Idol Chatter & Voice Views

Pharrell Williams provides feedback during the live playoffs Monday night on The Voice. Tonight, he’ll be providing feedback to his own singers, including York’s DaNica Shirey. (NBC Photo)

And it’s happened again. Last night, 10 singers took the stage during the first night of the live playoffs.

Every singer turned in a solid performance; some were simply superb.

Fans responded. When voting ended at noon EST, two songs had cracked the Top 50 on iTunes. Seven had cracked the Top 100.

Damien Lawson even reached number one on the R&B / soul chart with his cover of “I’m Not the Only One.”

All of which is sure to lead to some very difficult decisions tomorrow night when each coach has to decide which singer to save and which two to send home after voters pick their own favorites.

But that’s still a night away. First, we have night two of the live playoffs, featuring performances from Team Gwen and Team Pharrell.

If you’d like to see last night’s grades, head here. And go here to see where last night’s songs landed on the iTunes singles and genre charts.

TEAM GWEN

Ryan Sill

Background: From Sterling, Va., he was 20 when he auditioned. He went to James Madison University to study engineering, but also started singing with the a cappella group Exit 245 and sang lead on an acclaimed cover of “Titanium.”
Blind audition: He performed OneRepublic’s “Secrets” and enticed two judges to turn their chairs.
Battle round: He defeated Jessie Pitts; they sang “I Need Your Love” by Calvin Harris and Ellie Goulding. Jessie was stolen by Blake Shelton.
Knockout round: He defeated Beth Spangler with a performance of Ne-Yo’s “Miss Independent.”

Performing first is a tough spot to be in. The two performers who did so last night wound up being the weakest performers on iTunes. He’ll sing OneRepublic’s “I Live.” Gwen says he has a sweet voice, and she’s hoping this song brings out a little more ruggedness. She’s also hoping Ryan cuts loose on stage. Yep, a sweet voice. We just heard it on that first verse. Ryan seems pretty relaxed on stage, too. I really like this song choice for him. It also allowed him to show off the power in his voice. That was a great, upbeat way to start the night courtesy of Ryan. Ryan showed off a little swagger on stage, too. Adam calls it “great” and says his pitch was “unbelievably good.” Blake called it “truly incredible.” Pharrell congratulates him on breaking out of his shell. Gwen called his performance incredible. Grade: B+

Bryana Salaz

Background: From San Antonio, Texas, she was 16 when she auditioned. In 2011, she made it to the Vegas finals on America’s Got Talent. She also had a job performing at Sea World in San Antonio.
Blind audition: Turned three chairs singing Ariana Grande’s “Problem.”
Battle round: Defeated Gianna Salvato; they performed “Boom Clap” by Charlie XCX in a match that wasn’t aired.
Knockout round: Defeated Sugars Joans with a performance of “Heart Attack” by Demi Lovato.

Bryana takes her dad, who has recovered from liver disease, to meet Gwen. She’ll sing “Amnesia” by 5 Seconds of Summer. Gwen wants Bryana to peel off several layers of pop sheen and deliver an emotional performance. She’s looking for vulnerability in the performance. The background music nearly totally drowned out Bryana’s first two lines. But this young lady has a big voice, and you’re not going to be able to drown her out for long. Wow, she’s delivering a lesson in how to build a performance. That just kept getting bigger and bigger and bigger, leading to a wonderful ending. And, yep, she delivered it with a lot of emotion. Heck, she’s in tears as the performance ends. Adam calls it an “amazing job.” Blake says he thinks Bryana got better right “before our eyes.” Pharrell appreciates the emotion Bryana poured into that performance. Gwen calls the performance “night and day” from the first time Bryana performed the song. Grade: B+

Anita Antoinette

Background: From Boston, Mass., she was 24 when she auditioned. She also tried out in Season 3, but failed to turn a chair. She has also performed as Anita Fearon; her dad is longtime reggae singer Clinton Fearon.
Blind audition: Sang Bob Marley’s “Turn Your Lights Down Low” and got all four coaches to turn their chairs.
Battle round: Defeated Mayra Alvarez; they sang Johnny Nash’s “I Can See Clearly Now.”
Knockout round: Defeated Craig Wayne Boyd with a performance of “Rude” by Magic! Her foe was stolen by Blake Shelton.

Gwen has picked a fun, energetic song for Anita, not to mention a huge hit — Meghan Trainor’s “All About that Bass.” She also says she doesn’t want to pigeonhole Anita to the point where all she sings is reggae. Anita says she loves the message in the song. Anita looks great. And the way she’s performing makes it difficult to believe she ever had stage fright. Prediction: This will be one of the most popular performances of the night. Really nice job by Anita. She might have gone just a bit over the top to add vocal fireworks, but that’s a very small complaint. Adam liked it so much, he just wants to hang out with Anita. Blake mimics what I wrote, saying it’s tough to believe she was ever afraid of performing. Pharrell loves the way Anita is performing so inspired. Gwen likes the way her personality sparkles on stage. Grade: A–

Ricky Manning

Background: From Cape Coral, Fla., he was 19 when he auditioned. Rather than going to college after graduating, he decided to try music for a year and had been playing music in the New York subways pre-Voice.
Blind audition: He sang John Newman’s “Love Me Again” and turned two chairs.
Battle round: He defeated Team Pharrell teammate Brittany Butler; they performed “On Broadway” by George Benson.
Knockout round: He performed Miley Cyrus’ “Wrecking Ball,” but the knockout round win went to Elyjuh Rene. No matter, Gwen stole Ricky proclaiming “I feel like I might have just won The Voice.”

Gwen wants to bring out more emotion from Ricky. She’s given him “Lay Me Down” by Sam Smith. And Ricky says he can connect with the song because he’s in a long-distance relationship. Gwen is looking for him to deliver the same intensity he did when he sang “Wrecking Ball.” It sounds like nerves might be getting to Ricky a bit early in this performance. As the song swells, so does the emotion Ricky is pouring into it. He delivered a heck of a glory note during the second half of that performance. And the crowd seems to love it. Perhaps a bit more than I did. Adam says Ricky has turned him into a believer and calls him one of the show’s most improved. Blake says Ricky seemed calm and in control despite the emotion in the performance. Pharrell also compliments him on his growth. Gwen calls the performance “incredible.” Grade: B–

Taylor John Williams

Background: From Portland, Oregon, he was 23 when he auditioned. He describes himself as a soulful folk singer-songwriter and released a five-track EP “Proverbial Elephant” as Taylor Williams in 2009.
Blind audition: His stripped-down version of “Heartless” prompted two coaches to turn their chairs.
Battle round: He defeated Amanda Lee Peers; they performed Dolly Parton’s “Jolene.”
Knockout round: He defeated Troy Ritchie with a performance of “Mad World” by Tears for Fears.

Taylor John is going to do a “swampy” version of “Stuck in the Middle With You.” Gwen likes the way he’s gone bluesy with the song, but says Taylor John needs to find a way to make the song more animated, since he’s playing guitar and won’t be able to move around. So what does he do? He gives us a couple little dance moves as he approaches the mic with his guitar. And halfway through the performance, he steps away from the mic and starts working the stage. Well, Gwen got the animated performance she wanted. And while Taylor John provided a big ending, I’m not so sure about the rest of the vocal. I have a feeling my grade isn’t going to match how well that does on iTunes. Adam likes his artistry and calls it “cool and inventive.” Blake calls it a “great job” and says Taylor John made him stop thinking about an underwear commercial that used the song. Gwen likes that Taylor John “has a vision for himself” and is a “real artist.” Grade: B–

TEAM PHARRELL

Jean Kelley

Background: From Nashville, Tenn., Jean was 29 when she auditioned. Pre-Voice, she was self-employed, making a living in marketing and by singing radio jingles “I’ve had to sing, rap; you name it, I’ve done it. It’s been a hoot.”
Blind audition: She sang Kelly Clarkson’s “Already Gone” and turned a pair of chairs late in the performance.
Battle round: Lost a Team Gwen match to Sugar Joans; they did a splendid version of “Survivor” by Destiny’s Child. She was stolen by Pharrell.
Knockout round: Defeated Menlik Zergabachew with her performance of Sai’s “Chandelier.”

This young woman has been on fire the last two rounds, with superb performances of two songs that couldn’t be more different. She’ll sing “Piano in the Dark” by Brenda Russell, a song from the 1980s. But Pharrell and Jean are making the song more contemporary for this performance. OK, I’m not thrilled with this song choice. It’s certainly giving Jean a chance to show off her dramatic side, and lots of vocal shades, but it’s all just a bit too much for me. Just a little too over the top. That said, you have to admire Jean’s vocal skills. Gwen called it “really good” but also seems to think there might have been a bit too much drama. Adam also thought the drama was a little “overwhelming.” Pharrell called the performance “a nice taste” of what Jean is capable of. Grade: C+

Elyjuh Rene

Background: He prefers singing R&B and soul music and a little bit of pop and told The Voice he has been competing in singing competitions with the help of his “mom-ager” for the past four years.
Blind audition: Performed Beyonce’s “XO” and turned a pair of chairs.
Battle round: Defeated four-chair turn recipient Maiya Sykes; they sang “If I Ain’t Got You” by Alicia Keys.
Knockout round: Defeated Ricky Manning with a performance of Chris Brown’s “With You.”

Elyjuh has something to prove to me because I would have selected his opponent to advance in each of the past two rounds. In rehearsals, Elyjuh is concerned about criticism that he’s been over-performing. Pharrell is going to have him sing “Latch” by Disclosure. Pharrell says Elyjuh just has to forget the critics, let go and enjoy himself on stage. A bit of a rough opening. Vocally, Elyjuh recovers, and shows off some really nice range. I could do without a run at the end of every line, though. Elyjuh seemed to find his groove as the song progressed, but I still think the performance was a little uneven. Gwen liked the song choice for Elyjuh and calls him “so talented.” Adam is at a loss for words over the performance and says it might have made Elyjuh a front-runner on Team Pharrell. Pharrell says he’s really proud of Elyjuh’s performance and calls him “amazing.” The coaches liked the performance more than I did. Grade: B–

Luke Wade

Background: From Dublin, Texas, he was 31 when he auditioned. He released a 12-track album in 2010 called “Tomorrow’s Ghosts” with No Civilians, a five-track EP called “The Runaround” in January, and a 13-track album called “The River” in March.
Blind audition: Got all four judges to turn their chairs for his performance of Otis Redding’s “That’s How Strong Love Is.”
Battle round: Defeated Griffin; they performed “Maybe I’m Amazed” so well that Griffin was stolen by Blake Shelton.
Knockout round: Sang Hall and Oates “Rich Girl” and defeated Taylor Phelan in a battle of singers who had turned four chairs in the blinds.

Entering tonight, I’ve considered Luke the Team Pharrell front-runner. He’s singing “Let’s Get It On” by Marvin Gaye. Pharrell calls the song “timeless” and wants Luke to “bring every woman to their knees.” Luke’s looking like the veteran performer he is by working the stage and greeting members of the audience. He has Pharrell bobbing in his coach’s chair from the word go. Along the way, Luke delivered some nice vocal wrinkles. But what really made that performance was that dramatic ending to the song. Gwen called it “incredible.” Adam loves that Luke did the song his own way rather than imitating the original. Blake liked the way Luke had fun with it and “blew it out of the water.” Pharrell obviously loved it too. I think we can count on seeing Luke in the finals. Grade: A–

DaNica Shirey

Background: The 25-year-old is the first contestant on The Voice from York County. She had stepped away from the stage for more than three years following the death of her father/manager.
Blind audition: Turned three chairs with her performance of Jessie J’s “Big White Room.”
Battle round: Defeated Toia Jones in one of Season 7’s most celebrated battle round matches; they sang Beyonce’s “Halo.”
Knockout round: Sang Whitney Houston’s “Saving All My Love for You” and defeated young Katriz Trinidad.

DaNica is going to sing “Help Me” by Joni Mitchell and calls her voice a “hummingbird in front of a flower” and says she has the vocal ability to pull it off. He also says he’s given her a song with a difficulty level of 10, but thinks she can pull it off. And this is going to be a chance of pace, because DaNica has been belting out big R&B songs to this point. But she’s off to a very nice start. Hey, Pharrell, not sure I love this song choice. But DaNica is showing off her customary vocal firepower. And she delivers another big ending. Wow, Pharrell was right: That’s a heck of a tough song to sing. And DaNica did a very good job of pulling it off. Gwen says DaNica sounded “gorgeous.” Adam loved the song choice and the way Pharrell and DaNica “flipped” a Joni Mitchell song. Blake calls the singing “so perfect” and calls her performance “a clinic for singers.” Pharrell calls her “a hummingbird” and says it’s amazing what she can do with her voice. Grade: B+

Sugar Joans

Background: She describes herself as an R&B/soul singer and is following in the footsteps of her father, who made a career out of music, mostly as a background singer for the likes of Sergio Mendez.
Blind audition: Turned two chairs with her performance of “Chain of Fools.”
Battle round: Defeated Jean Kelley; they sang “Survivor” by Destiny Child in one of Season 7’s most impressive battle round performances.
Knockout round: She sang Beyonce’s “Love on Top,” but lost her Team Gwen match to Bryana Salaz. She was immediately stolen by Pharrell.

Sugar says her ultimate dream is to make a modern soul record, and says Pharrell would be the one to show her how to do it. He has her singing Aretha Franklin’s “I Say a Little Prayer.” Interesting that Pharrell’s stolen contestant gets the pimp spot on his team. Sugar takes the stage with purple hair and the determination to continue her journey with Team Pharrell. She’s got a chorus to accompany her too. That performance got off to a bit of a slow start, but Sugar turned on the fire and the vocal fireworks once she stepped away from the mic. That was a heck of a vocal. I knew Sugar had a powerful voice, she showed it off during the battle round. But that was power. Gwen says Sugar just had “her moment.” Adam says Sugar “took us to church” and delivered an surprising performance given her appearance. Blake calls it the performance of the night. Pharrell says he “felt every moment of it.” Grade: A–