After watching The official season 11 premiere of The Voice I’m psyched! Although the tagline for The Voice season 11 – “This Changes Everything” is an exaggeration, this season does have some very different vibes going on. The big one is cooperation. Not in terms of the other coaches ganging up on Adam Levine. That part is old – but still fun!
What seems to be the largest difference is the way new coaches Miley Cyrus and Alicia Keys are competing – at least for now. The Voice has always maintained that the show is about wanting to nurture new artists. This season that idea is more upfront that ever.
In past seasons the blind auditions have always been about the coaches competition to get what they thought were the best voices – period. While it is still about the best voices, both Alicia & Miley have shown more concern about the best matches for the singers – even if it’s not them.
That’s not saying that there isn’t any fun teasing and bantering going on. There’s still plenty of that. As I recap the season 11 premiere of The Voice you’ll see what I mean.
The Season 11 Premiere of The Voice: The Auditions
Jason Warrior: 21
Cutie-pie Jason Warrior is from a tough neighborhood in Chicago. His biological father has been, “in and out of jail” since before Jason was born. However, the video montage also shows he’s had a good family life with his mom, stepdad and little brothers.
Jason is a college graduate who went to college on a theatre scholarship. The song he’s chosen is the Stevie Wonder classic “Living for the City.” As he’s walking in he talks about how the song reflects his life, He’s also very determined to beat the odds.
“I refuse to be that person you see on the headlines.”
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Z_jHkNUETQ?rel=0]
If you didn’t know Jason had a theatre background, you would as soon as he starts singing. He has a good voice, but his style is very Broadway. That’s fine if his real goal is to do musical theatre. Being on The Voice will give him a ton of exposure to Broadway producers and be a great selling point for casting. However, if he wants to be a pop/r&b star he’s going to have to work on losing that kind of presentation.
Two of the coaches will turn for Jason: Adam and Alicia. Adam tries hard, and Alicia lets him dream a bit before she turns on the sass:
I’m going to just cut my way in here so Adam can stop talking.
Blake and Adam start doing their thing, and Miley jumps in as well! The two basically gang up on Adam to sell Alicia as Jason’s coach. It’s hilarious!
Jason shows some savvy personality in leading Adam on in terms of having a shot. Ultimately he chooses Alicia.
Dave Moisan: 33
This guy is a medical equipment sales rep and was a high school swimming champ. He didn’t get into singing until college, and says he was in part inspired by meeting Adam! …After you hear him sing, you can definitely understand why!
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iXsdJGaL_K4?rel=0]
It’s not surprising this was a four chair turn. I remember the original 1997 version of “Sex and Candy” by Marcy Playground. Adam’s band Maroon 5 covered in 2014. Although there are a few moments where Dave sounds just like Adam, the arrangement and stylings on the song are unique – and good.
Best moment in the coaches banter fest that follows comes from Miley:
There’s already one Adam Levine in this world. We don’t need two. We barely need one – just kidding! (I love you actually, so, so much!)”
She and Blake really hammer in that just because Dave has a great falsetto voice that’s similar to Adam’s it doesn’t mean he should work with Adam. Meanwhile, Adam is emphasizing how similar he and Dave are and how that makes him the best one to understand Dave.
Alicia’s pitch to Dave is awesome though! She hones in on the one thing no one else picked up on – the soulfulness in Dave’s voice. There’s soul, and a little bit of jazz in Dave’s rendition. When she says that Adam basically doesn’t have the depth musically to really go there, she’s got him. What a steal!
Courtnie Ramirez: 17
Absolutely nothing in this Texas girl’s background story prepares me for the spunky voice and attitude that hits the stage. She started out singing in church and is studying songwriting with pros at a Christian camp. There’s nothing wrong with that, but the sound and feel I’m expecting is more Amy Grant, Mandy Moore, or even the more contemporary Kari Jove. What comes out instead is my biggest surprise of the night!
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f_0tWUCcRfc?rel=0&w=640&h=360]
This is one of those different moments I was talking about earlier. Alicia sees Miley’s enthusiasm and encourages her to buzz in. Then Alicia buzzes in as well, but it’s really just to support Miley! She even says, “It’s you, Miley!” She wanted Adam to buzz in, probably for more drama, but Adam thought it would be more fun to watch her and Miley fight for someone. He was expecting something like he and Blake I guess.
That Adam didn’t push his button didn’t matter in terms of the squabbling those! He and Blake do what they do best – even without being in on trying to win the singer. Alicia gets in on it as well. She’s definitely showing that although she has this “deep,laid-back, spiritual vibe, she has no problem handing out the smackdowns!
Just to not make it a complete give away, Alicia does pitch to Courtnie when it’s revealed the 17-year-old has an interest in R&B. It forces Miley to pitch harder – which is good. She goes with the fact that she’s younger – and totally cracks me up!
I just saw an eight-year-old – and we had on the same outfit backstage.
Courtnie picks Miley – but really, why wouldn’t she? At the beginning of all of this Alicia basically told Courtnie that Miley would be the better coach for her. I think she’s right – at least to start with. Courtnie, like Miley, has a big voice and a big personality. However. I could see her going to Alicia in a steal later. I’m curious to see how Courtnie does. I think she’ll definitely make the lives!
Sundance Head: 37
Now this guy was an interesting audition! He hails from Texas and everything about him screams “country music!” He’s a second generation musician. His father led a successful 1960’s rockabilly band called The Traits that’s in the Rockabilly Hall of Fame. Sundance has been gigging with his own band for about 10 years.
What’s interesting is that the coach he says he’d like to work with is Alicia! Was not expecting to hear that! He does the Otis Redding song, “I’ve Been Loving You Too Long.” Alicia and Miley sit this one out though.
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=28i9QHEWuAc?rel=0]
After watching Adam and Blake battle this one out…I’m a little concerned about Adam. He actually had a shot at reeling in Sundance, but then royally screws up with the guys kids! Maybe it’s for the best though. No one’s ever said that country music can’t have some soul to it. He’s much better served being on Blake’s team.
Maggie Renfroe: 16
This 16-year-old self-taught musician is from Georgia. There she volunteers at her local children’s hospital where she plays music for kids. Her interest in this comes from having an autistic older cousin. She sings “Lost Boy” from Neverland.
Maggie is literally a sweet heart – and clearly she’s talented. However, singing for kids isn’t the same as singing for a crowd and you can hear in her voice that she’s nervous. No one turns around, but they give her lots of encouragement and advice. Maggie lights up when Miley says she’s “an awesome guitar player and a great singer.” I’m not at all surprised to hear Blake tell Maggie to “come back next year and win this thing.”
Ali Calwell: 28
We saw Ali’s audition as a sneak peek, so we already know she’s a four-chair turn. ( You can see that here) In terms of her background though, we didn’t know much. Ali’s listed as being from Brooklyn, New York and has been singing and dancing since she was little. At twenty she was in a girl group for Patti Labelle and the group Boyz-2-Men. That didn’t really go anywhere though. Then a jazz musician heard her sing at an open-mic and offered her a gig to go on tour with him – in Russian! She actually has a bit of a following there!
The real question about Ali was who she would pick as a coach. I had a feeling about this one – and I was right. She picked Miley!
Frankly, I think Miley landed Ali with her opening conversation. Adam buzzed in first and Miley waited and was third after Blake. However, she was the first one to speak. Breaking into Ali’s introducing herself with – “and I’ve just won The Voice, cool!” definitely overwhelmed Ali. That feeling had to carry a lot. Furthermore, Miley comes back to idea when she snaps back to Adam about her lack of experience and not having ever won a season. That bit has been in most of the promos.
I’m new! I ain’t been on no seasons! I’m about to win one though. I’m about to win season 11 with – this girl.
The natural pick for Ali would be Alicia, but looking at Ali’s reactions to Miley I thought, “Oh my God, she’s gonna pick Miley!”
It’s not a bad match. Alicia’s team could get overstocked with singers like Ali – which means having to let some of them go. Ali’s likely to last longer being on Miley’s team. Besides, Miley’s actually worked with Ariana Grande – and Ali’s song choice, “Dangerous Woman” is one of hers. (I still think she may get stolen from Miley later though!)
Riley Elmore: 16
Riley’s audition was another four-chair sneak peek. (You can see it here). The sixteen-year-old from Illinois is a fan of Frank Sinatra and has that kind of voice and style. All we were waiting to see is who he would pick as his coach. It seemed like Adam would finally get someone…and he did!
Dana Harper:
This is Dana’s official bio:
Dana traveled a lot growing up as the daughter of NBA player Derek Harper. Her high school choir teacher took special interest in Dana and she made all-state for four years and became the #1 tenor in Texas. Dana moved to New York to attend college and began performing around the city. She performed at Showtime at the Apollo, placed second on BET’s 106 & Park and won MTV’s Wild ‘N Out Wednesday. Currently, Dana performs once a week in the Dallas area and books all of her gigs by word of mouth.
Dana’s audition is my personal favorite of the night – as in I’ve downloaded her version of the Nick Jonas song, “Jealous” from iTunes.
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8E0BnKKlYts?rel=0]
As good as Dana is, Miley doesn’t turn around. I loved her reasoning though. In her straightforward manner she tells Dana that although she loved Dana’s voice she didn’t think she’d be helpful as a coach. There’s a real maturity in that. Why go after some one just because you can. It just complicates things for the singer having to choose.
Alicia seems like the best coach for Dana. However, when Dana says, “hey, Daddy” to her father backstage there’s a mix up with thinking she’s talking to Blake. The ensuing awkward & playful flirtation made me think she might choose Blake – and she does.
I’m was a little worried about this, but then he asks Alicia if he’s help him out with some good song choices for her – and she says yes! Again, there’s this thing about the most important thing for Alicia and Miley is helping nurturing the artist.
Gabe Broussard: 15
15-year-old Gabe is from Louisiana, and he a sweet 15-year-old. At fifteen he has his own band. There’s a sad aspect to his story: he has a vision disease where he’s eventually going to go blind.
The song Gabe does is “Lonely Night in Georgia” and despite his age he has the emotional depth to pull it off!
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZmQCmYoZEUw?rel=0]
Blake hits his buzzer early, but Miley waits to buzz in. He’s very smooth, but when she hears more rasp in his voice she hits the buzzer. Both Alicia & Adam tells Gabe they regrets not turning around for him. (So, a possible steal later….?)
It’s Miley that says what everyone’s thinking. This kid’s an old soul. I think he’s a little imitated by Miley though. He wisely picks Blake. There’s no point in picking a coach that makes you totally nervous!
Chris Cron: 34
When he was in his twenties the Californian Chris C had success in Japan and Europe with his band Melee, Now he’s married with kids – and he wants to get back to being an artist. He sings the INXS 80’s classic “Never Tear Us Apart.”
Unfortunately, Chris is vocally off until nearly the end of his song. Blake mentions this and asks if it was “a style thing.” It could have been, but if so, it didn’t work well. With a song that well-known there are just certain things you have to hit. Alicia’s note to him was the best though. It didn’t sound like his heart was in the song. I thought a similar thing. It was like he put so much pressure on himself that he lost the song’s meaning. Adam suggested he come back next year, though. Maybe he will….
Christian Cuevas: 20
Christian is originally from New York, but is a resident of Florida. His dad was a well-known singer in Puerto Rico, but died of liver cancer “about a year ago.” The loss is still hard for him. As tears run down his cheeks, his words are heartbreaking.
I don’t know how to be my dad yet.
When he does the 1980’s hit, “How Am I Supposed to Live Without You” by Laura Branigan all of that emotion pours out in his singing – and, he’s got a huge voice!
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OD_1_TOjsAg?rel=0]
Miley’s the only one who doesn’t turn around. I like the way that she raised her hands over the back of her chair to applaud – even though she wasn’t going to turn around. Miley is big on showing that support!
After joking that Adam paid her not to, she tells him she didn’t think she was the right coach for his voice. Being that he has a huge, deep, emotional voice – like Dana – I don’t think that’s just a line. Miley and Adam gang up against Blake so that Alicia can pitch and it’s pretty obvious that’s who he will pick.
Adam clearly loves the guy’s voice, but he’s tripping trying to find the words. He just isn’t connecting well. If you look at the video, Christian’s eyes keep darting back to Alicia while Adam is talking! Adam just couldn’t bring the soul-sense that Alicia did, and Christian picks her.
The Wrap Up
The Season 11 Premiere of The Voice has already brought so much talent on board and it’s just day one! We know there are two other great singers coming on: We McDonald & Darby Walker – plus so many more. It’s so hard knowing that so many of these guys won’t make it to the live shows…. At least we get to hear them though. That’s what’s I love about The Voice – getting to hear such diverse selection of good music!
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