‘The Voice’ UK review: Cherry Prince, Jamie Lovatt, Tom Barnwell close blind auditions
It only seems appropriate that “The Voice” UK would star their new episode with a playing of “The Final Countdown.” This is the final episode of the singing competition before we get to the next round, which is the one that nobody gets particularly excited about more often than not.
So this will be the last time that we get a chance to be introduced to all of these singers, which means that feeling of sudden surprise will be gone. It will be replaced with an almost feeling of wonderment after getting to hear many singers for the first time.
Team Kylie Minogue
Nomakhosi, “Get Ready” – Kylie’s final team member was a woman who claimed that she wanted to be the next Beyonce, and at first, we weren’t sold. Then, she had that scatting! That was enough to make us believe that there is something genuinely worthwhile here.
Team Ricky Wilson
Luciee Marie Closier, “Mama Do” – Is this really Luciee’s voice? It is so out there and affected; it’s great if this is the case, but we still have at least a few doubts. With that being said, there is enough pure talent and potential here that it was too tempting of an offer to pass up on.
Jamie Lovatt, “Everybody’s Free” – This was one of the few auditions all season where we actually got emotional, as this guy explained a little of his story, and how he had struggled for many years to get a deal, only to have it dropped as things started to fall apart. The perfect last addition to Ricky’s team.
Team Tom Jones
Gary Poole, “Valerie” – This is a deceptively hard song to do. We really do love his voice, but we don’t really care for the attitude. What’s with questioning the integrity of Kylie Minogue? She’s not going to lie to you! It also didn’t really feel like he was that interesting in going with anyone other than Tom, so it is a good thing he turned.
Kenny Thompson, “New York State of Mind” – Kenny has a huge voice, and he probably actually used way more power during this performance than he really needed to. Then again, we get it when you can do something like this. This performance came a long time after we had another chair turn around, and that made it all the more impactful.
Team will.i.am
Tom Barnwell, “American Boy” – The emergency services worker is getting to transition from a pretty intense profession to something that is much more creative and entertaining. We dig the story, since he’s a guy who has made sure he is taken care of. It’s super-hard on this version of the show to get a four-chair turn, but he did it mostly by having a good voice and actually trying to entertain the crowd.
The moment that we found out that will.i.am was actually behind the beat for “American Boy,” nobody else really had a chance.
Cherry Prince – The final audition of the season; once again, Will waits to the end. Just in case you’re wondering, we assume that the rule is that if he didn’t turn, he would just cycle through past contestants again for the right one. That is at least what happened in the first season in America.
No chairs turned
Jane Fraser, “I Heard It Through the Grapevine” – Anytime that you are auditioning for a singing show, don’t do it with this song. There is not enough to really go on here, though hats off for taking advantage of the opportunity to hit on will.i.am and wear the weirdest dress in show history.
Roxanne Yarnold, “Shake It Off” – What’s wrong with the coaches? This humble barmind was really good, and we know that the “one space left” argument is unfortunate since coaches almost had full teams.
Angie Brown, “I’m Gonna Get You” – This was an interesting strategy for Angie to come out and do the only song she’s known for. From one standpoint, it shows no personal growth over 20 years; but, it also guaranteed her maybe a few more single sales in the event that someone liked the song … so there’s that.
Teresa Vasiliou, “I Found You” – This is where we start to question a little bit the validity of the show’s “all about the voice” claims. While the coaches cannot see the faces of those they are watching, they can still hear enough sometimes to tell a thing or two about why they are. Our theory here? Nobody wanted an older singer, and it really didn’t matter how good she was … and Teresa was fantastic.
Bianca Nicholas, “One” – Brave song choice for anyone on a singing show, given just how iconic “One” is. There were just too many little mistakes in here, including a botched high note near the end.
Aaliyah, “Read All About It” – A little surprised that the singing / rapping didn’t get her. One other future suggestion? Don’t go on this show with that name. That’s like trying to call yourself “Madonna” or “Prince.” You can’t just take the name of another singing great and then perform.
Joe West, “Mirrors” – Guy’s got an okay voice and a pretty nice story, but he really needs to dress like someone other than Justin Bieber.
Liz Oki, “A Different Corner” – There isn’t a whole lot of suspense in someone auditioning for the show at the point that Liz did. Will was the only coach left, and since there was still more than ten minutes left in the show, you knew he wasn’t turning. The biggest thing to come out of that was that touching moment at the end where will.i.am teared up, saying that she reminded him greatly of his late aunt.
Pete Davies, “Roxanne” – Another artist without a turn from Will, who apparently also brought cue-tips along for some prop comedy.
Cherry Prince
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Photo: BBC One