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It’s the second week of the battle rounds on The Voice, which means more difficult choices to be made for the coaches of their hopeful artists. Whether it was country or rock, Monday night’s battle round was a must see.
Monday’s battle round was a tug at the heart strings from one of Usher’s artists. Nineteen year old singer, Vedo, who won Usher over with Justin Bieber’s “Boyfriend,” went into the competition with the goal of making his mother, who was suffering stage four lung cancer proud. It was revealed by Vedo, after rehearsals with battle contender, Jessica Childress, his mother had died shortly after the blind auditions finalized. Pouring his soul into Bruno Mars’s “Locked Out of Heaven,” it looked as if he was singing his heart out in honor of his mother. In the end, Usher made Vedo happy by choosing him to win, sending the young man into humble tears not only for himself but for making his mother proud.
Shakira’s musical selection of Lady Gaga’s song, “You and I” for her artists, Luke Edgmon and Monique Abbadie, proved to be one of her most challenging. During the rehearsals, Shakira gave coaching tips for both Monique and Luke on making sure not to use the song as a way to show off or out-do the other, but rather connect with one another to be able to reach their audience during the battle round. Once Luke and Monique took to the stage, they took those tips and wowed not only the audience as they planned, but surprised the other coaches. It seemed as if the other coached were all rooting for Luke to win the competition, making it all the harder for Shakira to choose. Even with stepping up his game, Luke lost out to Monique, but it was Shakira’s urging on the other coaches to hit the steal button that breathed new life into the competition for Luke. The battle was again on, but this time between Usher and Blake, who both wanted Luke on their team. Luke, seeing that Blake has won twice on the show, decided that it was in his best interest to stick with a winner and chose him.
When it comes to the music of Elvis Presley, it can either work or it can flop. Taking a chance on the song “Burning Love,” Adam initially had artists Midas Whale and Patrick Dodd performing the song together in basic harmony during the first rehearsal, but after hearing the song again in the second rehearsal, Adam quickly changed it, opting for a blue grass feel. Either a good choice or a risky one, Midas Whale and Patrick brought Adam’s new spin on a classic Elvis song to the stage, wowing both the audience as well as the other coaches. After hearing the points from the other coaches, Adam gave Midas Whale the win to go on into the knock out round, which comes up the following week.
Closing out the show was Usher, who paired Orlando Dixon and Ryan Innes to sing Carl Withers soulful R&B song, “Ain’t No Sunshine”. The performance showcased just how talented and vocally strong Orlando and Ryan both are, bringing the coaches to their feet at the end of their performance. As Usher predicted in rehearsals, their performance could garner one of them to receive a steal, and that is exactly what happened after Usher picked Ryan Innes to remain in the competition. With the whack of his hand on the buzzer, Adam grabbed Orlando for his remaining steal.
Tuesday night is the final night of the battle rounds and so far, all steal slots have been filled except for Usher’s. Which coach will he steal from on Tuesday and which artist will bring down the house?
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