While the winner of this season’s The Voice has yet to be crowned (no matter what Adam Levine may say, the odds are looking more and more like the winner will have a blues background. Once considered a bit of a novelty in the competition, Team Blake‘s Adam Wakefield and Team Adam’s Laith Al-Saadi have improved their standings in recent weeks, while some of Alisan Porter‘s best work on Team Christina have been tinged with a bluesy delivery that allows her to belt with more power and attitude. That being said, this week it all converged for blues-loving fans as the night’s top four all thrived with a bit of that attitude thrown in. So let’s take a look at the night’s Top 5 Voice competitors:
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5. Bryan Bautista – Team Christina
Bryan thrived earlier in the competition with a smooth vocal delivery and a confidence onstage that was infectious. His interpretations of a couple of songs also showed the ability to think outside of the box with arrangements. But once the live shows began, Bryan hasn’t taken as many risks and it’s left him on the outside looking in on the Top 5. For Monday’s performance, Bryan took on “Promise” from Romeo Santos and Usher and his silky smooth vocals were accentuated by the fact that he alternated between English and Spanish for the song. Consider Bryan back in the competition, but song choice will be key from here on out.
https://youtu.be/YZT_P7ZEcQw
4. Hannah Huston – Team Pharrell
We know Hannah can do attitude like no other, but how would she handle one of Adele’s biggest hits? We know Adam’s aversion to anyone taking on Adele as he views there’s little room for error, but Hannah did a bang up job on “Rolling in the Deep.” Her voice showed plenty of sass, but a little more twang that what the original had, which differentiated it somewhat. She nailed the lower register notes, but her voice didn’t feel as full as Adele’s when digging into the higher notes. Still, it was one of the night’s top performances and Hannah came through a challenging song still one of The Voice’s top contenders.
https://youtu.be/4qKzswV-Ftk
3. Laith Al-Saadi – Team Adam
Laith knows his comfort zone and he thrived with this week’s rendition of B.B. King’s blues classic “The Thrill Is Gone.” It proved to be the perfect showcase for his booming voice and while the show is about his vocal, he also showed some nifty picking on guitar proving that he’s an all-around musician. Laith’s strong point is classic rock with a bend toward the blues and his ascension in recent weeks has been due to playing to his strengths. But the biggest question going forward is if staying the path will help him advance or whether he needs to mix it up after repeatedly showing something similar each week.
https://youtu.be/c6lLtftluds
2. Adam Wakefield – Team Blake
After a bit of a fall off last week, Adam Wakefield is back near the top of the rankings with his episode-closing performance of Ray Charles’ “I Got a Woman.” With his powerful vocal, some solid tickling of the ivories and one swinging horn section, Adam’s put himself right near the top of the competition. He’s become a real threat for Alisan Porter, who remains the frontrunner.
https://youtu.be/y_6lFH72HDs
1. Alisan Porter – Team Christina
Week after week, Alisan Porter has shown her ability to mix things up. This week she chose Patti Griffin’s “Let Him Fly,” a track that showcased her ability to be tender yet bluesy, soulful and powerful. In short, it was yet another stellar performance from Alisan and it would take a serious slip for her to falter at this point.
https://youtu.be/VV2dpl565kg
So who is in danger heading into Tuesday night’s elimination? The two comeback artists are the likeliest candidates. Nick Hagelin‘s take on Michael Jackson’s “I Can’t Help It” sounded very much like the King of Pop in parts, but at other times his high notes felt a little shaky. A this point there’s no room for error, and Team Christina could be one person short after Tuesday.
Likewise, Team Pharrell’s Daniel Passino could find himself competing to stay in the competition. His rendition of Aerosmith’s “I Don’t Want to Miss a Thing” was passable, but didn’t offer the dynamic power you might have hoped for. Plus, the show opening spot can be a killer unless you deliver a truly memorable performance.
While Nick and Daniel appear to be the bottom two, Nick’s fans have helped keep him safe through some subpar performances, and it remains a possibility that could happen again. If so, Paxton Ingram would be the likeliest candidate to take his place in the bottom two. Like Daniel, there was nothing wrong per se with his performance of Celine Dion’s “It’s All Coming Back to Me Now,” but the lack of a dynamic range in a song filled with opportunities to exploit them could leave him vulnerable.
As for the night’s other two competitors, Shalyah Fearing has been one of the top performers most of the season and the gap between her and Paxton should be significant enough to keep her spot on Team Adam safe. She delivered a solid rendition of Emeli Sande’s “My Kind of Love,” but as stated before, a break from the mold could do her wonders. Meanwhile, returning to the comfort zone after a few weeks away helped remind us what Mary Sarah does well. Her take on the Tammy Wynette classic “Stand By Your Man” hit all the right notes and left her just on the outskirts of Monday’s Top 5. Barring a surprise, she should remain on Team Blake come Tuesday night.
So who will advance and who’s going home? Tune in to NBC’s The Voice at 8PM ET Tuesday night to find out.
