S11.E13: The Knockouts, Part 2

[Tara Ariano]

Quote

The knockout round continues. Tim McGraw and Faith Hill serve as key advisers.

[adhoc]

There truly are some excellent singers this season, in my opinion. Sadly, I think that three of my favorites -  Ali Caldwell, Wé McDonald, and Courtney Harrell - may end up cancelling each other out to some extent, in terms of viewer votes, because they somewhat occupy the same "black powerhouse singer" niche. Of those three, I think Wé would have the edge because she is so unique and has an interesting timbre to her voice.  I only hope that this show provides all these ladies (and Kylie, I would add) with enough exposure to get to the next level, regardless of who goes or does not go the distance. Because damn, they all have really impressed me!

Now, that said, plus factoring in the strong performance of Billy Gilman (who I thought was excellent and who sounds very marketable to me) and maybe Sundance Head (never discount the strength of the country vote), I think it's not improbable that a guy will win. JMO

Edited October 26, 2016 by adhoc

[Jabu]

Team rosters/cheat sheets thus far:

Team Adam
Simone Gundy (defeated Dave Moisan)
Riley Elmore (defeated Jason Warrior)
Billy Gilman (defeated Ponciano Seoane)
Josh Gallagher (stolen from Team Blake)

(Still Waiting)
Nolan Neal
Brendan Fletcher

Team Miley
Ali Caldwell (defeated Lauren Diaz)
Belle Jewel (stolen from Team Alicia)

(Still Waiting)
Sophia Urista
Josette Diaz
Maye Thomas
Darby Walker
Aaron Gibson
Josh Halverson

Team Alicia
Kylie Rothfield (defeated Whitney & Shannon)
Wé McDonald (defeated Courtnie Ramirez)
Christian Cuevas (defeated Belle Jewel)

(Still Waiting)
Michael Sanchez
Sa'Rayah

Team Blake
Sundance Head (defeated Josh Gallagher)
Courtney Harrell (defeated Bindi Liebowitz)
Jason Warrior (stolen from Team Adam)

(Still Waiting)
Dana Harper
Gabe Broussard
Austin Allsup
Karlee Metzger

Names in bold indicate artists who have newly performed and stayed on their teams or been stolen by another coach.  An asterisk indicates that this artist's Knockout was montaged.

[Michel]

6 minutes ago, adhoc said:

Now, that said, plus factoring in the strong performance of Billy Gilman (who I thought was excellent and who sounds very marketable to me) and maybe Sundance Head (never discount the strength of the country vote), I think it's not improbable that a guy will win. JMO

No Christian Cuevas mention?  I thought he did very well, too, tonight.  He's quite possibly Alicia's best male artist.

[Primetimer]

Team Miley gains a dark horse as Blake tries to break free of the country mold.

View the full article

[adhoc]

Michel - Christian is pretty good, but I don't think he's got the charisma or the stage presence to win. 

I just read Stephanie's PreviouslyTV review and want to comment that Belle Jewel did not impress me. She has a unique fashion and singing style, and she can certainly carry a tune, but she did not seem connected with the song (Don't Dream It's Over). Not that I think it's much of a song to connect with, personally, so there's that.... Anyway, it seemed to me that Belle picked a song that she felt "was in her singing style," regardless of whether the lyrics had any personal or relatable meaning for her.  I started off being impressed when she started singing, but I ended up underwhelmed.

[TheGreenKnight]

I love Billy Gilman's voice. So clear and pure. I hope Adam doesn't hurt him with bad song choices. "Fight Song" was okay, but a little too on the nose to the point it veered into slight cheesiness. ("Man in the Mirror" didn't suit him at all.)

[Padma]

I love Billy's voice, too. Not crazy so far about his song choices, but his tone is so beautiful.  Bad news? I've got the feeling I'm looking at F1. I'm not sure how I feel about that--someone who's been a success in music before but now is kind of a has been, coming on to win and have another chance. (Miley telling him, "I grew up listening to your music" was pretty crazy). I mean, it's not exactly unfair--no rules exclude him--but seems kind of sad for someone who's already HAD his big chance--and career--competing against singers whom no one has ever heard of.

[huahaha]

Still looking like a Billy/Wé showdown to me. (Thought of another way, an Adam/Alicia showdown.)

As Faith and Tim said, the show is full of advanced singers. Only a few are truly recognizable, though. 

It's interesting how much the judges value big voices. I feel like the music I actually listen to has voices more like Ponciano's or Belle's.

[kathyk24]

1 hour ago, Padma said:

I love Billy's voice, too. Not crazy so far about his song choices, but his tone is so beautiful.  Bad news? I've got the feeling I'm looking at F1. I'm not sure how I feel about that--someone who's been a success in music before but now is kind of a has been, coming on to win and have another chance. (Miley telling him, "I grew up listening to your music" was pretty crazy). I mean, it's not exactly unfair--no rules exclude him--but seems kind of sad for someone who's already HAD his big chance--and career--competing against singers whom no one has ever heard of.

Billy lost his contract because his voice changed not misconduct on his part. I'm sure he didn't make enough money during that time to support himself for a lifetime. I don't understand why child young singers are targeted while there is no problem with child actors transitioning to adult roles.

[Michel]

3 hours ago, kathyk24 said:

Billy lost his contract because his voice changed not misconduct on his part. I'm sure he didn't make enough money during that time to support himself for a lifetime. I don't understand why child young singers are targeted while there is no problem with child actors transitioning to adult roles.

It's probably because they believe the listeners have grown too accustomed to the younger, innocent, more wholesome voices and wouldn't be able to adjust to the deepening, maturing voices.  Really, that's hit or miss.  Justin Bieber, shockingly, was one of the hits to have a good career in spite of his voice change.  Aaron Carter was a miss, as he only made it a couple of years after his voice changed.  Billy fell under the category of "miss," too, unfortunately.

Anyway, on to the matches:

Bindi vs. Courtney: This was easily no contest.  As well as simply dominating with her sheer sass, vocal power, and sheer performance ability, Courtney's song was just plain fun.  She hit all the right notes, did just enough tricks to keep from going over the top, and just plain engaged me the entire performance.  Bindi made a decent song choice for her wheelhouse, but she was off-key the entire time.  I swear she sounded a bit flat from start to finish.  Also, despite the problems that many had with her last season, Lacy Mandigo just did "Son of a Preacher Man" so much better (though you'd have to look up the studio version of it since it was what she did for her montaged Blind).  No question that Courtney deserved the win.  But I bet this spells bad news for Dana Harper, who falls under the same type of singer as Courtney, next week.

Billy vs. Ponciano: I pretty much ignored this match because I didn't buy Adam's claim that Ponciano could win the Knockout at all.  He was always going to take Billy's "perfect" voice through (no doubt it's good, but no voice is ever "perfect").  He's gonna rely on his past fandom to ride his way to the win like he did with Jordan two seasons ago.  Count on it.  Sucks, because I actually do think that Ponciano did very well.  But . . . oh, well.  Should've gone with Miley, dude.  Another victim of Adam's false promises bites the dust, and deservedly so.

Belle vs. Christian: So at last, we meet the elusive, twice-montaged Belle.  And I'm going to go against @adhoc and say . . . I didn't hate the performance.  She had a beautiful, gorgeous tone and chose a song that was definitely well-suited to her genre.  And I do like the way she puts '40s spins on her songs.  She clearly knows what she's doing in her particular style.  But that said, Christian just kicked her (admittedly adorable) ass up and down the street.  He has just the right mix of power and control, and he connected with the song.  I can absolutely see why Alicia would keep him.  But then, we find out why they couldn't montage Belle any longer.  She got the steal.  It'll be interesting to see if she can get the fan vote at the Lives, seeing as how she's only just showing up in the editing.  If not, she'd better fight really hard to get Miley's coach save if she doesn't get the fan vote.  She'd better be feeling really, really lucky, though, to have been stolen.  From a screentime perspective, I imagine that she would've gotten the Rebekah Samarin/Katherine Ho treatment if Miley hadn't used her steal on her -- montaged through all three pre-taped stages.

Well, next week, since I'm pretty sure they've never shown a coach have three pairings in one episode, Battle or Knockout, we're gonna have to see one of Miley's pairs get the montage treatment.  Meanwhile, Blake has two pairs left, and Adam and Alicia each have one.  So we'll see how it all shakes out!

Good episode.  Good, good episode.

Edited October 26, 2016 by Michel

[PhD-Purgatory15]

To be introduced (basically) this late in the proceedings....Belle Jewel was kind of underwhelming. She seemed hella nervous too, barely making any eye contact with the audience it seemed like. Still she does have a little bit of the Kacey Musgraves ability to filter one genre of music through an interesting lens. So ultimately, I didn't hate Miley using her steal anymore than either of Blake or Adam's use of their steals this round.

Figure Alicia's steal is either coming from Miley's team (maybe Josh Halverson on a steal back) or it's totally is the loser of Nolan/Brendan on Team Adam.

I irrationally hate Fight Song and irrationally love I See Fire.....and even that wouldn't of had me pick Ponciano over Billy. Did anyone else think Ponciano swallowed or forgot a couple words right off the bat?

Courtney had the bigger voice and flashier song for her range....so no surprise that's where Blake went with his winner. After knowing the total line up after the fact, I would've tapped Bindi as the one steal from this episode. Her performance was pretty uneven though. Really good in spots and then there were some spots where it was like she got stuck in neutral and forgot to do something interesting with the melody and her add ons...

[JMarie99]

I like Belle. She has that Postmodern Jukebox vibe about her. After all the "big voice" women I found her rather refreshing. She doesn't stand a chance, of course, but I enjoyed her. 

[Michel]

11 hours ago, JMarie99 said:

I like Belle. She has that Postmodern Jukebox vibe about her. After all the "big voice" women I found her rather refreshing. She doesn't stand a chance, of course, but I enjoyed her. 

One thing I noticed was where she obviously got her tendency to dress and sing '40s-style.  Each time they cut to her mother and father in the audience, I saw the former's style of dress.  She had a total Betty Page look to her outfit that I think eventually must've rubbed off on Belle.  It's kinda cute.  Oh, and her father seemed to dress like he was from another era, too, which must've doubly inspired her.

Edited October 27, 2016 by Michel

[viajero]

I liked all four contestants who got through.  In fact, I would consider all three winners to be contenders of sorts.  While Belle wasn't quite as good as the others, I found her to be refreshing.  Plus there's something very likeable about her.

Out of the winners, I would probably rate Courtney and Christian slightly higher, simply because Billy seems just a bit too calculating and polished for my tastes.

I really hope that Billy doesn't run away with this thing once live voting starts.  There are a lot of good singers this season and I would hope that some of them would have a real shot at winning.

[Michel]

8 minutes ago, viajero said:

I really hope that Billy doesn't run away with this thing once live voting starts.  There are a lot of good singers this season and I would hope that some of them would have a real shot at winning.

From what I've seen in terms YouTube views and iTunes sales, Wé, Christian, and Ali have the best chances of beating him.  Two from Alicia's team, one from Miley's.  No one from Blake's, so I doubt we have to worry much there.

Edited October 26, 2016 by Michel

[limecoke]

Gosh Bindi, that was painful.  A couple of the judges mentioned "some problems", but she was off-key - very flat - throughout the song.  I always label "Son of a Preacher Man" as a loser song anyway so figured she'd be gone from the get go.  

Billy is sort of this seasons Alyson but if he can beat We, so be it.  Something is a bit off with her and I'm tired of the "I was bullied, vote for me" thing.  Enough.

Loved...loved Belle and happy she was stolen.  It's also a crime she was montaged which immediately puts her at a disadvantage. Well, that and the judge/audience/voter obsession with BIG, SCREAMY voices.  Pains me to say this, but the winner in this battle is Miley.

Edited October 27, 2016 by limecoke

[jjjmoss]

Voice highlights so far for iTunes:
15 Billy Gilman - When We Were Young (The Voice Performance) ADAM
45 Nolan Neal - Tiny Dancer (The Voice Performance) ADAM
50 Whitney & Shannon - Landslide (The Voice Performance)
81 Blaine Long - Have a Little Faith In Me (The Voice Performance)

iTunescharts.net is missing a few days for some reason so getting Hello, Valerie, Mirror from kworb.. 
51    Christian Cuevas & Jason Warrior - Hello 
ALICIA. BLAKE after 2 steals.
72 Aaron Gibson & Sa'Rayah - I’ll Take Care of You
MILEY. ALICIA after steal.
75    Dave Moisan & Michael Sanchez - Valerie
76 Josh Halverson & Kylie Rothfield - House of the Rising Sun (The Voice Performance)
MILEY after steal. ALICIA.
92    Andrew DeMuro & Billy Gilman - Man In the Mirror 
ADAM (II)

43 Sundance Head - The Climb BLAKE
44 Billy Gilman - Fight Song - ADAM (III)
70 Wé McDonald - No More Drama ALICIA
87 Christian Cuevas - Superstar - ALICIA (II)

Based on results so far: Alicia has 5 possible contenders inc 1 steal.
Miley has 2 inc 1 steal. Blake has 2 inc 1 steal. Adam has 1.

Huh. Go Alicia. Of course, people break out in lives and others melt down during them.

Edited November 1, 2016 by jjjmoss

[Michel]

Ah.  I stand corrected of Blake having no true contenders.  So Sundance might be Blake's one chance to win this season.  I really don't think Jason will have much of a chance.  That "Hello" performance is so high because of Christian, I think, not because of him.

[bluepiano]

On ‎10‎/‎25‎/‎2016 at 9:45 PM, huahaha said:

It's interesting how much the judges value big voices. I feel like the music I actually listen to has voices more like Ponciano's or Belle's.

 I don't listen to a lot of current music, but from what I hear, it seems that the era of the big voice is over everywhere except on The Voice, or some of the other TV competition shows. How much of that kind of full-out, tear-down-the-walls belting that Courtney did do you hear anymore? (Except maybe on Broadway).

I wasn't overly impressed by Belle, but I think that both she and Riley got saved because they do sound different than most of the other singers this season. I want to hear more from them just for the sake of having some variety on the show.

On ‎10‎/‎25‎/‎2016 at 6:24 PM, adhoc said:

Sadly, I think that three of my favorites -  Ali Caldwell, Wé McDonald, and Courtney Harrell - may end up cancelling each other out to some extent, in terms of viewer votes, because they somewhat occupy the same "black powerhouse singer" niche.

There's still SaRayah to come in that "powerhouse" genre, plus I'm willing to bet at least one more I've forgotten.

7 hours ago, limecoke said:

Gosh Bindi, that was painful.  A couple of the judges mentioned "some problems", but she was off-key - very flat - throughout the song.  I always label "Son of a Preacher Man" as a loser song anyway so figured she'd be gone from the get go.  

Billy is sort of this seasons Alyson but if he can beat We, so be it.  Something is a bit off with her and I'm tired of the "I was bullied, vote for me" thing.  Enough.

I think Bindi walked out there defeated, knowing Courtney had it in the bag, and that had a negative impact on her performance. Because I remember her being better than that.

If Billy is the only alternative to We than I'm all in for him. But I really hope the song choices improve. "Fight Song" for me is the epitome of cheese. And so far I'm thinking, yeah, he sings pretty. But there has to be more than that.

Edited October 27, 2016 by bluepiano

[Noreaster]

I was so disappointed with Bindi's performance.  She was probably one of my favorites going into the knockouts.  She doesn't have much range but does have a nice bluesy/jazzy quality to her voice.  I think "Son of a Preacher Man" was a bad song choice...too wordy whereas her voice sounds better when there are longer drawn-out notes.  

I have enjoyed many of the female powerhouse contestants in the past, but I don't find any of them interesting this season.  Maybe it's because of the song choices, I'm not sure.  In this episode, I didn't enjoy Courtney at all.  Her power is impressive, but she doesn't have much in the way of dynamics.  It was like she started singing at a 9 or a 10, then amped it up to an 11 for most of the song.  

I liked Billy's performance.  The first half of the performance was kind of boring, but then he kicked it up a notch and it sounded good and interesting in the second half.  The performance actually seemed to go somewhere which I feel has been kind of lacking from the other contestants.  

I enjoyed Belle's performance.  Not great, but interesting and pleasant enough to listen to.  I wouldn't mind seeing more of her.  

Edited October 27, 2016 by Noreaster

[Noreaster]

On 10/25/2016 at 11:44 PM, Padma said:

I love Billy's voice, too. Not crazy so far about his song choices, but his tone is so beautiful.  Bad news? I've got the feeling I'm looking at F1. I'm not sure how I feel about that--someone who's been a success in music before but now is kind of a has been, coming on to win and have another chance. (Miley telling him, "I grew up listening to your music" was pretty crazy). I mean, it's not exactly unfair--no rules exclude him--but seems kind of sad for someone who's already HAD his big chance--and career--competing against singers whom no one has ever heard of.

This description of Billy (someone who already had a career) could be used to describe a bunch of other past contestants/winners though.  As recently as Alisan Porter who won last season.

I wonder if Billy really has that much of an existing fanbase.  He had that one big hit long ago when he was a kid and he's quite different now.  And the country music community is not really known to be supportive of gay artists.  

Edited October 27, 2016 by Noreaster

[Jal]

Billy has a great voice but there's absolutely nothing else that's interesting about him. I normally fast-forward through his performances because (1) he chooses the worst songs, and (2) his appearance doesn't look natural/real at all. He's like a Ken doll.

[Keekski]

I'm in the "I don't like Billy" camp. And I agree 100% with Jal's assessment of him.

[bluepiano]

3 hours ago, Noreaster said:

In this episode, I didn't enjoy Courtney at all.  Her power is impressive, but she doesn't have much in the way of dynamics.  It was like she started singing at a 9 or a 10, then amped it up to an 11 for most of the song.  

I Belle's performance.  Not great, but interesting and pleasant enough to listen to.  I wouldn't mind seeing more of her.  

That's a good description of most of the "powerhouse" female singers that have been on this show over the years. And there does seem to be a lot of them this season.

That style seems to impress the judges, but when it gets to America voting, not so much. Fourth or fifth place seems to be the plateau. I think at some point the "wow factor' wears off, and people start seeing them as a one-trick pony. (though that doesn't seem to hurt the country singers).

In the recap it was mentioned how strange it is that Courtney is on Blake's team, but there is precedent for that, because a few seasons back he had Sisaundra Lewis. She was probably my favorite of all the "powerhouse" singers, because I thought she understood how to deliver lyrics, and used dynamics. She could get up to an 11, but only when it made sense in terms of the song.

Agree with you about Belle. She won't get too far, but might survive a round or two of audience voting because she's got her own niche.

Edited October 27, 2016 by bluepiano

[Noreaster]

59 minutes ago, bluepiano said:

That's a good description of most of the "powerhouse" female singers that have been on this show over the years. And there does seem to be a lot of them this season.

That style seems to impress the judges, but when it gets to America voting, not so much. Fourth or fifth place seems to be the plateau. I think at some point the "wow factor' wears off, and people start seeing them as a one-trick pony. (though that doesn't seem to hurt the country singers).

In the recap it was mentioned how strange it is that Courtney is on Blake's team, but there is precedent for that, because a few seasons back he had Sisaundra Lewis. She was probably my favorite of all the "powerhouse" singers, because I thought she understood how to deliver lyrics, and used dynamics. She could get up to an 11, but only when it made sense in terms of the song.

Tessanne Chin won season 5.  Not sure if you would consider her in the powerhouse category, but she definitely had a big voice and knew how to sing with nuance.  I really liked her.  She also had a lot of professional experience (mainly as a backup singer) which probably helped.  I don't remember Sisaundra all that well since I bailed on season 6 midway but I think she was also a pro?

A couple of others that I liked in more recent seasons were Tonya Boyd Cannon and Regina Love but they didn't make it past the live playoffs.  Although they were not black, I might put Alisan Porter and Meghan Lindsey in this category too....I actually didn't care for them but they placed 1st and 2nd respectively in their seasons.  

[bluepiano]

Sisaundra had been a back-up singer for some major name artists, then spent a number of years out of the business raising her kids. (seems to be a pretty common theme).

I don't even remember Meghan Lindsey, so she must not have impressed me. I wouldn't put Alisan Porter in that category, in part because she wasn't black. But I also think she was a different kind of singer. I didn't like her when she got all shouty and overly dramatic, but she sometimes showed a more subtle side. Like that classic rendition of "Blue Bayou" in the blinds, which for me remained the best thing she did all season.

[Guest]

I would actually put winner Jordan Smith in the category with the belters.  I mean, I'm not sure what he was technically but he's for me part of that overly dramatic, belty, melisma-y, choir-y type of music that isn't my thing.  

[Michel]

41 minutes ago, Winston9-DT3 said:

I would actually put winner Jordan Smith in the category with the belters.  I mean, I'm not sure what he was technically but he's for me part of that overly dramatic, belty, melisma-y, choir-y type of music that isn't my thing.  

It was never said on-air, but Jordan classified himself as a crooner like Lowell Oakley from season eight and Riley Elmore from this season.  Even though he never sang a single crooner-type song.  Nor did he even sound like a crooner.

[Padma]

7 hours ago, Noreaster said:

Tessanne Chin won season 5.  Not sure if you would consider her in the powerhouse category, but she definitely had a big voice and knew how to sing with nuance.  I really liked her.  She also had a lot of professional experience (mainly as a backup singer) which probably helped.  I don't remember Sisaundra all that well since I bailed on season 6 midway but I think she was also a pro?

A couple of others that I liked in more recent seasons were Tonya Boyd Cannon and Regina Love but they didn't make it past the live playoffs.  Although they were not black, I might put Alisan Porter and Meghan Lindsey in this category too....I actually didn't care for them but they placed 1st and 2nd respectively in their seasons.  

I enjoyed Tessane although, if I remember, I wanted to see her winning with a different style than she wound up doing. I also liked Sisaundra who seemed like an old-school night club chanteuse with a big voice and good taste with it. Regina Love was a powerhouse who was fun in the beginning but became too much of a good thing after you saw her a few times.

Never really cottoned to Meghan Lindsey much. Alisan gave one of my favorite performances in any season with "Blue Bayou" but once Christina got hold of her, she became the embodiment of belting and runs and oversinging to me--as so many of Christina's team often did. I really didn't think much of her as a coach because, to me, she pushed for "big voices" all the time, where it wasn't necessary or even enjoyable to listen to them any more (and I think she ruined some of them vocally, like Matthew Schuler). I'm really curious how Alicia and Miley will approach lives because so far I'm not seeing them favoring that diva style (although perhaps "The Voices' -real- vocal coaches are responsible for its prevalence--I'm not sure.)

There seemed like a nice variety after the blinds, but I've kind of lost track of the styles left now. Hopefully, they won't all be diva vocals, or coached to be them. It's being obviously different in taste and approach that makes singers like Belle interesting, even when they're not the strongest vocally. (And I do not understand how Jordan could have considered himself a crooner. When did he ever show any of that--then or now? I really question that, but if that was his ambition he certainly abandoned it quickly once he got on the show. He won though--and with my least favorite style of music--so what do I know? :))

[Gel]

I like Billy, but I suspect he would do better with more ballad type songs than either of the last two songs he's sung. I hope Aaron goes far, because as much as I like Billy, I think Miley was right when she said there are singers one is awed by, but then there are those you listen to in your car. Billy's voice is amazing, and would be great given the right song, but Aaron's cover of Losing My Religion is the one I listen to more.

[TheGreenKnight]

19 hours ago, Jal said:

Billy has a great voice but there's absolutely nothing else that's interesting about him. I normally fast-forward through his performances because (1) he chooses the worst songs, and (2) his appearance doesn't look natural/real at all. He's like a Ken doll.

Did Billy get to pick the song for the Knockout and Battle Rounds? I assumed Adam picked those songs and the only one he had been able to choose was his audition (which was phenomenal, imo). Adam is awful when it comes to song choices. I'm just thinking of Amber Carrington and Damien, for example, and I hope he doesn't screw over Billy.

[Michel]

12 hours ago, TheGreenKnight said:

Did Billy get to pick the song for the Knockout and Battle Rounds? I assumed Adam picked those songs and the only one he had been able to choose was his audition (which was phenomenal, imo). Adam is awful when it comes to song choices. I'm just thinking of Amber Carrington and Damien, for example, and I hope he doesn't screw over Billy.

Nope.  Billy himself said that he chose it.  As much as I don't like Adam, he had nothing to do with this.  Billy chose "Fight Song."  Adam did choose "Man in the Mirror," though.

Edited October 28, 2016 by Michel

[TheGreenKnight]

Well, that's reassuring, because the only performance of his I haven't liked was "MitM." "Fight Song" wasn't a great choice, but the performance was still the best of the night, imo.