Idol Chatter & Voice Views

The week’s shows were once again a reminder that chair turns don’t mean everything on The Voice.

Singers who turn four chairs during the blind audition get lots of attention when The Voice begins each season. In Season 10, five singers accomplished that feat.

And, yep, they included Alisan Porter, who won. But none of the other four — Emily Keener, Owen Danoff, Ryan Quinn or Caity Peters — made a major run at a spot in the finals. (Though, I must be honest, it’s post-show music from Emily and Owen that I’m most eager to hear.)

Meanwhile, Laith Al-Saadi and Adam Wakefield made it all the way to the finals after turning just two chairs each in the blinds. Hannah Huston turned three.

Other random reflections on The Voice Season 10 finale …

In terms of ratings, The Voice won the night with a 2.2 in the 18-48 demographic and an estimated 10.59 million viewers.

But that’s the lowest rated finale in the show’s history and a 20 percent drop from the last two finales, according to ZapIt.com. You have to wonder if The Voice isn’t wearing out its welcome with twice-yearly installments.

And so Christina Aguilera indeed became the first female to coach a singer to victory on The Voice. Overlooked is the fact that Alisan Porter became the show’s first female winner since Tessanne Chin in Season 5.

That sorta parallels what happened on American Idol. As the show aged, it became increasingly difficult for a female to win.

Once again, Tuesday’s finale featured bring-back performances, where the finalists came bring back close friends to perform with them one last time on the show. My favorite: Laith’s version of “Georgia on My Mind,” also featuring Shalyah Fearing and Katie Basden. (Owen was scheduled to be part of it, but had to drop out because he wasn’t feeling well.)

Shalyah was especially impressive. With her star looks and her big voice, I’m surprised she didn’t make a serious run at the Season 10 crown. Of course, her song choices were all over the place. I wonder what might have happened if she had remained on Team Pharrell.

For all the hoopla surrounding steals on The Voice, it’s worth noting that all four finalists spent their entire run on The Voice on the same team.

Of course, it hasn’t always worked out that way. Josh Kaufman and Craig Wayne Boyd won the show after being stolen, though the latter won as a member of his original Team Blake after a short stint — and a makeover — as a member of Team Gwen Stefani.

My favorite finalist-star collaboration from Tuesday’s show?

It came when Jennifer Nettles and Alisan sang Jennifer’s “Unlove You.” Wow, what powerful vocals. And one final reminder that Alisan is indeed the most gifted vocalist among the final four.

A close second? Laith Al-Saadi and Joe Walsh performing “Rocky Mountain Way.”

Sure, Blake Shelton missed out on a fifth victory as coach on The Voice. But after his performance this season — also getting Mary Sarah and Paxton Ingram into the Top 8 after both started slowly — why would any artist not going into the blind auditions with him as their first choice for a coach?

In 10 seasons, he’s racked up four victories and six second-place finishes. The only season one of his singers didn’t challenge for the crown was Season 5. And you knew producers weren’t going to let him anywhere near the title that seaso, not after one of his singers had won for three straight titles, in a run that featured Jermaine Paul, Cassadee Pope and Danielle Bradbery.

My favorite guest star appearance on The Voice finale?

None. Seriously, the show rolled out Ariana Grande, Sia and Little Big Town and ratings were still way down, so why bother? Instead, why not showcase new music from past stars of the show.

As a fan of The Voice, I would have much rather seen Chris Mann and Javier Colon sing songs from their new albums, Cassadee perform her soon-to-be new single “Summer” and Christina Grimmie sing any one of four songs from her wonderful pop EP released earlier this year.

The show needs to do more — much more — to promote past contestants not named Sawyer Fredericks and Jordan Smith. Even with declining ratings, it still has the power to sell music, something demonstrated time and again in Season 10.

Wondering what past stars of The Voice have been up to? Just head here for a look at albums and EPs released so far in 2016. And, please, let me know if I’ve missed anyone by emailing me at [email protected].

See also …
Alisan Porter eager to make music and retire Curly Sue
Photo gallery from Alisan’s winning night on The Voice
Alisan talks about the input she got from a good friend — Adam Lambert