‘The Voice’ Top 8 Recap: P!nk Monday
This will be a brutal top eight week on The Voice. Four singers will go home, all at once, on Tuesday night, and with most of the contestants delivering gauntlet-throwing, do-or-die performances this Monday, America’s decision will be tough. Sure, a quadruple-elimination may make for exciting and suspenseful TV, but it’s no fun for fans of awesome singing, and, obviously, it’s even more of a drag for the contestants themselves – especially for those just starting to hit their stride now.
Thankfully, we had P!nk on board this Monday, in a multi-team guest advisor role, to lift all of our spirits. I’ve been wanting P!nk to sign up for a singing-show job for years now – seriously, every time a superstar judge left or was rumored to be leaving American Idol, The X Factor, et al, I hoped P!nk would hop on board. Granted, her Voice appearance was just a one-off (and a blatant promotional push for Alice Through the Looking Glass, which features her new single). And she was a lot nicer than I thought/hoped she’d be; she basically one-upped Adam Levine in the hyperbole department and declared every contestant that walked through the rehearsal room doors the best singer of all time. But she was the first mentor to advise a contestant to “clench your butt cheeks” – something even Miley Cyrus never thought to say – and that was pure TV gold.
Let’s get the party started and recap… before the party’s over Tuesday night.
Shalyah Fearing (Team Adam)
Taking on the Dreamgirls classic “And I Am Telling You,” a song that by its very design is supposed to sound shrieky and desperate, was a risky move for Shalyah – who, well, sometimes comes off a little shrieky and desperate. (The poor girl was probably feeling especially desperate this Monday, since producers stuck her in the “death spot.”) It’s also a very overdone song; at this point in my reality-recapping career, I really only want to see “And I Am Telling You” sung by Norman Gentle or lip-synched by Chi Chi DeVayne. But I have to say, Shalyah sold it. Her trademark growl, which can sometimes be off-putting, worked with this tune, and she gave her performance everything she had – possibly because she knew it would be her swan song.
The coaches, however, didn’t seem to think Shalyah was out of the running just yet. Christina Aguilera praised Shalyah for being “fearless” and told her, “You brought it today on this stage.” Pharrell Williams called her “amazing.” And her coach Adam gushed, “I am so overjoyed that we got to have this moment – the moment we’ve been wanting to have for so many weeks.” It may have all been too little, too late, but Shalyah proved she’s a fighter, and she went down swinging.
Paxton Ingram (Team Blake)
Of course Paxton – the other contestant most at risk this week, after narrowly escaping elimination last week – went second. The disadvantageous placement alone most likely sealed his fate, but his song choice, Meat Loaf’s “I Would Do Anything for Love,” didn’t help his chances for a miraculous comeback. This would have been the crucial time for Paxton to sing another inspirational song. (He had his best iTunes week when he covered Tasha Cobbs’s “Break Every Chain.”) But instead, he did a schmaltzy early-‘90s power ballad that was way too big for him. This wasn’t the total disaster I’d feared it would be, and it wasn’t even his first Meat Loaf song of the season. (His top 10 week song, the Jim Steinman-penned “It’s All Coming Back to Me Now,” was also once recorded by Mr. Loaf.) Paxton committed to the performance – he has always been one of the top performers of Season 10 – but his vocals weren’t quite strong enough.
“I never would have expected a Meat Loaf song from you,” said Christina, clearly not up on her Jim Steinman trivia, “but you pulled it off with your energy, your energetic smile.” (Note: Christina did not say “with your vocals.”) Pharrell vaguely suggested that Paxton go to Broadway, which could have been interpreted as shade. (But it wasn’t a bad suggestion, actually.) Coach Blake Shelton, always loyal and supportive, laid it on thick and declared, “I don’t know that I’ve ever been more proud of an artist that I’ve had a chance to work with on this show.” However, with Blake still in the running with the more consistent (and more popular) Adam Wakefield and Mary Sarah, it seemed unlikely that Paxton would be the singer representing Team Blake in next week’s finale.
Laith Al-Saadi (Team Adam)
Laith, a hirsute bluesman known for covering B.B. King and shredding on guitar, made a smart choice this week. Normally I call for a moratorium on all Adele songs on all singing competitions, but Adele’s “One and Only” was fantastic for Laith, because it showed, in Laith’s own words, that he “can take anything, regardless of the era or feel, and make it [his] own.” And Laith did just that. This was a powerful, self-assured performance with Laith’s signature style stamped all over it – and he didn’t even have to “clench his butt cheeks,” as P!nk had amusingly advised, to hit Adele’s high notes.
Blake, who in the past has criticized Laith for relying too much on his guitar work, admitted, “I’ll be the first to sit here and say that guitar solo worked, man. I was wrong.” Pharrell once again enthusiastically rallied America to vote for Laith. (Pharrell has literally expressed more support for Laith this season than he has for most of his own team members. I bet Daniel Passino is still annoyed.) Adam was just as keen, telling Laith, “I would kind of be most proud if you were to make it through, because you represent something that is so near and dear to my heart.”
Alisan Porter (Team Xtina)
Alisan started off this season as a frontrunner – the “Jordan Smith” or “unicorn” of Season 10 – but after last week’s Aerosmith cover received mixed reviews from critics and failed to make much of a showing on the iTunes chart, I think she started to realize she may not win this show – or even make it to the top four. That’s probably why there was just the slightest tinge of Shalyah-like desperation to her rendition of the Eagles’ “Desperado” this evening. That being said, Alisan deserves to be in the finale. This performance was lovely and elegant (I like Alisan best on soft, gentle folk-rock ballads like this one and “Blue Bayou,” the other Linda Rondstadt-popularized cover she did this season). And she for the most part kept her embellishments under control – something Christina warned her about in rehearsal. Alisan is a pro.
“You really can do everything… not just all the tricks in your bag, but also in a way that connects you emotionally to the performance, the song, and to the audience. You really do have it all,” said Adam. “I’m just bursting with pride and admiration for you and your talent. You truly have such a gift, and to bring it to this stage is amazing. To do the Eagles, it’s such a special, special song in the hearts of so many, and for you to get up there and deliver it the way you did was beautiful and epic. It was everything,” raved Christina.
Adam Wakefield (Team Blake)
Alisan’s performance may have been beautiful and epic, but Adam took things to an entirely higher level. Sitting at his piano doing Blake’s own (Chris Stapleton-penned) “I’m Sorry,” Adam was bringing “November Rain” drama, or almost seeming like a country Elton John. The sparse piano arrangement showcased his rich-but-raspy tone in the best possible way, resulting in a goosebump-raising performance – the best of the night, and possibly Adam’s best of the season. Blake Shelton should never try to sing this song again. It’s Adam Wakefield’s song now. Blake even quipped, “I’m embarrassed that I ever sang that song after hearing him do this song.”
After Adam Levine gleefully agreed with Blake’s remark, he added, more seriously: “Sometimes when the audience gets a little bit quiet it can be a really bad thing, but for you, it’s really the opposite. Everybody was so taken with what you were doing that you could hear a pin drop. Everyone was blown away.”
Bryan Bautista (Team Xtina)
Like Adam Wakefield, Bryan decided to do a song made famous by his own coach: Christina Aguilera’s Back to Basics weeper “Hurt” (co-written by Mark Ronson and Linda Perry). While his performance – inspired by his heartbreaking experience with his estranged father – wasn’t as spectacular as last Monday’s show-closing, show-stopping “1 + 1” (due to some painful notes at the end), it was still extremely moving. What Bryan lacked in perfect pitch, he more than made up for with pure passion and pain. If only the key had been brought down a little, so that Bryan’s vocals weren’t so strained, this performance could have easily secured him a spot in the top four.
“What impressed me personally about tonight was it takes a lot of courage not just to be a great singer, but to be able to be enough in touch with your emotions…. I applaud you for doing that, because that’s not an easy thing,” said Adam. “What you did was absolutely incredible… You made it your own. That was absolutely beautiful. I want to hear it again,” said Christina.
Mary Sarah (Team Blake)
Mary has been one of those in-limbo, middle-pack contestants, but her sweet cover of Randy Travis and Carrie Underwood’s “I Told You So” might give her an edge in this important week. The country music fans (and Blake Shelton fans) who watch The Voice and vote in droves will love what Mary did this Monday. This was a gorgeous classic-country effort; while some of Mary’s past performances have felt pageant-y, all surface, this one had heartache and depth. But why did half of this performance bizarrely take place behind a wall of billowing, gauzy sheets? Did the set director of Kim Carnes’s and Quarterflash’s ‘80s music videos design this stage? Mary was so obscured from view for most of this, it was like she giving another Blind Audition. But at least she sounded great.
“That was beautiful. I so enjoyed that. I just wanted to be in there with you with all the flowing curtains,” said avowed linens enthusiast Christina. Said Blake: “I want people in this audience and Hollywood, from now on when they ask me what’s good in country music, I want them to YouTube what Mary Sarah just did. That was 100 percent pure, solid, great, phenomenal country music.”
Hannah Huston (Team Pharrell)
Hannah did another overdone song, Percy Sledge’s “When a Man Loves a Woman” (shouldn’t it have been retired after Joshua Ledet slayed it on American Idol Season 11?), but she made me love it all over again. Her a cappella intro was fantastic, and while her energy lagged a bit in the middle section and she seemed to be holding back, she must have been saving her strength for the big finish, when her fell to her knees, Jordan Smith-style, and wailed with all the gusto of one of her toddler-aged students throwing a tantrum. (I mean that in a good way.) With a massive, standing-ovation-earning performance like this, in the pimp spot, Hannah could pull off an “upset” and “steal” a top four spot from one of the “frontrunners.”
“We take you for granted… I feel like you’re the weird stealth assassin of this show right now. Here you are, a week before the finale, and you’re killing it,” said Adam.
The contestants all paired up for duets as well this Monday, and while none of these twosome performances received critiques, and it’s hard to know how much they will ultimately influence the individual contestants’ votes, here are my thoughts…
Adam Wakefield & Alisan Porter
The presumed frontrunners joined forces for John Prine and Bonnie Raitt’s “Angel From Montgomery,” and I felt like I was already watching the finale with the top two. While the song was slightly more in Adam’s wheelhouse than Alisan’s, their voices blended beautifully. This was definitely the strongest pairing of the night.
Bryan Bautista & Mary Sarah
Everything about this duet was a mismatch. An R&B crooner and a retro-country spitfire, doing Ariana Grande’s “Break Free”? It doomed to fail, since the clubby, Hi-NRG pop song didn’t highlight either singer’s strengths. This is the part when I say I don’t want it, indeed. These two are lucky they both had strong solo performance to fall back on this week.
Hannah Huston & Laith Al-Saadi
This was the other successful pairing of the night, on Eddie Floyd’s “Knock on Wood,” a fiery blues jam that worked for both very different singers. There probably won’t be a Voice Season 10 tour, but if there ever was, Hannah and Laith would have to perform this crowd-pleaser every night.
Paxton Ingram & Shalyah Fearing
The two underdogs were forced to pair up on “Masterpiece,” and, well, it was far from what the song’s title promised. The two looked like they having fun and had decent onstage chemistry, but the performance was messy and fussy, with both singers trying to do too much with the difficult Jessie J pop power ballad. (To be fair, Shalyah struggled more than Paxton did.) If there had been any chance of Paxton and Shalyah surviving Tuesday’s cut, this duet – the worst of the four – dashed those hopes.
So now, it is prediction time. It’s already obvious that I think the bottom two, automatically going home, will be Shalyah and Paxton. But who will comprise the top four? I predict Adam, Alisan, Laith, and Hannah, though there’s a possibility that Mary or Bryan could score one of those spots instead. All I know is, whatever happens, some really great singers are going home this week, way too soon. Tune in later as we go from “P!nk Monday” to “Red Tuesday,” when I recap this week’s results night bloodbath.
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