Michael Bublé’s team took center stage The voice during an emotional final night of Playoffs. The episode featured a special dedication to the late Liam Payne and a resilient performance from one contestant, Sloane Simon, on the heels of her father’s death.
There wasn’t a dry eye in sight during Tuesday’s hour-long episode, adding a layer of intensity to an already stressful situation as Bublé attempted to fill the final semi-final spots ahead of next week’s first live show. He enlisted country singer Carly Pearce to help him with the decision-making process.
Find out which two singers from Team Bublé completed the Top 8 who will perform during the live shows.
How Team Bublé fit together
Shy took the stage first with a cover of One Direction’s ‘Story of My Life’. Her mature singing appealed to Pearce, who told Shye it made her stand out: “You know who it is within three notes, and you have one of those [voices].” Her Playoff performance showed just that, with Snoop Dogg giving Shye a perfect 10. “Her voice is stunning, unique. It is necessary because in a world where so much is the same, we need Shye,” said Bublé.
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After Shye’s One Direction cover: The voice deviated from its usual format. Instead of going straight into a commercial break, a tribute card on the screen read: “In memory of Liam Payne.”
Jakeem Fortson was next. Performing Michael Jackson’s “Man in the Mirror,” the 14-year-old singer earned a standing ovation for his crowd-pleasing rendition after “making the song.” [his],” said a tearful Reba McEntire. It was also the “first time I saw you unleash the beast,” Stefani noted happily. The coaches couldn’t help but notice the growth in Fortson since the Blind Auditions, and Bublé noticed that his voice had gotten lower. “At 14 years old, he already has a seasoned voice and a great stage presence. There is no limit to where he can go,” Bublé said.
Out of time Sloane Simon started competing on the show, her father was battling metastatic melanoma. The series finale revealed that he died the Sunday before her Playoff appearance. She covered “Good Luck, Babe!” by Chappell Roan, and it was hard not to feel the raw emotions flowing through her performance. ‘I know how brave you are. I knew you and your family were going through things. You just lost your father,” said an emotional Bublé. “You said you would stay because he would want you here.”
“My father told me I was crazy to return. So I’m here and I sang for him,” Simon shared, causing Stefani to burst into tears. Snoop gave Simon a hug, causing her to burst into tears on stage. “I know your father must be so proud of you,” Bublé said. “I can’t express to you in a few words how highly I think of you and how wonderful I think what you did today.”
Cameron Wright sang Whitney Houston’s “Exhale (Shoop Shoop),” showcasing his smooth R&B vocals and impressive long notes. Stefani was impressed with Wright’s ability to “control every second of that song.” Bublé, meanwhile, called his performance ‘elite’. “There was such a sense of restraint and understatement that I can’t tell you how much I appreciate it as an artist,” he said.
One of Bublé’s personal favorites, Sofronio Vasqueztook the stage last and played a Roy Orbison classic, ‘Crying’. Before being assigned Bublé’s song, Vasquez had never heard it, which made his version all the more impressive. “[It] it felt like I was watching the end of a big $100 million movie with a killer soundtrack,” Snoop joked. McEntire praised Vasquez for having the “guts” to “tackle that song.” Bublé, who described Vasquez’s performance as “flawless,” was “stunned by [his] ability to really reach and connect with an audience.”
Who made it to the live shows?
Sofronio Vasquez sings a rendition of Roy Orbison classic ‘Crying’ on ‘The Voice’. (Photo by: Casey Durkin/NBC)
Sofronio Vasquez and Shy
“The growth has been exponential. He is a superstar, everything about him,” Bublé said of Vasquez. “I am so excited to see what this young man has in store for us.”
After selecting Shye for the live shows, Bublé said she “might be one of my favorite voices I’ve ever heard.”
“There’s a quality she has. It reminds me of my favorite singers, from Adele to Ella Fitzgerald to Sarah Vaughan, it’s this beautiful richness and depth,” he continued. “If you have what Shye has at 17, that means you’re one in a million.”
A look ahead to next week
The live shows begin! The power is now out of the hands of the coaches, because from now on the American public will decide which singers they think deserve to move on – and ultimately win.
“Now that we know who the Top 8 are, I can only encourage and continue to coach. I will pray!” McEntire said.
The voice kicks off the first live show on Monday, December 2 at 8pm ET on NBC.
