Friday, May 29, 2015

The Voice 8 Wrap-Up: 25 Best Performances

To the obligatory countdown. 28 Episodes. 65 Blind Auditions. 24 Battles. 15 Knockouts. 20 Live Playoffs. 64 Live Performances. The potential this season was undeniably off the roof that I've touted this as the best season ever. That said, what could've been a fantastic season turned out to be quite anti-climatic and lame as the season progressed. Stronger singers got cut early in the competition and by the end of it all, the Final 4 was a rather underwhelming mix.


Looking back though, there were still a couple of outstanding performances throughout the entire season, and yes, this is where this definitive list is for. Again, this is VERY subjective and I guarantee that there will probably be some performances that are nowhere to be found on your list that may be as high as 10 or something on here. But please respond maturely, flames don't make me particularly happy.

Without further ado, here's The Voice Season 7 25 Best Performances!

Honorable Mentions!

If You Love Somebody Set Them Free
Kimberly Nichole
Knockouts

Girl Crush
Meghan Linsey
Top 12

Arms of a Woman
Joshua Davis
Knockouts

Try
Koryn Hawthorne
Knockouts

Say My Name
Travis Ewing
Blind Audition

Here are the TOP 25 Best Performances of Season 8:

25. Amazing Grace
Meghan Linsey
Top 6

I could've gone with an entire acapella of the song, but Meghan still nailed Amazing Grace. The song choice, to begin with, was clever, her vocals were pristine, and not one overdone note in the whole number. This was, arguably, one of her best performances ever.

24. Earned It
Rob Taylor
Live Playoffs

This was a rather inspired performance. I doubted Rob's chances prior to the Playoffs - he seemed very generic - but his version of Earned It was pretty riveting. His vocals were very impressive, his transitions to his falsetto sounded so good, and that last part was pure awesome.

23. Gimme Shelter
Sarah Potenza & Hannah Kirby
Battles

These ladies did justice to Gimme Shelter. To be honest, I didn't think one was better than the other as both really nailed their parts. Their harmonies were good, and their voices individually just exploded with the song. It was intense and fun.

22. Skinny Love
Brooke Adee
Blind Auditions

Absolutely fantastic. Brooke has a voice that's mature beyond her years. Her vocals were spot on, she was connected with the material, and she looked like a star. Tons of potential and at that time, I seriously wanted to hear more from her.

21. Chicken Fried
Corey Kent White
Blind Auditions

I will say outright that I'm not the biggest country fan - and it's takes A LOT for me to root for one - and somehow Corey made me enjoy his performance right off the bat with Chicken Fried. There's an appealing scratchy quality to his tone that interesting, and the charisma was undeniable.

20. All I Want
Deanna Johnson
Blind Auditions

I heard shades of Sarah Simmons in her audition and yes, that one was probably one of the most memorable blind auditions of the series. No, this wasn't as remarkable, but Deanna sounded really good especially with the liberties she took with the arrangement of the song and her tone was full and rich.

19. Glory
India Carney
Top 6

Vocally, this was possibly one of India's best performances on the show. Her pitch was on point, her vibrato was much more controlled, there were a couple of tasteful run placements, and she seemed really connected with the song choice. Solid showing from India.

18. Nutbush City Limits
Kimberly Nichole
Blind Auditions

From the get-go, Kimberly proved to be one fierce of a performer. There's something striking and compelling about her. I thought her tone sounded awesome on the song, the grit and texture to her voice had an interesting sound, the choices she made melodically were spot on, and a strong stage presence to boot.

17. Wasted Love
Sarah Potenza
Knockouts

I never thought someone from The Voice would actually cover a song from one of the show's past contestants. Ok, they've done it with a Cassadee Pope song before, but I digress. This was fantastic from Sarah! The grit in her voice when she started belting the chorus sounded terrific, the intensity was riveting to watch, and the quiet moments were just as solid.

16. New York State of Mind
India Carney
Blind Auditions

Very nice. For some, her quick vibrato and runs maybe a bit too much, which she fixed throughout the competition, but her voice just sounded stellar on New York State of Mind. There's depth to her delivery, her tone was lovely, and her choice of runs towards the end were solid.

15. I Am A Man of Constant Sorrow
Sawyer Fredericks
Blind Auditions

Not going to lie, Sawyer's not my cup of tea, but I can't deny the fact that he's arguably had one of the best blind auditions this season. There's a raw quality to his vocals that's oddly fantastic, his interpretation of the song was interesting, the groove of the song suited him well, and he just showed major talent and potential to do good in this competition right from the start.

14. Ain't No Sunshine
Mia Z
Live Playoffs

Her tone sounded silky, her pitch was impeccable, some of her choices with the melody was very informed, and the subtlety and nuance in some parts were tasteful. I thought it was smart of Pharrell to advise her not to use her whistle tone this time and she was still really awesome. She needed to work on her diction, but other than that, she's golden.

13. Live Like You Were Dying
Corey Kent White
Knockouts

Solid. He may not have the best singing voice in the competition, but he has something that Cody doesn't have - undeniable charisma. His tone sounded gorgeous on the song complemented by some interesting phrasing choices, and palpable connection to the material.

12. Dirty Diana
Kimberly Nichole
Top 6

WHAT! Dear Kimberly Nichole, this was fantastic! The swagger was unreal, the vocals were impeccable, and the control was awesome. Sure, I could've used more vocal dynamics, but I somehow didn't mind. This performance looked like a star went on to perform on The Voice stage. It was THAT good.

11. Stay
India Carney & Clinton Washington
Battles

While there's no doubt that India was a superior singer than Clinton, I thought he held his own in this Battle resulting to a pretty impressive one. They were both connected with the material, the runs were precise and spot on, and their harmonies sounded really gorgeous especially in the middle part of the song.

10. Hold On, I'm Coming
Mia Z
Knockouts

The arrangement at first sounded sluggish, but somehow Mia turned it around with her impeccable vocals. Her vocal choices were on point, her runs were precise, and her range was excellent and how she used it to deliver a showstopping performance was genius. I've never considered her as an actual threat in the competition, but I think she just made a solid case for herself with this one.

09. I Want Crazy
Corey Kent White & Jacob Rummell
Battles

Goodness! I initially thought - given the song choice - that Corey Kent White had this in the bag. So while his charisma and vocal texture added good dimension to the duet, Jacob's clear vocals and on point pitch gave him a run for his money. Plus, they looked like they were seriously having fun. 

08. Oh Mary Don't You Weep
Koryn Hawthorne
Top 5

I admit, I didn't really understand half of what she was simging - her diction was terrible - but somehow, I didn't really mind a bit and I went with her throughout the whole performance. There's something oddly magnetic and transcendent about her version of the song. Plus, her vocals just soared and the arrangement was brilliant.

07. Put The Gun Down
Mia Z & Ashley Morgan
Battles

This will probably go down as one of the greatest Battles on the show ever! Ashley was technically a better singer than Mia given that she have zero vocal flaw throughout the performance, but Mia was right with her with that unique tone and incredible range. 

06. Earth Song
India Carney
Top 5

This was the week when India clearly had a fantastic week. I was a bit iffy with song choice at first, but she clearly had something in mind. The interpretation had the over-the-top awesomeness, her vocals were exceptional, her battle with wind machine and the staging added to the brilliance of the performance, and she completely nailed it. To me, this was India's best performance on the show.

05. It's A Man's Man's World
Koryn Hawthorne
Finale

This song sit right in Koryn's sweet spot. True, I surely had doubts with the overdone song choice, but then again, a lot of people managed to make some stellar moments with the song - Juliet Simms for example - and Koryn was no exception. This was sensational. Her vocal control was impeccable, the pitch was spot on, and she just sang the living daylights out of this song. There's an impressive maturity to her delivery that's insane!

04. The Thrill Is Gone
Mia Z
Blind Auditions

While I agree with Adam that she sounded a bit affected especially with her tone, I thought Mia Z showed a great deal of promise with this blind audition. The song choice, to begin with, came off inspired, her vocal range was unreal, her control was terrific, and her transitions were difficult to pull off, but she did effortlessly and with a couple of pretty good melodic choices here and there.

03. What's Up
Kimberly Nichole
Live Playoffs

One word: Fan-freakin-tastic! Enough said. 

02. Make It Rain
Koryn Hawthorne
Top 10

WOW. I didn't know Koryn had it in her! This was superb beyond words. The vocal dynamics were fantastic, her rich tone was front and center, the emotional connection was palpable, and everything was just flat out awesome. This was truly an outstanding performance.

01. House of the Rising Sun
Kimberly Nichole
Top 12

I'm not worthy. Oh. My. God.


1 comments:

letitgo said...

No Sonic? Totally wrong!

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