestant in the final.