Vocal Mash-ups Make and Break the Competition

By Stuart Bryan

On Monday’s episode of The Voice, contestants continued their vocal smack downs in the “battle round” of the NBC reality show. Two hopefuls from each team must join forces to duet on a song, each trying to outshine the other. The winner is chosen by the team leader, one of the shows celebrity coaches Blake Shelton, Christina Aguilera, Cee-Lo Green, or Adam Levine.

The vocal mash-ups that make up the battle round, the second phase of the competition, can lead to some brilliant performances, like the Anthony Evans/ Jesse Campbell rendition of Alicia Keys’ “If I Aint Got You” from two weeks ago. However, the same cannot be said for all of the performances.

This week, the show started out with the train wreck that was the Shields Brothers “What’s Love Got To Do With It” duet with former model Erin Martin. Martin, whose voice sounds like a strained, wannabe Norah Jones, wants to be taken seriously for something other than her looks, which would be completely understandable if her voice didn’t suck.

Post-performance, the judges were speechless. “It was just so, so weird,” was the only critique Adam Levine could seem to muster. In what I consider to be the biggest mistake of the night, Cee-Lo Green chose to keep Martin and send the rock n’ roll duo the Shields Brothers packing. I chalk this up to Martin’s ensemble, complete with comically oversized shoulder pads and no pants. Garter belt included.

Luckily for the viewers, the show got better from there. Adam’s team is up next, with Georgia-boy Pip battling Nathan Parrett on the Amy Winehouse classic, “You Know I’m No Good.” Pip, who provides no last name, and thus leads to the conclusion that his name is indeed short for Pipsqueak, looks like a tiny Justin Bieber- if he wore bow ties and sounded like a Broadway belter. Parrett, who couldn’t seem to shake his nerves, ended up with the short end of the stick when Adam chose Pip.

Christina’s team members Jonathas (yet again, last name not included) and Ashley De La Rosa are next to the stage. In the name of “staying in character,” they gaze into each other’s eyes as they croon “No Air,” by Chris Brown and Jordin Sparks. For both artists, the performance was mediocre at best. Unfortunately, Jonathas’s profession of love to Christina while rehearsing couldn’t save him on this one, and neither could his business-on-the-sides, party-on-the-top modern day mullet. Christina chose Ashley.

One of the best singers in the entire competition, Jermaine Paul, is next in the ring with pop singer ALyX (are last names just not cool anymore?), singing Billy Ocean’s “Get Out of My Dreams.” Paul, whose day job as a back-up singer for Alicia Keys already has him at a huge advantage, coasts through the song with his silky-smooth voice, and wins with ease. He will turn out to be a huge asset for Blake’s team.

Closing out the show are Gwen Beck and Erin Willett, two powerhouse female singers also from Blake’s team. The two seem to have bonded during rehearsals of Pat Benatar’s “We Belong Together,” and show a great deal of respect for one another. Before the performance we learn that Willett’s terminally ill father is hospitalized and given only 24 hours to live. In a touching display of compassion, Blake, who also recently lost his father, sympathizes with her feelings and encourages her to continue to perform for her father. Willett does just that, and after a stellar performance from both artists, Blake chooses Willett. “Seriously, I wish it wasn’t that good,” he said.

The coaches, for the most part, added some serious talent to their teams this week. Adam will have a lot to do with versatile vocalist Pip, and Blake could see Jermaine Paul all the way through to the end. Cee-Lo, however, made a huge mistake in dismissing rock n’ roll duo the Shields Brothers, and he will have to make up for that next week if he hopes to contend in the finals.