The Voice recap: Semifinals results
NBC
He came, he saw, he sang a whole lot of weepy adult contemporary numbers. But in the end, Trevin Hunte — who once reigned as season 3’s no-brainer frontrunner — couldn’t croon his way into a spot in next week’s finals. Judging purely by the comments Trevin garnered from the coaches, this is sort of a shocker; over the weeks, we’ve gotten used to seeing Adam, Christina, Blake and Cee Lo stop just short of naming the kid a musical messiah. (Remember when Cee Lo asked for a moment of silence, “to mourn the loss of all the other competition”?)
In recent weeks, though, Trevin’s star has dimmed. “Walking on Sunshine” aside, his song choices have been safe — to say the least — and entirely within the same power ballad wheelhouse. The final nail in the boring, boring coffin came during the semifinal performances: Anyone who wasn’t even born when Beaches was released has no business dusting off “Wind Beneath My Wings” for a TV talent competition in 2012. (Oh God, suddenly I’m reminded of my own mortality.) And after Terry, Cassadee, and Nicholas all gave demonstrably stronger performances than Trevin last night, his semifinal elimination seemed a foregone conclusion.
But don’t worry, Trevin — there’s hope! As Christina pointed out before his fate was sealed, those who lose reality show singing competitions have the potential to become the next Jennifer Hudson, or the next Queen Xtina. And if nothing else, Trevin is sure to pop up on the show next season, plugging his new album (We Need to Talk About Trevin?) and performing a ballad that’s slightly different from the others because no VH1 Diva has sung it before.
That’s what happened tonight, when season 2 runners up Juliet Simms, Raelynn, and Chris Mann all showed up to familiarize us with their new singles. (Tony Lucca was in the house as well, albeit relegated to the Sprint Skybox. Did Christina take out a restraining order against him or something?) And while it was nice to see these old favorites back in the Voicebox, the performances themselves were a decidedly mixed bag. Juliet’s “Wild Child,” for instance, is sort of a tuneless mess that barely shows off the rocker’s signature snarl. Instead of listening to it, I recommend putting “Oh! Darling” on an endless loop. The Lea Michele hair is totally working for her, though.
NEXT: A country-fried travesty
Next up was ex-Team Blake member Raelynn, who maybe shouldn’t be bragging about how she co-wrote “I Want Your Boyfriend.” This song is to country music as Olive Garden is to authentic Italian cuisine: “He and I go back so far / Oh my gosh, we lived in his first truck / First time we heard Shania Twain / Think we were on the way to Lubbock”? Rhyming “sceeeene” with “everytheeeeng”? Seriously? I know she’s going for a cheeky Taylor Swift sort of thing, but the words — and the song’s obnoxious, girl-hating message — were so off-putting that I couldn’t even appreciate her voice’s cool, gravelly tone.
And finally, there was Team Christina graduate Chris Mann, the season 2 alum who’s arguably had the most commercial success of any Voice contestant. His soaring single, “Roads,” was pleasantly Josh Groban-y, if a little on the dull side. (Psst, Trevin: Maybe you two should collaborate!) Still, it’s undeniably cool that Chris has performed in front of the Obamas and the Bidens. Mama Xtina must be so darn proud.
With Terry, Cassadee, and Nicholas all in the final 3, it’s still tough to say who will or should win the whole kit and caboodle. Judging purely from tonight’s performances, I’d give the victory to Cassadee — she was pretty on point during her duet with Terry on Of Monsters and Men’s “Little Talks.” Terry, on the other hand, sleepwalked through the performance; then again, he sounds pretty great even when he doesn’t exert a lot of effort. Nicholas suffered from a case of the Lower Register Blues during his own duet with Trevin, though he came into his own after “Hero”‘s triumphant key change. And he was way more consistent than poor Trevin, whose breathy take on Mariah proved why he deserved to be sent home.
It all comes down to next week’s finals, a battle vocale that will pit classic rock against punk-pop and funky ’70s grooves. Which one gets your vote, finale performances sight unseen? As long as the answer isn’t “Raelynn,” I can support your decision.
