NBC’s ‘The Voice’ review: Meet Corey Kent White, Brian Johnson, Jeremy Gaynor, more
Let’s face it: While “The Voice” is a very good show, there are some things that it needs to work on. First of all, it always seems that the third or fourth singer ends up getting sent home right away. Meanwhile, the same goes for another singer in the second hour. Another thing: can we have some funnier, lighthearted stories in the near future? We’re not diminishing the sad stories, because everyone has suffered and these tales are relatable. Still, we would love to see someone go in here fully empowered, and ready to rock this entire competition.
Now that we’ve said this, let’s focus on the contestants who actually made it through the blind auditions onto the show.
Ashley Morgan – The first singer of the night, and someone who was a whole lot of fun. It’s not often that you really get a chance to see an old-school singer like her on this show. Pharrell basically had the support of almost everyone other than Blake Shelton in landing her.
Koryn Hawthorne – The show hyped this up as the first big battle between Christina Aguilera and Pharrell Williams for an artist, and it did not disappoint! We thought that Pharrell had the better pitch, but her soulful tone should work well with what Christina has to offer.
Lexi Davila – A very talented young woman, and a battle of the titans: Adam vs. Blake. She’s got an interesting story, and a very good voice to boot. We’re surprised she didn’t get more chairs! In the end, she went with Adam.
Brenna Yeager – Hey look, a country singer who picked Blake Shelton as a coach! Yawn. If there were ever contestants to montage, it is someone who is so predictable from a TV perspective.
Jeremy Gaynor – He serves in the Army, and is the singer for the West Point Band! Cool story. We don’t know if Christina Aguilera having a father from the military helped her, but she did appeal to his musical roots. We hope he lasts for a long time!
Jack Gregori – Well, here is a case of a country singer who is not on Team Blake, mostly because Blake didn’t turn around! He’s on Team Adam, which should be fun in the event that we can see what he can do with a country artist.
Briar Jonnee – She definitely has the name of a pop star. She has the talent, too, if she can get some of those nerves under control. Blake screwed himself on this one by joking around too much, while Pharrell talked more about her actual talent, and won her over because of it.
Brian Johnson – Another tough story, but let’s take that away for a moment: He’s a really good singer. Very soulful, very emotional, and completely engrossing. One of our favorite singers of the entire night. This was a case of Blake winning one rather than shooting himself in the foot, since this guy said he was planning to pick Adam going in.
Corey Kent White – We don’t begrudge Corey for choosing Blake. He’s a country singer from Oklahoma picking another country singer from Oklahoma, and he’s done wonders with the Swon Brothers. What we don’t understand is why this was the final act of the night. Corey’s very good, but despite Pharrell’s filibuster, we saw this one coming the moment that we heard the first word or two come out of his mouth. Not great for unpredictable television.
Who was your favorite on tonight’s blind auditions? Share with a comment! Also, head over here to read our take on last night’s episode, or click here for some other updates on everything we cover right now, courtesy of our CarterMatt Newsletter. (Photo: NBC.)