Idol Chatter & Voice Views

Who should be worried tonight on The Voice?

After another night of solid performances, that’s a tough question.

And the answer might not be fair.

First, let’s consider who has little to worry about.

At the top of that list would be Cassadee Pope, who ranks among the top contestants and saw her performance of “Over You” smack dab at the top of the iTunes singles chart today.

Joining her would be Amanda Brown and Dez Duron, who turned in two of the top performances Monday and also did well on iTunes.

Melanie Martinez seems to be gaining support, perhaps partly because of really smart song choices. And Nicholas David’s support (#17 on iTunes, folks) doesn’t appear to be wavering.

Add Bryan Keith and Terry McDermott as contestants with solid support who turned in solid performances Monday, and the Top 10 has been whittled to three names — Sylvia Yacoub, Trevin Hunte and Cody Belew.

Trevin went upbeat for the first time Monday and it really didn’t work. Evidence: His iTunes performance is dead last among the 10 from last night. Will he pay for one off performance?

Sylvia turned in what I considered one of the best performances Monday. But she also performed first. Did fans really remember her after watching Cassadee, Amanda and Dez light up the stage? It would be a shame if Sylvia departed; she’s had three really strong performances in a row. But the curse of going first bit Adriana Louise last week and Jennel Garcia in the same week on the rival X Factor.

Then there’s Cody, whose performance delivered the promised bam-bam, but was really a matter of style over substance. My prediction: Cody will be one of the two to depart tonight.

For a look at where all the contestants landed on iTunes, head here. For a look at the recap of last night’s show, complete with song by song grades, go here.

The Live Show

Carson Daly opens tonight’s show by boasting about Cassadee’s number one single. But he also announces that Melanie’s single was number eight, so she earns bonus points as well for tonight.

I just checked, and Cassadee is still number one. Melanie, who had dipped to 13 shortly after voting ended, is back up to number eight. And Amanda Brown is number 9.

The artists advancing to the Top 8 on The Voice include:

• Nicholas David: Figured he was safe. The other two Team Cee Lo members might be among the last to learn their fate.
• Cassadee Pope: Well, no way she was going home after scoring a number one single.
• Dez Duron: Another good save. He was flat-out excellent last night.
• Cody Belew: OK, that one is a bit of a surprise. I really did not think he would survive. And Cody hugs Christina for inspiring the performance.
• Melanie Martinez: Hmm, both remaining contestants who made the finals on judges’ saves have advanced tonight. Melanie looked most nervous of the contestants on stage.
• Terry McDermott:  The veteran rocker remains to rock again.
• Trevin Hunte:  I was really worried about Trevin tonight. Bet he sings a big ballad next week.
• Amanda Brown:  I mean, she absolutely had to advance. Any other verdict would have been unfair.

That means Bryan Keith and Sylvia Yacoub head home on The Voice.

Gotta admit, I’m a little surprised to see Bryan depart. He’s been consistently solid. More consistent than some of the singers who survived.

I wasn’t surprised by Sylvia, though she had been impressive three straight weeks and I thought her performance was one of the top four last night.

That’s two straight weeks the first artist to perform has gone home.

Think that might make next week’s show opener a little nervous?