Casi Joy and Ashley Levin during battle round rehearsals with Blake Shelton and Luke Bryan on The Voice. (NBC Photo)
Ashley Levin turned down Alicia Keys once.
That wasn’t going to happen twice.
During the blind auditions on Season 12 of The Voice, Ashley had to choose between Alicia, Blake Shelton and Gwen Stefani for her coach.
Being a country singer, she knew Blake was the wisest option. But she said that didn’t keep her from waking up in the middle of the night for about a week after that blind audition “thinking, ‘Ashley .. you turned down Alicia Keys.’”
When Blake cut her loose during a battle round match with Casi Joy that aired Monday night, Ashley got her do over. All three of the other coaches wanted to steal her, but Ashley had a pretty good idea about which option she’d picked even before they made their pitches.
“I had always wanted to pick Alicia and then, during the battle, when she pushed her button for me again, I thought, ‘I’m not going to pass her up this time,'” Ashley told Voice Views during a conference call with the media.
“She’s such an inspiration as a person and as an artist, and I feel like the influences that I have in my voice — the soul and R&B along with my country — she’s going to be able to bring that out the best.”
Monday’s battle round match between Ashley and Casi featured two young women who left their homes and headed to Nashville in search of a music career. Ashley, 23 when she auditioned, hails from Miami; Casi, 26 when she turned four chairs in the blinds, is from the Kansas City area.
Blake had them sing “How Blue” by Reba McEntire. When the performance ended, he declared Casi the winner, putting Ashley in jeopardy of elimination.
What was that experience like for Ashley?
“Casi is just so amazing and there was always the chance that I would not win the battle and possibly go home,” she said. “Blake had said before during our rehearsals, you girls are both so wonderful. I can’t imagine whoever doesn’t win (not) getting stolen.
“But I also kind of like to brace myself and kind of accept and say, ‘Maybe this is it; it’s been an awesome experience.’ But it definitely is a nerve racking up there. You’re just kind of hoping that something happens.”
Something happens times three, a rare feat on The Voice.
“All three of them turned around, and I kind of freaked out for a second,” Ashley admitted. “There was one point when I look over at Carson and ‘I’m like, oh my goodness, now what do I do?'”
Not to be lost in Ashley’s save drama was the fact that Casi, after turning four chairs in the blind audition, delivered another outstanding performance.
The is a young woman who was singing on the Midwest Opry Circuit by age 10, and the experience showed. During post-battle comments, Alicia Keys and Gwen Stefani both noted that she performed like a polished professional.
Now it’s on to the knockout round.
“I honestly have no idea what made (Blake) choose me,” Casi said of her battle round success. “I was certainly shocked and was super excited and grateful.
“I just went out there and threw my heart and soul on the stage and I just really focused on the performance aspect of it, because our battle didn’t end up being super crazy vocally. So I just tried to go out there and physically perform my best, and I guess it worked out.”
Learn more about Ashley, Casi and all the other singers on Season 12
Battle Round Night 1 recap
Battle Round Night 2 recap
Casi Joy performs during the battle round on The Voice. (NBC Photo)
Ashley Levin performs during the battle round on The Voice. (NBC Photo)
Casi Joy reacts to winning her battle round match on The Voice while Ashley Levin (left) and Carson Daly look on. (NBC Photo)
Ashley Levin with Carson Daly as she’s about to land a spot on Team Alicia Keys on The Voice. (NBC Photo)
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