The coaches finalized their teams for the live shows tonight after a few more knockout battles, and one last steal.
The Knockouts
Barry Minniefield vs. Tonya Boyd-Cannon
The last night of knockouts kicked off with a Team Adam battle: Barry Minniefield versus Tonya Boyd-Cannon. Tonya chose Stevie Wonder’s “I Wish,” and Adam and Nate cautioned her to make sure she didn’t just do a Stevie Wonder impression the entire time. Barry chose Bobby Caldwell’s “What You Won’t Do For Love,” in order to show his range. Adam and Nate were impressed, and even had him move the key up a step. It was a tough choice for Adam, but he chose Tonya as the winner.
Brooke Adee vs. Kelsey May
Team Blake paired young contestants Brooke Adee and Kelsey May. Kelsey chose to slow it down after several uptempo performances, and performed Taylor Swift’s “Tim McGraw.” She had a little trouble going sharp in rehearsals. Brooke, on the other hand, chose a more upbeat song than she’s done previously, with “Electric Feel” by MGMT. She felt the song would represent her as an alternative artist. “Tim McGraw” proved not a great song choice for Kelsey, as the song got away from her a bit in her performance, while Brooke seemed right at home with “Electric Feel,” and emerged victorious.
India Carney vs. Joe Tolo
Christina paired India Carney and Joe Tolo because they both have great vocal control, and she felt they’d make a perfect match for a knockout battle. India chose Jessie J’s “Big White Room” in order to pull some heartstrings. She struggled with her higher register, and with being open in her performance. Joe chose Joan Osborne’s “One of Us.” Both performances were good, but there’s just something about India’s voice that Christina can’t forget, and she chose to hang onto her.
Lowell Oakley vs. Jacob Rummell
Pharrell paired unique vocalists Lowell Oakley and Jacob Rummell to see who deserved to stick around on Team OTHER. Lowell chose the Temptations’ “My Girl,” and planned to visualize his own girl back home for the performance. Jacob chose “Life of the Party” by Shawn Mendes, because the message of “You don’t have to be ordinary” really stuck with him. Despite Lowell’s overly-calculated performance, Pharrell chose him as the winner.
Rob Taylor vs. Treeva Gibson
Rob Taylor and Treeva Gibson battled to become the final contestant to join Team Christina in the live rounds. Rob chose Al Green’s “Love and Happiness” to show off his great voice, but Christina cautioned him to make sure he didn’t phone in his performance. Treeva chose Adele’s “Chasing Pavements,” because coming from the deaf community, she didn’t know if she should give up her dream of singing. Christina tried to get her to embody the song, telling her to “let your body free.” Both performers improved in their knockout performances, but Christina chose to bring Rob on to the live shows.
Joshua Davis vs. Lexi Davila
Adam paired Joshua Davis and Lexi Davila, because he felt like Lexi really needed a challenge to prove herself, and new Team Adam contestant Joshua might be just the push she needed. Joshua chose Amos Lee’s soulful “In the Arms of a Woman,” which he dedicated to his wife. Lexi chose “Anything Could Happen” by this season’s Team Adam mentor, Ellie Goulding. Both contestants performed so well in their knockout battles, they had Pharrell wondering how Adam was going to be able to choose between them. In the end, he chose Joshua, because they’re on the same page, but Christina felt she was on the same page with Lexi, and stole her for the live shows.
Check out The Voice “Road to the Live Shows” recap special Tuesday night at 8 p.m. on NBC, and tune in for the first live shows next Monday and Tuesday.