The Voice US 14: Live Playoffs (Part 1) #TeamBlake

Can this season easily be Blake Shelton's most diverse team yet? I mean, he only has Pryor Baird to represent country - although one can argue about WILKES and Spensha Baker, but whatever. I'm actually not mad about the Blake's selection for his team save for Austin. I thought most of them were decent at the very least.

06. Austin Giorgio
Ain’t That A Kick In The Head
Quite frankly, I never finished any of his performances - this was the first! - and I think I didn’t miss much from Austin, no? The band drowned him out and that was pretty unfortunate. He did work the stage though, I’ll give him that.

05. Gary Edwards
Finesse
Hahah. Seriously? I love myself some Finesse, but not for a showcase like this. The song didn’t give him any opportunity to build a credible case for people to vote for him. Yes, it was fun and current, but there was not enough substance for people to grasp onto. Missed opportunity.

04. Spensha Baker
I Still Believe In You
This was fine. The thing is, after watching a lot of these performances, I couldn’t tell them apart anymore and this was too unremarkable and almost too understated to give a lasting impression. Heck, I’d probably forget about it as soon as I’m done with this post.

03. Kyla Jade
How Great Thou Art
Why Kyla, Why? The beginning half of the performance sounded divine and impeccable that I was about to lose my mind. Her low notes sounded rich and how she caressed those notes were nothing short of beautiful. Then, she let her emotions take over and everything went downhill from there. Look, I’m all for emotional connection to the song - I actually prefer that over just technical singing ability - but keep it together, girl!

02. Pryor Baird
I Was Wrong
I can see it already! This is the type of artist The Voice viewers will eat up. Look at the history of who they vote for and carry until the end, and Pryor’s like the WGWG counterpart for American Idol. It was soulful, it was country, and the way he mixed them together was impressively seamless. I actually didn’t mind that. It was a strong performance.

01. WILKES
Brother
I’ve never been a fan of Wilkes, but this song choice was a great fit for the texture of his voice. The grit and rasp sounded fantastic and all the belting towards the end was unexpectedly astounding. There was a palpable intensity to his delivery that was pretty riveting to watch.

VOTED BY AMERICA
Kyla Jade