S11.E16: The Live Playoffs

[huahaha]

Have to echo the flat comments. It seemed like contestants had been shoved on stage without so much as a sound check. Maybe they were out of breath from racing to hit their marks. Boo to the producers on this week.

[Noreaster]

3 hours ago, Winston9-DT3 said:

In a country where rock music and country music are by far the most popular genres I think you'd expect that result to occur as often as it does.  I don't think it helps that these singing shows pretty much exclude hip hop and rap and the edgier pop more likely to have non-white artists, and instead include this old R&B/soul/gospely/belter style.  Of the top 20 albums of 2016, only 3 are by black artists-- Beyonce, Drake and Rihanna-- and I can't picture them choosing the songs the black artists on The Voice choose.  Maybe, I don't know.  

Though in this episode, we had one contestant doing a Drake song and another doing a Rihanna song.  Neither got the public vote.  

I do agree with you, however, that genre is probably the main reason why black contestants have not done well on this show.  R&B/soul contestants generally don't get far.  It's the pop and country folks that do.  I also think rock and indie are at a disadvantage.  Back when Kimberly Nichole (black female rocker) was eliminated in season 8, it came as a surprise but as I thought about it, I realized that her departure was pretty similar to past contestants like Amanda Brown, Kat Robichaud, and Kat Perkins.  

All that said, I don't think we can discount race entirely.  Many people don't vote just based on the voice but also the back stories and personalities.  If the voters are primarily white (I'm guessing), then it's understandable that they might relate to and support the white contestants more.  Recent winners like Alisan and Jordan did a lot of belting and that didn't hamper them like it did many black contestants.

[Wandering Snark]

Listening to some Bob Dylan in my car today, I'd remarked that I'd have loved to see Josh do 'Knockin' On Heaven's Door.' He would have killed that...

Edited November 10, 2016 by Wandering Snark
Added video link...

[Guest]

2 hours ago, Noreaster said:

Though in this episode, we had one contestant doing a Drake song and another doing a Rihanna song.  Neither got the public vote.  

Ha, shows you what i know about it!  (Very little) 

I actually listen to the first 5 seconds or so and if I don't want to hear 85 more by then, I fast forward.  I think I made it through maybe two songs that episode. 

[MissSunshine]

Can someone please tell me if the contestants chose their own song for the lives or did the coaches???Because I thought the song choices were way off for Wé, Darby, and Belle amongst others

[Michel]

4 hours ago, MissSunshine said:

Can someone please tell me if the contestants chose their own song for the lives or did the coaches???Because I thought the song choices were way off for Wé, Darby, and Belle amongst others

I actually think the Playoff songs are producer-picked, not coach- or contestant-picked.

[Glaadrial]

5 hours ago, MissSunshine said:

Because I thought the song choices were way off for Wé, Darby, and Belle amongst others

I was thinking about hopping on board the Wé express when she first started singing. I was delighted to hear the smooth and powerful quality of her lower register. I've found her rehearsal packages to be more annoying than endearing, especially when they cut to her backstage a couple of weeks ago and she spoke normally without affectation, so this fast-paced format worked to her advantage as far as I was concerned. But then...oh, dear...when she went into her higher register with no transition, well, it seemed that even if she'd managed to land in the right key, she'd still just be ordinary.  Whoever butchered the arrangement, really did her a disservice.  Without the transition that is built into the song, the two parts just don't make sense together.

For me it was the same with the arrangement of Crying, which also has an incredibly well written heart-wrenching build that can't really be conveyed in the time allotted for each performer. Although Billy, at least, managed a credible rendition, though it was no where near as successful as most of his other performances.

[Noreaster]

7 hours ago, MissSunshine said:

Can someone please tell me if the contestants chose their own song for the lives or did the coaches???Because I thought the song choices were way off for Wé, Darby, and Belle amongst others

I think it's rarely the contestants only.  It's usually some mix of producers/coaches/contestants.  This season, I have no idea especially since there were no rehearsals footage and coach commentary to provide clues.  

To me, it seemed that Blake's and Adam's teams' song choices were consistent with past seasons.  Blake loves his 80s pop (Maneater!).  Adam generally has a mix of old and current.  

Overall there were so many songs from the 60s and 70s that I suspect the producers came up with an initial list.  Alicia's team seem to have some less inspired choices (like "Yesterday") but then there were a couple of atypical songs (like "Home").  Miley is interesting...her team's song choices in the battles and then now in the playoffs are so different that I think she may be very involved in the song selection process.  

[Guest]

1 hour ago, Noreaster said:

Miley is interesting...her team's song choices in the battles and then now in the playoffs are so different that I think she may be very involved in the song selection process.  

Plus she does so much singing along, which makes it seem more likely she was involved and picks songs she personally likes.  

I have to admit I adore the Counting Crows so I loved Aaron's choice.  But I was scratching my head over Darby singing Those Were the Days.  And the other three, I didn't make it past the first few lines.  

[Padma]

5 hours ago, Winston9-DT3 said:

Plus she does so much singing along, which makes it seem more likely she was involved and picks songs she personally likes.  

I have to admit I adore the Counting Crows so I loved Aaron's choice.  But I was scratching my head over Darby singing Those Were the Days.  And the other three, I didn't make it past the first few lines.  

I had to assume that "Those Were the Days" was one of Darby's standards, since she seemed so comfortable with it and it was such an odd choice.  I know Belle wasn't perfect at what she did and wouldn't have made it to the end, but at least she was going for something a little different in her performances. I was disappointed that she wasn't chosen over Darby. (Although Darby thinks she's different, too, I'm sure. But that "indie styling" she affects--the fake accent and vocal hitches and breaths in the middle of syllables--really irritates me, with a few very rare exceptions).  It's too bad that Miley identifies so strongly and personally with her.)

[MaryPatShelby]

I don't know if I'd want this format all the time, but I liked it for one night. Count me in with those who absolutely did not miss the coaches yammering on between every song - as far as I'm concerned, once we get to the time when no critical comments are allowed and everyone is a magical unicorn who could win this thing, the coaches add very little to the show.

Maybe I'm wrong, but I thought this format was just for this week because of the election, and maybe unavailability of time slots the rest of the week. 

Oh yeah, and I cannot stand Darby. That song was from freaking 1968 and she's a kid.....what the?  And so glad , and shocked, that Adam didn't save Riley. I liked his voice well enough, but what kind of career can he really have?

Edited November 10, 2016 by MaryPatShelby

[MissSunshine]

Thanks for the answers guys, I really appreciate it :) Yeah Wé singing home just seemed really strange to me she was really pitchy and I didn't think that was a song she would pick. But then you had Billy doing Crying and someone mentioned and then I saw that this was actually a song he performed as a child on YouTube. Then some songs I thought are they choosing this or being set up for failure? Who knows but I look forward to maybe a little commentary so I can gather up who is the main person or group choosing these songs

[limecoke]

I heard lots of pitch issues last night and some were pretty bad.  Even the greatly touted We sounded off in parts.  I also thought song choices were pretty weak across the board.  Nobody stood out for me.

What in the name of all that is holy was that thing from Darby?  She sounded like a 12 year old with a hairbrush microphone flouncing around in her bedroom "putting on a show."  Bad voice, bad styling and not nearly as good as she thinks she is. But of course Miley picked her because they share some kind of weirdness thing.

Making my prediction on final 3:  Billy, Sundance, We. 

BTW, I'm not a fan of Miley on this show so am relieved that she probably won't be on again as she'll soon be moving to Canada, NZ, or Australia.  Maybe Pharrell will come back - I miss him.

[Michel]

On ‎11‎/‎11‎/‎2016 at 3:41 PM, limecoke said:

BTW, I'm not a fan of Miley on this show so am relieved that she probably won't be on again as she'll soon be moving to Canada, NZ, or Australia.

Actually, she will be back.  Just not next season.  Gwen is replacing her in season twelve.  But Miley's coming back again in season thirteen, which is next fall.

[amaranta]

Miley's team was surprisingly weak.

Sa'Rayah, to me, is the definition of over singing.

I thought Diamonds was one of the better performances and think "Bubbles" should have gone through, but I understand Adam's pick.  Definitely glad he didn't save Riley.

I liked Christian's Yesterday and was happy he was voted through.

We will likely recover and she and Billy Gilman will probably be in the finals.

Pretty sure this format was because of the election and a one time thing.

[MaryPatShelby]

Could someone please explain to me how we know that We is the chosen anointed one?  Is it because she was in that pre-show during the Olympics?  So was Darby, so I'm not sure that bodes well........

[Reghan]

It seems I'm the only one here who actually like Darby haha.

[hincandenza]

5 hours ago, Winston9-DT3 said:

No one knows who the show wants to win, or if the show does have favorites at all.  I think We is just a popular pick to win because she's unique and good and the judges wet their pants over her.  That's frequently a winning combo on this show.  

Yeah, every season of shows like this and AI, there are always the conspiracy theories; seeing as the alleged "chosen one" is almost never actually the winner- or has no success post-show- I don't know where these theories come from.  Besides, if anything it's Courtney Harrell who would be the anointed one; she's a solid singer who is also a proven songwriter with existing credits among some big names in the business.  I'm honestly a little confused why she is on the show since she can write her own songs and has contacts in the business already.  Usually, the biggest reason we don't hear from contestants post-show is that if you aren't writing your own songs- or able to afford the top level of songwriters- then even with a great voice, you have nothing to offer the listening audience they can't already get.  No matter how you dress it up, this show and those like it are still basically karaoke contests.

 

1 hour ago, Reghan said:

It seems I'm the only one here who actually like Darby haha.

I don't dislike her, I just find her derivative; most of the time she sounds like she's channeling Florence Welch, and much like Riley channeling Sinatra it just makes me think "Why would I want the imitation when I can get the original?".  She even covered one of FatM's songs in the knockouts and was praised for making it her own... even though she sang a nearly identical version, vocal quirks and all.  

In general, I don't find gimmick singers entertaining, whether they are those forced-quirky voiced teenagers, the my-feelings-are-so-deep WGWGs, or out-of-control diva belters.  Then again, what do I know; I couldn't stand Melanie Martinez in her season, but she's apparently gone on to have some modest but consistent success in her niche.  Good for her, but that's the exception that proves the rule.

[Michel]

7 hours ago, Reghan said:

It seems I'm the only one here who actually like Darby haha.

I like Darby just fine, actually.  I like her voice.  I just wish she'd stop it with that odd accent and the weird pronunciations.

Personality-wise, though, I dig her a lot.

[Gel]

Stumbled across a 2008 recording of Crying by Billy Gilman on iTunes. Also available on Spotify (can I really insert that link?). How is it so much better than the recording he did for the Lives?

Edited November 23, 2016 by Gel