My wife keeps telling me to blog about the Voice.
True story. Most nights as we watch the voice I tend to be able to call the eliminations with a very high accuracy. Last season, I called the top 12 correctly including who America saved and who the judges saved. It was kind of surreal.
So here we are in season 4 and down to the top 6.
Let's talk about what happened last night. Shakira commented at the top of the show that if Sasha Allen went home it would be her coach's fault. As soon as she said it I thought of Adam's team and the choices they had made song-wise. I already had a hunch that Sarah Simmons would go because Gotye's "Somebody that I used to know" is generally the kiss of death on singing shows. (Just watch the Vegas week of this season of American Idol for proof of that.)
Judith Hill sang the wrong song on Monday night. She sang "#ThatPower" very well because she is an amazing vocalist, but it was the wrong song and her choice of non-standard jazz-infused arrangements of songs always disconnected me from the performances. I could never fault her singing. Not once. I faulted her arrangement choices almost every single week. Here's the rub though. Her performance of "Sweet Nothing" with Michelle Chamuel on the elimination show was pure power and had she sung THAT song on Monday night, she wouldn't be eliminated now. I'm certain of it.
Watching Amber Carrington and Holly Tucker duet "Does he Love You" last night underscored one key thing that Adam needs to consider; Amber is an incredible country vocalist. Let her sing country next week and beat Blake at his own game. With all his eggs now in one basket, Mr. Levine needs to go back to basics. He needs the best Amber he can get. He needs her right in her wheelhouse.
Usher's sole survivor Michelle Chamuel is incredible. I love how much she's grown and how centered her performances have become as she has made the most of Usher's unorthodox coaching. I want her to win the whole thing. She has something special vocally that really gets to me each week. The problem is team Blake. Specifically, Danielle Bradbury.
Danielle has a combination of doe-eyed innocence and faultless vocal talent that is hard to fight against. Other than last nights lackluster "A Thousand Years" duet with Sarah Simmons, Danielle has been a juggernaut of consistent excellence. Week in and week out she has laid down a performance worth note. She's out charted her competition the same way that Cassadee Pope did last season. She is the one to beat right now. The rest of team Blake isn't exactly shabby though. The Swon Brothers are going to have a great career no matter what happens here and Holly Tucker made the right move this week in going for a strong lively country song. Team Blake is Country Strong and he is going to be hard to beat!
We're at the top 6 now though, so all it takes is that perfect song and performance to shake everything up.
Sasha Allen (my crush of this season) needs that moment badly. I see her as being on the cusp right now. She has managed to stay in it but has yet to have a genuine moment. This coming Monday would be the best possible time to capture the ears and hearts of America and propel herself forward.
I've really enjoyed this season and Usher and Shakira have been a nice breath of fresh air to the show. I miss Cee Lo's quirkiness but find that XTina's absence has improved the tone of the show in a variety of ways. I understand that Cee Lo and XTina are back for season 5 then Shakira and Usher return for Season 6. What I'd like to see is Adam and Blake swap out as well. I like to see Miranda Lambert take over Blake's chair for a season. Maybe season 7 can be Usher (in Adam's Chair) Cee Lo, Shakira and Miranda. That might prove very entertaining.
So here we are in season 4 and down to the top 6.
Let's talk about what happened last night. Shakira commented at the top of the show that if Sasha Allen went home it would be her coach's fault. As soon as she said it I thought of Adam's team and the choices they had made song-wise. I already had a hunch that Sarah Simmons would go because Gotye's "Somebody that I used to know" is generally the kiss of death on singing shows. (Just watch the Vegas week of this season of American Idol for proof of that.)
Judith Hill sang the wrong song on Monday night. She sang "#ThatPower" very well because she is an amazing vocalist, but it was the wrong song and her choice of non-standard jazz-infused arrangements of songs always disconnected me from the performances. I could never fault her singing. Not once. I faulted her arrangement choices almost every single week. Here's the rub though. Her performance of "Sweet Nothing" with Michelle Chamuel on the elimination show was pure power and had she sung THAT song on Monday night, she wouldn't be eliminated now. I'm certain of it.
Watching Amber Carrington and Holly Tucker duet "Does he Love You" last night underscored one key thing that Adam needs to consider; Amber is an incredible country vocalist. Let her sing country next week and beat Blake at his own game. With all his eggs now in one basket, Mr. Levine needs to go back to basics. He needs the best Amber he can get. He needs her right in her wheelhouse.
Usher's sole survivor Michelle Chamuel is incredible. I love how much she's grown and how centered her performances have become as she has made the most of Usher's unorthodox coaching. I want her to win the whole thing. She has something special vocally that really gets to me each week. The problem is team Blake. Specifically, Danielle Bradbury.
Danielle has a combination of doe-eyed innocence and faultless vocal talent that is hard to fight against. Other than last nights lackluster "A Thousand Years" duet with Sarah Simmons, Danielle has been a juggernaut of consistent excellence. Week in and week out she has laid down a performance worth note. She's out charted her competition the same way that Cassadee Pope did last season. She is the one to beat right now. The rest of team Blake isn't exactly shabby though. The Swon Brothers are going to have a great career no matter what happens here and Holly Tucker made the right move this week in going for a strong lively country song. Team Blake is Country Strong and he is going to be hard to beat!
We're at the top 6 now though, so all it takes is that perfect song and performance to shake everything up.
Sasha Allen (my crush of this season) needs that moment badly. I see her as being on the cusp right now. She has managed to stay in it but has yet to have a genuine moment. This coming Monday would be the best possible time to capture the ears and hearts of America and propel herself forward.
I've really enjoyed this season and Usher and Shakira have been a nice breath of fresh air to the show. I miss Cee Lo's quirkiness but find that XTina's absence has improved the tone of the show in a variety of ways. I understand that Cee Lo and XTina are back for season 5 then Shakira and Usher return for Season 6. What I'd like to see is Adam and Blake swap out as well. I like to see Miranda Lambert take over Blake's chair for a season. Maybe season 7 can be Usher (in Adam's Chair) Cee Lo, Shakira and Miranda. That might prove very entertaining.