It feels like we sped through the battle rounds on The Voice (or maybe that’s because the blind auditions were just so damn long). Now the teams have been cut in half, and now it’s all about America’s vote. But these last couple of battles weren’t without their talking points.
I don’t share the pervasive dislike of this season that my colleague Michael has. Not by a long shot. But as with last season, there have been some amazing highs and some less-than-amazing lows. We have the added factor this season of people bringing entirely different genres to the show. So it’s been an interesting experience, particularly last night.
We were treated to Moses Stone vs. The LiNE on a Rolling Stones song. Yep, a hip-hop artist against a country duo with a rock tune. On paper, this sounded like Christina might’ve been drunk when she envisioned it. But you know what? It was actually pretty good. It took both sides a little while to settle on the stage, but Moses can legitimately sing, and it was fun to watch him and The LiNE play back and forth with each other. I enjoyed it.
But the results were a matter of debate, at least between the coaches. Those of you that read my columns regularly know that I don’t usually agree with Christina Aguilera (and by extension, disagree with my coach Adam Levine), but Christina got it right. There’s nothing in the rules that says ‘The Voice’ has to be a traditional vocalist. What Moses performs shouldn’t matter; it’s the standard to which he performs. Frankly, just to screw with people, I’d love to see him rap through the whole live shows. And Chris Mann can sing in foreign languages. And I’d watch people’s heads explode and just laugh.
Then there was after the battle. It sure looked like Hailey Steele of The LiNE was a sore loser, with her pouty expression and unwillingness to talk to the cameras. Sure, I understand that it’s never fun when you lose. We’re not asking you to throw a parade for your opponent. But how about at least putting on a fake smile long enough to at least thank your coach for giving you the opportunity to compete in the first place? It was a display of bad attitude that I’m not used to seeing on The Voice, and I hope for her sake that Hailey came to her senses later on.
(ETA: I’ve seen several of Hailey’s post-show tweets, and they’re much more positive and appreciative of her time on the show. It’s up to you how much stock you want to put in Twitter as a source, but I’m inclined to give her the benefit of the doubt and say she just had a moody moment…that had the horrific timing of being caught on national TV.)
Some of the battles didn’t impress the coaches (Mathai and Nicolle Galyon, or Naia Kete and Jordan Rager). I felt a little sad when Orlando Napier lost to Karla Davis, being that he sings a genre I absolutely love, but as Adam said, she has more potential going forward. Being the best artist isn’t just about doing one thing well; to have staying power, you have to be versatile, and Karla was moreso.
Then we get to the end and the best battle of the season … if you can call it that, because it was really the most awesome duet ever. It was Team Cee Lo’s Justin Hopkins and Tony Vincent wringing every last ounce of emotion out of Journey‘s “Faithfully.” That’s a sad song to begin with, but these guys very clearly connected with the material, being family men themselves, and that came across like a big gut-punch to the audience. They sounded great but more importantly, they brought us into the moment and the emotion with them. Wow. I’d buy tickets to that show right now.
What’s more, Justin and Tony were the exact opposite of Hailey’s reaction from earlier. In the moments where they weren’t singing, you could see the obvious respect they had for one another. It was clear that they were considerate of each other, even though it was a competition. And they could not have been more classy toward each other after it was over. These two left their hearts out on that stage and we couldn’t have asked them for anything more.
But I can and will ask NBC for more: why, in the name of everything, can we not download that complete duet?! As I’ve said before, it baffles me that they are only releasing solo versions of the battle round duets. In this case, it seems a particular crime. Tony sounds great, but Tony and Justin were freaking fantastic.
And now, it’s time for the live shows. My bags are packed for the red carpet. I have my favorites: Tony, Chris Mann, Katrina Parker. I’m rooting for Moses to confuse a few more people on principle. What about you? Who do you think you’ll be voting for next week?
Clacked by Brittany Frederick 
on Mar 27, 2012 @ 16:19 EST5EDT
Why should Hailey have thanked Christina? Christina didnt even give the line any credit for their performance. All she did was preach about how its not about the biggest voice, yet she is the first one to always pick a contestant who has the bigger/better voice. Bottom line…she just favored Mosses, (thats what it looked like to me anyway). Also the line got a 3 or 4 chair turn around, they should have def went with another coach! All the duos get cut anyway, but I thought the line did a good job! Not my favorites, but they def deserved some credit by their coach for their performance before she cut them! I thought that was really rude of Christina Aguleria.
The Hailey thing was unfortunate. The web is full of comments about how people thought she was a sore loser. Her reaction is what it is; honest, and in the moment. She was also invited to join the rest of the team on Jay Leno, last week. That said, I was surprised The Line picked Christina, to begin with. I read somewhere that Leland wanted to go with either Blake or Adam, but couldn’t decide, so Hailey stepped in and chose Christina. Oops. Honestly, they probably would have gotten the same result – they all like to have country singers do something out-of-genre during the battles (e.g. Jordan and NIcolle), probably to show that they can do something other than just country. I thought Leland did pretty well, but Hailey was having trouble adapting, and Moses showed he could do more than just rap. I’m a fan of Chris Mann. I’m biased in favor of opera. But, it’s pretty wide open (Tony Lucca, Tony Vincent, Pip, Jesse Campbell, Jermaine Paul, Kim “Chaka Khan” Yarbrough, etc. Lindsey Pavao is a wild card – I believe she’s sold the best on iTunes, so far).
*POST AUTHOR*
Mo, what are your thoughts on Mathai? I know in blind auditions we all went “OMG,” but her battle round was surprisingly wanting. Do you think maybe she’s not so favored anymore? Girl can still sing, but I was surprised by the battle.
She’s on my 5th coach team, but I’m thinking I should have selected Kim, instead. It depends on how she responds to Adam’s challenge to her. She’s got a lot in her favor – pretty voice, telegenic, moves well to the music, and connects with the live audience (important in an audience vote). In the words of Robin Thicke, what I’m missing is that tension in her voice. Part of the fun of the live rounds is to see who grows as they’re coached. Some don’t, and they plateau out (Jeff Jenkins and Patrick Thomas); others emerge out of nowhere (Casey Weston and Dia Frampton) and finish strong.
*POST AUTHOR*
I have her, too, and I had her winning, but I think I’m going to change that as soon as the game unlocks. Unlike last season, I don’t feel like there’s a clear favorite (a la Javier)…which is kinda cool IMO.
Man, I’m so excited for live shows. /nerd
I believe Hailey was more upset to losing to someone who was not very good. It was really a joke and I did not blame her. What drives me crazy is most of the time the judges have already picked before the show. If they based things on peoples singing voices rather than all the other garbage things would be different. When everyone else picked the Line and Christina went on to say the show was more than their voices, come on. What an insult! Everyone says hands down the Line sounded better, yet she decided to choose based solely on some personal connection she had with Moses
*POST AUTHOR*
What personal connection is that?
And I’m not sure what you mean by “everyone.” The coaches were divided, and at least from the reaction I’ve been reading, the fans are as well.
*POST AUTHOR*
Why should Hailey have thanked Christina? Because Christina got them to that point. They couldn’t have done anything on The Voice without someone else’s help. A coach had to pick them.
As far as Christina favoring the bigger voice…I wouldn’t necessarily say that. If she was looking for just a straight-up singer(s), she would’ve gone for The Line, not the hip-hop artist who rapped during the performance.
Should The Line have gone with another coach? Maybe. But it was their decision to choose Christina, so they have no one to blame but themselves if they think she did them wrong. Regardless, Hailey could’ve faked a smile instead of pouting on national TV.
I disagree. Christina Aguleria is not a God,… and as far as I’m concerned Hailey shouldn’t have to FAKE anything for national TV, or otherwise….if she wanted to pout like a brat and walk of stage, its her prerogative…I like the fact that she showed actual emotion, that made me feel like it was real…as opposed to people who kiss the coaches ass, and then probably go home and talk mad shit about them. Especially with Christina Aguleria, I’m sorry I’m not a fan of hers. If it were Blake, Adam or Ceelo, I think they would have at least gave the line credit for their performance before they cut them! The line did a better job than half of the mediocre performers who moved on to the live rounds on Mondays show.
*POST AUTHOR*
It’s called tact. In this business, especially if you are on television in public, you have to have the smarts to know that the image you present matters – for yourself, for your fans, and for potential future employers or collaborators. I can count quite a few people who saw her petulance and were turned off by it, including several who work in the music business.
And speaking as someone who knows many of these performers personally and is in near constant contact with them…no. They don’t kiss ass and then speak badly of the coaches. Their feelings are genuine.
It seems kind of silly to me that you would jump on the bandwagon and speak out of term like that. wow! i mean there is no possible way in holy hell that you know for sure that the contestants who get sent home do not EVER speak an ill word about their coaches lol….i don’t care if you know all of them personally, is that supposed to impress me? and i don’t care about numbers. i don’t follow the masses or the mainstream. so every one and their grandmother can say they were turned of by Haileys actions, and its still not going to change my opinion. i am an individual. if we all agreed on everything then we would be robots. i liked your recap of the show here (with the exception of the dis on Hailey). But hey, YOU are a writer, and your posting a blog/ recap of the show for other viewers to comment on…now you can disagree with my opinions all day long, but being a writer you should know that you are going to get all kinds of opinions and debates going when you put up a write up like this.
in fact, you can get every contestant and and every coach up in ur blog here, and they can all tell me until they are blue in the face all this media bullshit that i could care less about….i was sent here by a tweet that Tony Vincent put out…being an independent writer, i like to read other writers blogs, reviews, books, etc…so when i seen the link on his tweet, i came here. i read your post and i commented. no big deal…but you need to realize that everyone who reads your writings are not going to 100 percent agree with what you write all the time. you think its cool to dis Hailey because the vast majority may think what she did was wrong, i think there are two sides to a story. so again, i beg to differ….i mean the vast majority thinks it was ridiculous that Anthony Evans was cut from the voice because they think he was better than some of the contestants that made it to the live rounds. so is the vast majority right? or was your goddess Christina Aguleria right when she cut him? i mean really, its not so black and white…there is always grey….
*POST AUTHOR*
Nope, I don’t think it’s “cool” to “dis” Hailey. And I’ve been doing this for a decade, so I know that people don’t always agree to me. I’m just explaining why it’s not a good idea to show what might be perceived as a bad attitude on television.
No one needs to impress anyone, and Christina Aguilera is not my “goddess.” If you’ve read any of my previous work, you’ll see I disagree with her more often than not. I just think she got it right this time.
Despite who the judges are, almost every single person that I thought did better has won, so I respect their choices based on that alone (haha, ,just joking, although I listen to a ton of music, I am in no way in the biz) – I think a lot of decisions are made on sole performances, entertainment – all of those have to do with being an artist. All of these artists have been singing for a while, most already have records out and the point of this show IS TO GIVE them breakout / mainstream success (otherwise there is that Karaoke Stars show). I only started watching The Voice because I have been listening to Charlotte Sometimes for years now, and want to see her get the exposure she deserves – she is very talented and am glad she can breakout – this means she will be able to make more music, thus making me happy.
ANYWAYS –
Like I said, All but ONE of the people I wanted to win battle rounds won (I didn’t like Chris Mann despite the fact he had a very trained voice).
I obviously want Charlotte Sometimes to win, but I also LOVE : Erin Martin, Tony Vincent, Lindsey Pavaio, Nhaia Kete, and Mahtai.
@ Matthew i’m assuming that post was to me? speaking about– the point is to give the artists mainstream breakout success- seeing as i’m the only person besides the author who posted in this blog…i will say i totally agree with you on that, but at the same time, contestants like Lindsey Paveo and Tony Vincent may have a hard time with Americas votes. the online polls (as of last week) showed Katrina Parker way in the lead as far as Americas votes. a lot of the people who watch the voice don’t appreciate musicians like Lindsey and Tony. its sad to say…which is why i tend to gravitate away from the mainstream. some of my favorite bands are alternative. But i do like rock, pop, soul, blues, rap, metal, etc… i don’t have a problem with any of the coaches personally. i just dislike the way Christina presents herself on TV…but no big deal…i can always change my channel. i just think everyone is entitled to their opinion, and others shouldn’t try to upstage them.
*POST AUTHOR*
You have a great point there and that’s one of the things that concerns me going into live shows. It’s really cool this season that we have artists that are doing so many different things this season…but is America going to get behind that? (Or specifically, enough of America to keep some of these people from being sent home?) I’d like to see some of these more unique artists make a dent in the competition.
It seems to me that, numerically, there are way more pop listeners than anything else. I would expect the audience vote to reflect that, so it’s really up to the coaches to save the unique artists from their teams. (Last year, Beverly dominated the rock charts on iTunes, while barely registering on the overall chart.) However, the audience for “The Voice” seems younger than “American Idol” so alternative genres probably have a better chance on “The Voice” than anywhere else.
*POST AUTHOR*
Fingers crossed! I think I still have a hole in my heart from the loss of Justin Hopkins, too. The pain.
*POST AUTHOR*
I’ve had a few issues with battle rounds, but for the most part, I’m happy. And like you said, I’m not in the biz either so I always write my opinion with a grain of salt per se! And I’m crossing my fingers for a lot of these people, just like I did last year…they’re not all going to win, but they do deserve to succeed.
My early faves are Chris Mann, Tony Vincent and Katrina Parker, and I’m pulling for Moses just on the principle that he’s a different genre and I want to see that work. I’m going to miss Justin Hopkins and Orlando Napier, though.
I think Orlando Napier got robbed. If Tony Vincent didn’t win I am sad to say I would have stopped watching. Now I am thrilled. Mattai totally disappointed but nerves are tough. I love this darn show so much.
*POST AUTHOR*
I’m of two minds on Orlando. I would have picked him because I personally love his sound, but I absolutely understand Adam’s reasoning for not doing so. Orlando DOES have a specific thing he’s great at…but to get enough of America’s votes to have a shot at this thing, you’ve got to be versatile, and he could do more with Karla going forward. Adam got it right – but that being said, I’m going to be listening for whatever Orlando does next.
Yeah but Orlando is the package. I mean he is great looking too and he is a guy. We know females vote more. I had an instant crush on him and then he sang and I really dug his sound. swoon
@ Brittnay as i said in previous comments, this is the first time i have read your blogs, so i’m sorry, i cannot say i have read anything that you posted about Christina Aguleria in the past. and also, i didn’t mean you personally when i said your goddess Christina. i meant society as a whole. (i was being facetious.) and hey i don’t blame you for defending your blog, i would defend mine too…and i too know all about reality TV shows. i used to host a blog on Myspace, and i also had a radio show where we debated and discussed. and i also interviewed reality TV personalities etc and so on…so, i too have been doing this for a long time.
as for the line thing, i’m not even going to disagree with you on the fact that Christina didn’t get it right by picking Moses, again…that was never my issue. its just that she has always given her team CREDIT for their performances before she cut them, and to me it was rude of her not to give the line credit, it was a slap in the face to them. and maybe its not all about the biggest or the best voices. but normally, Christina DOES make a point to tell you she is all about vocals. and normally, she does pick the biggest and best voices (as she claims). so she contradicted herself when she went on her rant about it not being about the best voices. as for the battle itself, i didn’t think either out shined the other. i actually liked Moses better then the line in the blind auditions…
anyway, this is your blog, and i’m sorry if my opinions offended you, and no, i am not being sarcastic:)
*POST AUTHOR*
It’s cool. People disagree all the time. And I’ve had a lot worse. :)
Now that you mention it, though, I was at the battle rounds when they were filmed and I’m trying to remember if perhaps Christina said something else to The Line that got cut for broadcast. That was 3 months ago, though, so my memory is fuzzy.
My honest feeling is (and it’s just a guess on my part) that it might have been an unintentional oversight on her part. She ended up having to explain herself to Adam and Blake, and then Carson was on her to pick a winner. Maybe she just ran out of time. But again, just me speculating. She could really be a diva, too. When I find out, then I’ll know.
All four coaches agree Christina’s a diva (she, too). Interestingly, all four seem to have some sort of agreement that they can all speak bluntly to each other, and they won’t let it affect their friendship.
It looked to me that Christina got fired up by Adam’s choice of The Line solely because Moses was a rapper (and Blake’s agreement with that). Adam had just complimented Moses pretty extensively before going the other way with his choice. When she was done, she stopped abruptly, like she was listening to her earpiece, then she said something about having spoken for a long time and she had to announce her choice. I’m guessing the director told her to cut it, so she went straight to her decision, skipping over her normally-methodical pros and cons of each performer. But again, I’m just speculating, too.
*POST AUTHOR*
True, I just wonder what definition of the word they’re agreeing on. I’ve heard it in a positive way, and a negative way. But in general I usually wait until I meet someone to form an opinion of them. There are people I’ve been told were a bit difficult that I’ve met and had no problem with, and vice versa. Who knows?
And I think you’re right. I told Jenni, I was there when they filmed this, and I honestly can’t remember if Christina had the time to say anything else. I don’t think she did.
@ Brittany, i like Katrina Parker as well, i always did… alot of times, the other three coaches would joke around about pressing their buttons, and we would see Adam put his head down and listen with out distraction. i love that about Adam. and i was glad he pressed for Katrina! as for Tony and Lindsey, i totally agree. they are unique and i would love to see one of them win, or at least make it close to the end. but a big chunk of the viewers of the voice are actually 40 plus moms- who don’t really gravitate to Tonys dark appearance, or Lindseys alternative sounding voice. i’m so curious to see how america votes. i have a feeling it will be different from the coaches…and at this point, i don’t even know if that’s good or bad. my favs are def Tony, Lindsey, Katrina, and i like James Massone alot better now that i seen him do true colors. he lives in the next town over from me so i wanted to support him because hes from Boston. but he wasn’t a fav of mine as far as singing went. i know he can sing, but i didn’t really feel his voice until last weeks battle. i thought James and Wade were the second best battle of that night. Tony and Justin being the best.
*POST AUTHOR*
If I’ve learned anything from working on this show, it’s that America is weird. I still scratch my head about how everyone raved over Javier and voted for him (myself included), he put out a great album and…it was like a lot of that support vanished once the show was over.
I think this is one area where “American Idol” has an edge over “The Voice.” Ultimately, AI is a show for Simon Fuller to sign new talent to his management company, so he’s with them for the long term (unless you’re Kelly Clarkson and fire Fuller). My impression is that the winner of “The Voice” gets a recording, but might end up doing a good chunk of the promotion on their own (like whatever touring they need to do, of which Dia looks more fortunate than Javier, at this point). I’m curious if Adam’s new label might be looking to step in, after that initial album is done…?
Hey, maybe it did get cut, it prob was the fact that she was so caught up in explaining herself to Blake and Adam. i feel bad about the way TV edits people, but if you choose to be in the public eye, you will always get positive and negative responses. because they have to lure the people into the show, the viewers aren’t going to watch if its all unicorns and rainbows, they want drama! and so if they made her look like a diva they did their job…or maybe she really is…who knows…who cares lol
hey didn’t you try out for the voice?
was javier on season one? i didn’t even know the voice existed until season 2… that’s awful cus i heard season one was better…and i picked the wrong season to watch. lol
Just one person’s opinion, but the talent in season two is far better and much more extensive. They ran out of auditioners, last year, because the coaches were holding out for better singers and had to go back to fill their teams.
What’s different are two things: expectations (non-existent for S1; sky-high for S2), and the expanded teams. Maybe it’s just me, but I kind of liked the 8-person teams. 12×4 is too many singers to keep track of, 9 hours of auditions is a LOT, and the bottom tier on each team are not that special to me (e.g. Erin Martin). 8×4 would have been some really super teams.
*POST AUTHOR*
Oh man, I was done with auditions after night four. And I do agree 12 artists is harder to keep track of. I knew every name last season. This year I forget names for a moment.
Do we know yet for sure that NBC is launching season 3 in the fall? That seems to be the assumption, but I never saw or heard anything official.
I agree.
I also think that duets shouldn’t be allowed on the show. It’s called “The Voice”, not “The Voices” and I think that it’s unfair to do 2-1 in the battle rounds. That said, to my recollection the pairs don’t make it through the battle rounds.
My favorites include Jordis (why don’t they ever mention Rock Star?), Tony, Erin (love her voice though I wondered what language she was singing during the battle round & want her to enunciate when she sings), Tony, Mathai, Charlotte, and Chris.
Sad to see Angie, Adley, Nichole and Justin go. I’m sure there are others I’ve liked but I can’t remember from week-to-week. There were some battles that were amazing and I wished that both could have gone on. I’d love to see some of the cut singers get recording contracts.
Am I the only person who liked the Thompson sisters? They won their battle, last year. Of course, they’d been singing together for something like ten years or so (and they were both co-champions of “American Juniors”). I like the duos, but I think they have a disadvantage: the weaker (usually younger) partner often drags the stronger one down.
*POST AUTHOR*
True. Editing is a B-word…for example (though this is unrelated) look at how TV promos for ‘next week’s episode’ can make it out to be something entirely different. People have told me Christina is really great, but I’m one of those people who reserves judgment either way until I meet someone and interact with them myself. (And if people would stop asking Adam about Christina that would be great. Talk about beating a dead horse.)
I did audition for this season, actually! Nice catch.
And yep, Javier was the winner of season one. You MIGHT still be able to watch old episodes on Hulu or something. I think NBC.com took everything down from S1.
i understand. i am guarded like that as well. i have to meet the person myself and base my opinion. people ask Adam about Christina? it appears from what they show us on the screen that Christina sometimes comes off as being snotty to Adam.
i mean even Jewel kinda got a shitty edit about Lee. maybe they cut off certain things she said. but it made her seem kind of rude when she was like- does lee want to be a baker for the rest of his life, or is he going to step up to the plate…lol…
it always seems to give Alanis and ne-yo a damn good edit….or maybe they really are awesome advisors. they seem like they are super nice, smart, people… i’m not like a star struck person (at least i don’t think i am unless it was like Eminem lol) but i think i would kinda be star struck with Adam, i’m truly a fan of the music, and he just seems so real to me. but i could be wrong….i just hope i’m not.
yeah i did catch that!! that’s so amazing that you tried out! do you have a you tube channel.. i would love to listen, and are you going to try out again?
i want to see season one my best friend said it was better then two, so i’m curious. i’m going to try and find it. i will check Hulu. thanks!
*POST AUTHOR*
People always ask Adam if he really doesn’t get along with Christina. He keeps saying he has no problem with her, but the media (for lack of a better phrase) seem in love with this idea of a feud. When Adam and Blake were on the cover of People, part of the phrasing was “what they *really* think about Christina.” IDK.
As far as Adam personally, I can vouch for the guy…got to know him a little bit working on season one and he is so classy and nice. It came up in our first convo that I had been in the hospital, and so the next time we were on the carpet together, he dropped everything and came over to ask me how I was feeling. I was really stunned that he remembered, let alone cared.
I’m actually in the process of rehearsing for my next audition which is Saturday. I haven’t posted anything yet…mostly because it’s less an ambition and more a hobby. But I’m probably going to blog the whole thing if I’m not busy having stage fright.
Hope you have a great audition! What are you singing? I haven’t run across anything new about season 3. It’s hard to separate fact from speculation. There was something about Christina’s contract running from Sep-Dec, 2012, but I’m not sure how that would incorporate a taping schedule for the blind auditions and battles. We’ll probably get a better idea once Maroon 5’s “Overexposed” tour schedule comes out. I’m wondering if NBC is still toying with the idea of 2 seasons a year (fall and spring). The original thought was to look at that for 2012-13.
*POST AUTHOR*
Yeah, I remember reading that if they went to two seasons this year Maroon 5 would have to push back their tour, and when they announced the album for June 26 they said the tour would follow, so I’m guessing it won’t be this year. I hope it doesn’t happen. A) I don’t want Voice overkill and B) working on this show is a lot of time and energy for me. It’s basically a 24/7 gig.
FYI – The StarPhoenix (not sure who they are) is reporting that Blake has cancelled out of the Craven Country Jamboree, due to a change in taping schedule for “The Voice.” The Jamboree is in mid-July. I guess we now know when they’re filming the auditions and battles. Looks like the fall schedule is happening.
Voting for Katrina Parker!! Agree with you, versatility is important, and she has that, personality and an amazing voice! Can’t wait to see what she does next.
Just for the record I am Team Cee lo and moreover Team Tony Vincent all the way. Had to add that.
Hayley had no right to be upset. Her ex boyfriend was carrying her. If it was just between him and moses he would have won. She was barely an average singer. As a duo, they’re decent but when he stepped off and sang his verse, he knocked it out of the park. Christina seen that. If she takes him, she takes her. So she went with moses, who honestly overall gave a better performance in that battle.