By: Jacob Elyachar, jakes-take.com
There is only one Coaches’ steal left in the Battles Rounds!
That steal belongs to…Gwen Stefani!
The “Hollaback Girl” singer and No Doubt front woman is looking for one more special artist to complete her team. Who joined her team? Read on to find out…
Up first was Team Pharrell’s final battle of the season! He paired Brittany Butler and Ricky Manning together. The Jazz aficionado caught the attention of both Pharrell and Gwen in the Blinds. However, the New York City street musician received warm interest from both Pharrell and Blake. For their battle, Pharrell chose George Benson’s “On Broadway” for them to perform.
This track seemed to fit Brittany’s voice like a glove, which meant that Ricky had to pull out a lot of stops to move to the Knockouts! Ricky has a great tone in his voice and a definite swagger to his style, but once the key changed and Brittany entered the battle…it was game, set and match! During the Coaches’ Comments, Gwen liked their personalities but the Voice stalwarts sided with Ricky! I disagreed with the decision into moving …Brittany got robbed, but it was nice to see both Gwen and Pharrell comfort her and encourage a devastated Brittany to move forward.
Team Blake’s first battle was between 16-year-old Kensington Moore and 15-year-old Reagan James! The Voice stalwart chose Lorde’s “Team” for the duo to perform. During the last rehearsal, Kensington felt ill…this left Reagan to rehearse with Little Big Town’s Kimberly and it was great to see Reagan’s confidence grow. While Kensington recovered from kidney stones, she continued to prove that she was a worthy performer!
I loved hearing a country cover of Lorde’s “Team.” The girls’ harmonies were spot-on and were very pleasant to the ear. I wish that Blake broke the rules and merged the two girls as a duo. All three coaches could not help Blake decide, so it was up to the Oklahoma native to pick the winner. He flip-flopped until he stated that Reagan was the winner.
The last battle belonged to Team Adam’s two four-chair turns! It was also the battle of old (Beth Spangler) versus young (Mia Pfirrman). Adam handed them a monster of a song…Voice coach Christina Aguilera’s “I Turn To You.” He also stated that there was only one belter on his team. While both ladies were impressed by their partners and Adam advised them both…”Less is more!” Stevie also added: “You are not Christina Aguilera and sing it from your position in life.”
Beth and Mia’s battle gave me chills! Both of them were incomparable with their vocals and their harmonies were outstanding! I think everyone jumped out of their seat when both of them hit their glory notes and I believe they made both Xtina and “I Turn To You” songwriter Diane Warren proud.
Adam almost went crazy when he made his decision! He chose to go with Mia, which meant Beth is a new member of Team Gwen!
Next week, the Knockout Rounds return as Taylor Swift advises all of the coaches to determine who moves forward to the Live Rounds!