The Voice Recap: Tears and Cheers Galore as the Knockouts Conclude

Emotions ran high as The Voice’s Season 26 Knockouts came to a close Monday night. Uncle Snoop Dogg was even reduced to tears by the prospect of picking between three of his contestants. Was his choice really so hard, though? Let’s discuss all the performances, then we can debate it out in the comments.

Team Reba: Lauren-Michael Sellers singing “Hold On to Me” (Grade: B+) defeated Danny Joseph singing “It Hurt So Bad” (Grade: A) and Tate Renner singing “In Color” (Grade: B) — Danny saved by Reba | Up first, Danny was so present and so compelling, if you’d been listening to him in a bar, you wouldn’t have even been able to look away long enough to take a sip of your beer. Incredible range and enough control to manage to sound excitingly out of control. Absolutely dynamic! Next, Lauren-Michael took us to church with her Lauren Daigle cover, delivering a performance that was beautiful and poised… and not nearly as thrilling as Danny’s. Batting cleanup, Tate unleashed his appealing rasp and turned the storyteller vibe up to 11. The song was kind of a snoozer, but Tate was so into it that he reeled me in, too.

Team Gwen: Sydney Sterlace singing “Bruises” (Grade: A-) defeated Jan Dan singing “Angels Like You” (Grade: C) — Jan Dan saved by Gwen | Tackling Miley Cyrus’ ballad, Jan seemed “off” to me, pretty much through the whole number. I’m sure it was technically fine, or the show would have cut him short, but it felt as flat as a pancake that’s been run over by a semi. Twice. Taking on a Lewis Capaldi number that Sydney said was more in her wheelhouse than her previous songs, the 15-year-old shone. She demonstrated great range and control and sang with ear-catching emotional openness. “You sound like you could win the show,” Snoop told her. And Uncle Snoop don’t lie! (Mor Ilderton was supposed to have competed in the three-way Knockout, but as Gwen explained to Sting in rehearsal, he’d had to go home after the Battles.)

Team Snoop: Aliyah Khaylyn singing “Angel” (Grade: A+) defeated Georgia Starnes singing “Parachute” (Grade: B) and Mary McAvoy singing “High and Dry” (Grade: A) | Odd the way this Knockout was edited, no, with each performance being followed immediately by Snoop’s evaluation. But at least we got to hear a bit of all three contestants. I’m a sucker for Georgia’s power, but Chris Stapleton didn’t seem like the ideal song choice for her. Mary sounded absolutely flawless on her Radiohead cover. But Aliyah… Lord! She slayed Halle Bailey’s hit, which would test any vocalist’s range and endurance. Aliyah was altogether on fire, belting with a force that could reach other planets and so great a mastery of her instrument, even Beyoncé would have to tip her hat!

Team Snoop: Mikaela Ayira singing “Scars to Your Beautiful” (Grade: B) defeated Torre Blake singing “Slow Burn” (Grade: C) and ChrisDeo singing “Beneath Your Beautiful” (Grade: B-) | First to take center stage, ChrisDeo introduced a new version of herself that didn’t look at all like a deer in headlights. She actually seemed to be enjoying herself on stage and hit some really lovely sections of Labrinth’s hit to boot. Unfortunately, as much as we may have been cheering her on, her vocal limitations were still impossible to miss. Following ChrisDeo into the spotlight, Mikaela’s confidence and poise set her apart, but she lacked the range to really astound like Aliyah had only moments earlier. Last in line, Torre gave us a tasteful but boring rendition of Kacey Musgraves’ smash. When Torre was done, I felt like, “Did she even really start?” Somehow, picking a winner of this KO reduced Uncle Snoop to tears, which I suppose goes to show how much he cares; actually hearing which contestant had been the best was pretty easy.

Team Bublé: Sofronio Vasquez singing “You Don’t Have to Say You Love Me” (Grade: A) defeated Kiara Vega singing “Call Out My Name” (Grade: B) and Jeremy Beloate singing “Golden Hour” (Grade: B) — Jeremy stolen by Uncle Snoop | Starting the trio off, Jeremy turned JVKE’s hit into musical theater. And while Jeremy has a gorgeous voice and enviable range, his rendition didn’t hold a candle to Bodie’s back in Season 22. Next behind the mic, Kiara flirted with greatness but never quite achieved it. She kept me thinking, “OK, here it comes… No, now here it comes… ” and then the really jaw-dropping part never arrived. Finishing out the night, Sofronio owned the stage as he tore through Dusty Springfield’s classic. He was dramatic, passionate and so brilliant at manipulating his voice, it felt as if he was playing with us, showing off what he could so effortlessly do. Get this man a Bond theme!