The Voice kicked off its Season 28 Battles on Monday with two saves, three eliminations and lots of tears from Reba McEntire.
With the Blind Auditions now behind us, Monday’s episode pit the members of the coaches’ teams against one another. And because The Voice loves a good twist, the contestants learned that — for the first time in the show’s 28-season history — they were in charge of choosing their own duet partners.
So, which singers were left standing at the end of the night? And whose teams are they all on now? Read on for a full breakdown of Monday’s battles. (Spoiler alert: We have several bones to pick with these coaches.)
Team Snoop: Yoshihanaa (Grade: A-) defeated Natalia Albertini (Grade: A) on “(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman” — Natalia saved by Snoop | While Yoshihanaa definitely started out strong, singing this Aretha Franklin anthem like she’s been performing it her whole career, we were more taken by Natalia’s approach, which included a generous helping of stank as she relished every drawn-out note and growl. Despite getting the song’s biggest moment to herself, we didn’t think Yoshihanaa seized the opportunity as much as she could have. We were frankly a little surprised when Snoop declared Yoshihanaa the winner, but at least he’s keeping Natalia around too.
Team Reba: Aaron Nichols (Grade: A) defeated Daron Lamee (Grade: A) on “Fooled Around and Fell in Love” | Now this is how you do a duet! These two voices couldn’t be any more different, yet they blended like magic on this Elvin Bishop song, occasionally building to tight, soaring harmonies. We aren’t surprised that Reba McEntire chose to keep Aaron, as his country vibe is definitely more in her wheelhouse, but we really wish someone had saved Daron. That voice is too good to go!
Team Bublé: Jazz McKenzie (Grade: B+) defeated Trinity (Grade: A-) on “Virtual Insanity” — Trinity saved by Bublé | Jazz came in strong and confident on this Jamiroquai jam, sending chills down our spine with those stunning low notes, whereas Trinity opted to show off her higher register, taking the song to some very interesting places right away. If we could fuse these two voices into one, the result would be unstoppable. Sadly, science has only come so far, and Michael Bublé (much to our surprise) named Jazz the winner. Given our love for Trinity, it was extremely satisfying to see all of the other coaches attempt to steal her, though she ultimately decided to stick with Team Bublé.
Team Niall: Dustin Dale Gaspard (Grade: B+) defeated Revel Day (Grade: A-) on “Too Sweet” | Dustin did a serviceable job with this viral Hozier earworm, throwing in a few growls as needed to spice things up, but it was Revel’s take that had our full attention; those smooth, low notes made us all rumbly in our tumbly, and he made a stronger impression on the song’s bigger moments — but that’s just our opinion, clearly, because Niall Horan chose to keep Dustin on his team, ending Revel’s journey on The Voice.
Team Snoop: Kenny Ike (Grade: A-) defeated Kanard Thomas (Grade: A-) on “All the Things (Your Man Won’t Do)” | This was a close call. Too close, even. Both Kanard and Kenny did an excellent job of connecting with the audience, laying this smooth Joe song on us like we were the ones being romanced. Both performers were excellent, if a bit too similar, joining forces for a strong showing. Snoop Dogg felt more strongly about Kenny’s performance, which is fair enough. We’re just glad we didn’t have to choose between them.
Team Bublé: Rob Cole (Grade: B) defeated Austin Gilbert (Grade: B+) on “Honey Bee” — Austin stolen by Reba | With two strong country performers at the mic, Blake Shelton’s “Honey Bee” was the perfect duet to close out the night, giving us an emotional twist ending in the process. It wasn’t the most exciting performance of the night, but we have to hand it to Austin, who tapped into his mighty mustache powers to give this song the oomph it desperately needed. Don’t get us wrong, Rob was also very good, but the level of enthusiasm between them cannot be understated. Bublé chose to keep Rob on his team, and his loss turned out to be Reba’s gain; with tears in her eyes, she stole Austin onto her team, praising his enthusiasm, heart and, of course, his voice. “You’re a cowboy,” she told him.
And just like that, the first night of Season 28 Battles has come to an end, and we must say goodbye to three talented singers: Daron Lamee, Revel Day and Kanard Thomas were all eliminated from the competition on Monday. Are you sad to see any of them go? Did you agree with the coaches’ decisions?