Which coach is out front to win Season 18 of “The Voice”? Kelly Clarkson has prevailed three of the past four seasons. John Legend has one championship. Blake Shelton is the all-time leader with six. It’s a rookie season for youngster Nick Jonas.
The Top 9 will perform from their homes on Monday evening’s show, with the Top 5 advancing Tuesday night. Here are the remaining contenders for this spring year:
Team Kelly — Megan Danielle, Micah Iverson
Team Nick — Thunderstorm Artist, Allegra Miles
Team Legend — CammWesss, Zan Fiskum
Team Blake — Toneisha Harris, Joanna Serenko, Todd Tilghman
And here are our Top 9 power rankings in the article published today. Do you agree or disagree with the order of these singers?
Follow along with our live updating blog below as we recap this entire two-hour episode for Monday, May 11, on NBC:
8:00 p.m. — It’s Fan Week on “The Voice” and host Carson Daly will casually check in with viewers throughout tonight’s episode. The Top 9 will hit the stage in hopes of making next week’s finale. The top vote-getter on each team will pass into the finale before another is chosen by instant save. Let’s get started!
8:15 p.m. — First up is last week’s wildcard winner from Team Blake, Joanna Serenko. Joanna is dedicating her performance of “Lean on Me” to her sister. Blake has encouraged her to sing out and stop herself from staying in her head voice. The performance is sweet for what it is, but the first half is completely unmemorable. It lacks soul and Joanna’s upper register that Blake was touting isn’t strong enough to carry this bridge. This was just the wrong song choice for Joanna. The coaches disagree with everything I think as a viewer and say the performance was incredible. Blake says her voice floats like a butterfly.
8:25 p.m. — Team Kelly’s top-ranked team member, Micah Iverson, is up next singing “I Will Follow You Into The Dark” in honor of his coach. This is an emotional pop/rock ballad and although it’s not as well-known as some others, it’s a great choice for him. Micah is playing to his strengths and his voice works perfectly with this arrangement. Well done! The coaches give him a round of applause and Kelly says he’s not just a great vocalist, but an amazing artist as well.
8:35 p.m. — Team Blake is up again, this time with Todd Tilghman hitting the stage. He’ll be singing “Love Me” in honor of his children and this is a pretty genius song choice. It will cater brilliantly to his fan base and if he sings this well at all he’ll be in the finale. He does sound good singing this, but the children surrounding him in bean bags may be a bit over the top, even for the sappiest viewers. The important thing is that this song will tug at the heartstrings of America and Todd nailed the modulation. After a big endorsement from Kelly, Blake says he’s thrilled with the performance and his favorite part was Todd’s daughter sleeping through the entire thing.
8:55 p.m. — Team Legend is up next with Zan Fiskum. She’s going to be singing “Never Be the Same” in honor of her little brother. Zan wants to show her versatility by singing a modern pop song and I think this is a wise choice. She’s got an interesting vibe about her but I think she has suffered from the competition taking place at home. It seems more difficult to gain momentum and Zan wasn’t quite as memorable as some other contestants in the early rounds. I thought she nailed this though! Following some kudos from Nick, John commends Zan’s ability to build her own arrangements and says she gives a masterclass in singing.
9:05 p.m. — Team Nick is finally getting started with newlywed Thunderstorm Artis. He’ll be singing “Home” in honor of his wife, Faith. I always cringe when artists sing this song about wanting to go home while they’re in a competition, but it is a beautiful choice — and I guess he’s already at home, so no harm no foul. Thunderstorm has such a great tone and this is incredibly heartfelt, but I might advise a bit more power at this stage of the competition. That said, I can’t imagine him not making the finale. After Blake compliments Thunderstorm’s guitar skills, Nick says the aspiring artist just cleared his way to the finale.
9:15 p.m. — Team Kelly is up again with country/pop singer Megan Danielle. She’s singing “What Hurts the Most” in honor of her siblings. Her gritty vocals are beyond her years but she can be a little closed off when she performs. The experience in front of a live audience would have benefited her. Still I think she’s on the bubble to win the instant save if she isn’t voted into the finale. She’s got a shot! Kelly is crying and is blown away by her distinct tone that sounds “so beautifully broken.”
9:35 p.m. — We continue on with Team Nick’s young pop singer, Allegra Miles. She’s singing the classic, “Overjoyed” and dedicating it to her grandmother. I wouldn’t picture Allegra singing a Stevie Wonder song, but I’m looking forward to her take on it. She might have my favorite tone of anyone on this season, but what are these birds chirping in the background? It’s distracting and the audio seems unbalanced on this performance. Allegra still sounds great and she’s got a deceptively powerful range. After a few compliments from John, Nick says Allegra gave one of her best performances yet.
9:50 p.m. — Team Blake is up next with with the artist he saved last week, Toneisha Harris. She’s taking on the power ballad “Because You Loved Me” and dedicating it to her husband. I think it’s smart for her to sing in this style because she’s got the most powerful voice on the show, but this song would be so much more effective in front of a live audience. I’m also not a fan of the production value that makes it appear as though she’s flying through space. Of course she nails the vocals, I just don’t know if it will get her into the finale. This “at home” environment does her voice no justice. After Kelly invites Toneisha to sing that song at her Las Vegas show in 2021, Blake says Toneisha is a special artist who brings them so much joy with her talent.
9:59 p.m. — Team Legend is closing out the show with CammWess taking the virtual stage. He’s singing “Rainbow” and putting his soulful spin on the country smash. What a smart song choice and it’s always great when an artist can put their own spin on something. He sounds incredible and he’s giving me goosebumps before he even hits the chorus. CammWess gives the performance of the night! Gorgeous. Kelly is sobbing and John called it a “stunning, emotional journey.” What a way to end the show.
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