Idol Chatter & Voice Views

Britton Buchanan sings “Trouble,” turns three chairs and kicks off Season 14 of The Voice. (NBC Photo)

New coach Kelly Clarkson landed the night’s only four-chair turn — country singer Justin Kilgore. She also enticed a very talented 14-year-old named Brynn Cartelli to her team.

But Alicia Keys, who coached Chris Blue to victory in her first season on the show, enjoyed a good night two, landing two singers who turned three chairs — Britton Buchanan and Kelsea Johnson.

Meanwhile, you had to wonder if the buttons were working on those brand new big red chairs when D.R. King and Kyla Jade performed. How in the world did they not turn more than two chairs.

Here’s a night one recap. Keep checking back. I’ll have much more Voice coverage as the week progresses.

THE BEST

1. Britton Buchanan, 17, of Sanford, N.C.
The song: “Trouble” by Ray LaMontagne.
The chair turns: He quickly had Alicia Keys, Adam Levine and Blake Shelton facing in his direction. But the word “blocked” appeared before Adam, courtesy of Blake, of course.
The performance: Wow, at age 17. That was pitch perfect and soulful and about the only thing that didn’t work was the shirt Britton wore for such a solemn song. He reminded me of a young Phillip Phillips.
The outcome: Britton joined Team Aicia.

2. Justin Kilgore, 30, Buffalo, Texas
The song: “Tomorrow” by Chris Young
The chair turns: Blake Shelton, Kelly Clarkson and Alicia Keys turned almost simultaneously early in the performance. Adam Levine later joined them to make Justin the season’s first recipient of a four-chair turn.
The performance: By the time all the fuss over the block and whether Kelly was country enough to coach Justin ended, it was easy to forget one of the night’s most impassioned vocals, one that got stronger as the song went on.
The outcome: Justin joined Team Kelly.

THE REST (in no particular order)

Brynn Cartelli, 14, of Longmeadow, Mass.
The song: “Beneath Your Beautiful” by Labrinth.
The chair turns: Kelly Clarkson turned midway through the song and was joined late by Blake Shelton.
The performance: A great tone, a big voice and if she was nervous on The Voice stage at age 14, it didn’t show. She’s younger than anyone who made the show in Season 13.
The outcome: She opted to become the first-ever member of Team Kelly.

Kelsea Johnson, 21, of Newark, Del.
The song: “Like I’m Gonna Lose You” by Meghan Trainor
The chair turns: Adam Levine and Kelly Clarkson turned in a heartbeat. Alicia Keys turned at the last minute.
The performance: Another female singer with a great tone and strong voice, Kelsea kept pushing in spite of the early chair turns. A strong ending won over Alicia.
The outcome: Kelsea joined Team Alicia.

Rayshun LaMarr, 33, of Fort Washington, Md.
The song: “Don’t Stop Believing” by Journey.
The chair turns: He no more than started singing when Adam Levine turned around. Alicia Keys quickly followed.
The performance: Rayshun had one of the most touching backstories of any contestant in the season premiere and sang a song that inspired him during a battle with cancer. Oh, and that was one heck of a glory note near the end of that performance.
Outcome: He joined Team Adam.

Kaleb Lee, 31, of Ormond Beach, Fla.
The song: “Never Wanted Nothing More” by Kenny Chesney.”
The chair turns: Kelly Clarkson turned around at about the midway point. Blake Shelton turn around late in the song.
The performance: You could tell Kaleb delivered a little extra oomph when he hit the midway mark of the song and the coaches were still all facing away from him. It worked.
The outcome: Kaleb joined Team Blake.

D.R. King
The song: “Believer” by Imagine Dragons.
The chair turns: Kelly Clarkson turned a bit past the midway point. Blake Shelton, once again, turned just as the song was ending.
The performance: Wow, I’m surprised more coaches didn’t turn for D.R.’s energetic performance. Loved the power in his voice and the way he handled those rapid-fire lyrics.
The outcome: He became the first-ever male member of Team Kelly.

Kyla Jade, 33, of Nashville, Tenn.
The song: “See Saw” by Aretha Franklin.
The chair turns: Blake Shelton turned midway through the performance, joined at the last minute by Kelly Clarkson.
The performance: A background singer for Jennifer Hudson, Kyla displayed the most powerful voice in the premiere and hit two glory notes that were pretty damn incredible. I’m surprised only two coaches turned.
The outcome: She joined Team Blake.

Drew Cole, 25, of Los Angeles
The song: “Sex and Candy” by Marcy Playground.
The chair turns: Adam Levine turned almost immediately. Blake joined him midway through the performance.
The performance: Draw showed off great range and certainly proved he should be known for more than a dog video, regardless of how cute it is (and it’s pretty darn cute).
Outcome: Drew joined Team Adam.

NO CHAIR TURNS

Blaise Raccuglia, 25, of Austin, Texas
The song: “Wanted” by Hunter Hayes

Makenzie Thomas, 19, of Wallingford, Ken.
The song: “Redbone” by Childish Gambino.