John Legend wrapped up the recent blind audition rounds of “The Voice” Season 17 with a whopping five artists that were four-chair turns, more than any other coach. Surprisingly, he decided to pair up two such artists during Monday’s final battle episode: Preston C. Howell and Mendeleyev. And since John had already used up his save and steal, that meant one of these artists was definitely heading home. After watching their performance of “Fire and Rain,” John advanced 14-year-old Preston to the Knockouts, thereby saying goodbye to 28-year-old Mendeleyev. Did he make the right decision? Watch “The Voice” battle video above and sound off down in the comments section.
Mendeleyev auditioned with the song “Girl from the North Country,” which showed off his low-toned country voice. Preston’s blind audition song was “Dream a Little Dream of Me,” a perfect choice to showcase his crooner stylings.
Following their battle, John proclaimed, “Your voices are extremely different. This song was a bit more in Mendeleyev’s wheelhouse. Your tone is just so rich and beautiful, it just brought everybody in. It was like, ahh, we’re home now. Preston, you didn’t let that deter you. You’re young and you’re really versatile. You have a great range, poise, control.” He then announced, “The winner of this battle is Preston.”
Last year was John’s first time coaching on “The Voice” and he was rewarded with a victory thanks to folk singer Maelyn Jarmon. Can Preston make it all the way and bring Team Legend his second victory in two seasons?
In his “The Voice” live blog, our recapper Kevin Jacobsen had this to say about the battle: “Preston and Mendeleyev take the stage, and there is a bit of a disparity already, seeing Mendeleyev commanding from the start. But Preston makes it a powerful vocal match, with a dynamic waver in his voice. Gwen commends the pair for flipping their harmony parts throughout, saying she wants to see more from Preston in this competition. Kelly says Mendeleyev is a beast but also is impressed with Preston for stepping outside his comfort zone. Blake says there’s something about Preston’s voice that has made him take notice from the start. John observes their different strengths and decides to pick Preston.”
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