BWW Recap: THE VOICE- The Auditions, Episode 3

By: Oct. 01, 2013
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Alright everyone! I'm here with the first day of Week Two of the Blind Auditions on The Voice. This episode was incredible, filled with great coach interaction, especially between Adam and Blake (who's surprised about that?), including a #manfight (you'll get it later!). There were so many great coach moments, including hugs, and petty fighting - all of what we love in The Voice!

Starting off the night was Ray Boudreaux who hails from Louisiana. He got two chairs turned, Blake's and CeeLo's. Boudreaux was leaning both ways, but eventually picked Blake. While his performance of "Use Me" was good enough to turn CeeLo and Blake's chair, it was his little girl that caught everyone's attention. The camera crew did a great job capturing the girl and her adorable moments, and almost outshone Ray's performance! He's in the competition now, though, he'll hopefully, have many other chances to catch our attention!

The next singer was Lina Gaudenzi, who sang "Landslide". The interesting thing about Lina is that she is classically trained. When Blake and Christina turned, Christina mentioned Chris Mann (who can be heard on the Kooman and Dimond album OUT OF OUR HEADS), the opera singer from season two. Lina eventually went with Christina.

Next up was Juhi, who comes from an Indian family and was auditioning at the young age of sixteen. She sang "Mercy" for her audition song, and personally, while Mercy is a classic, it's a classic for a reason. There's too much to compare it too, and with such an iconic song, it will be impossible to outshine the original. Juhi proved me wrong when she got CeeLo and Christina to turn around, choosing CeeLo. With her rocker background and what she wants to grow into, I don't blame her. CeeLo is a good judge to go to when you're not quite sure who you are yet, as he is so eclectic.

One of two no-turns of the night was Malford Milligan, who sang "Let's Stay Together", when the judges saw him, they all said that he was good, and his voice was good (Blake even told him to make an album), but they just wanted more. Hey, who can blame them? It's season five. They know what they want now.

Justin Blake was the next performer, who sang a Blake Shelton song that Adam didn't recognize (funny tweets ensued from that!). He only got Adam to turn, however, while Blake seemed to "give" Justin to Adam, but didn't seem ready to let the idea of him go completely. I guess we'll see in the Battles if Justin will stay on Adam's team or will impress Blake enough again to steal him.

Timyra-Joi was the youngest auditioner, and if she makes far enough, will most likely be the youngest contestant at fifteen years old. She sang "Girl On Fire", which, to be honest, has become akin to singing an Adele song for an audition. It shows off powerhouse vocals, but is so overdone that the contestant could be judged on their song choice. Christina turned early in the song, whereas Blake and Cee Lo turned at the last minute! Yes! Love that adrenaline rush of a last minute pick! The adrenaline wasn't enough for Timyra-Joi, though, she chose Christina.

Monika Leigh, the next contestant, sang in bars and cafes from the age of thirteen to twenty-one, where she finally decided to give up, and be practical. When she auditioned for the Voice, she worked at a hotel in Colorado. Her version of "The Thrill is Gone" had Blake, Cee Lo, and Adam turn around, and a "manfight" ensued to win the girl! How very medieval. Is anyone else a bit jealous? Blake persuaded Monika, and then tweeted "Did I just win the #manfight?!" Good to know competitiveness doesn't end at the stage! Also: Monkia - what has Disney told us about giving up on our dreams?! Don't!

Zach Hinson was the other no turn, and to be honest, I don't remember much about his performance except he was a country guy, which I guess shows the judges know what they're doing. Sorry, Zach!

The Talk of the night was Briana Cuoco, sister of Kaley Cuoco from the Big Bang Theory. For fans of the Emmy Award winning Youtube Series The Lizzie Bennett Diaries and you saw this episode of The Voice, you probably thought Briana looked familiar. And you'd be correct! She played Mary, the Bennett sisters' cousin, who appears mostly in the spin off Youtube series that starred Lydia Bennett (MK Wiles). Her performance of "You and I" caused Christina and CeeLo to turn, and while Briana seemed to lean towards CeeLo's eclectic reputation, Christina charmed her with a girl power speech, and Briana joined Christina's team.

George Horga Jr, hailing from Oregon, and before that Romania, was the first in his family to not follow the tradition to stay at home until married. At eighteen, he went to Hollywood, and he even says, to be his age and not married in Romanian culture is unheard of. George got a fantastic reaction from the crowd, so much so that CeeLo turned, mainly because of the reaction. As CeeLo was the only turn, George automatically went to his team. However, we have a serious contender on our hands, something that the other judges will see they missed out on.

The final contestant of the night was Preston Pohl from Texas. He was in a Christian Rock Band that sold over 300,000 CDs, and found his mentor in the band, Ron Mccllenland, who unfortunately died suddenly. The band split and he was finding himself playing bars and small gigs - nothing compared to selling 300K CDs! His rendition of "Electric Feel" got another #MANFIGHT going on, and this time, Adam proved Victorious (after a bit of begging - is that considered cheating in a #manfight?)

Contestants not shown were Anthony Paul, who was picked by Cee Lo, Cilla Chan who was picked by Blake, and Jacob Poole, who was picked by Christina.

This leaves the final tally at: Adam with seven people on his team, Blake with seven people, Christina with eight, and Cee Lo with seven.

I'll see you all later for Tuesday Night's The Voice, at 8/7 EST! For performances from tonight or to watch the full episodes, visit NBC!



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