Idol Chatter & Voice Views

The Top 12 on The Voice includes (from left) — Austin Allsup, Courtney Harrell, Sundance Head, Sa’Rayah, We McDonald, Christian Cuevas, Ali Caldwell, Darby Walker, Aaron Gibson, Brendan Fletcher, Josh Gallagher and Billy Gilman. (NBC Photo)

We’ve gone through the blind auditions, the battles, the knockouts and an incredibly rushed live playoff.

Now it’s time for the finals — featuring 12 talented singers — on Season 11 of The Voice.

And while the show has shaken things up with some format changes this year, this hasn’t changed: The instant save is back.

That means fans will get to tweet during Tuesday night’s results show to save on of the lowest vote-getters.

Oh, and Garth Brooks will be the special guest adviser this week, following in the footsteps of Faith Hill and Tim McGraw.

Because, hey, it makes a ton of sense to bring in lots of country music advisers when the show is packed with R&B singers and has fewer straight country artists than any season in recent memory.

If you didn’t pick up on the sarcasm in that last graph, believe me, it was dripping with sarcasm.

Now, it’s time to rank the Top 12.

1. Billy Gilman (Team Adam): At this point, the former child country star has to be the runaway favorite to win the show. He’s been solid in every round. He’s been near the top of the iTunes rankings in every round. And he had an already established fan base before showing up on The Voice.

2. Ali Caldwell (Team Miley): I doubt she’ll actually finish this high because Voice viewers have a terrible track record when it comes to supporting super talented R&B females — see Amanda Brown (6th, Season 3) and Sisaundra Lewis (8th Season 6) as examples. But Ali has proven she’s ready for time prime and punctuated that point with last week’s cover of “Times Have Changed.”

3. Sundance Head (Team Blake): It’s hard to envision a Voice finale without a country singer from Team Blake because — well, gee, a country singer from Team Blake has finished first or second in seven of the last eight seasons of The Voice. This year, former Idol semifinalist Sundance seems to be the fan favorite, and with good reason.

4. Christian Cuevas (Team Alicia): Quick quizz — only two singers have cracked the iTunes Top 200 singles charts in all four rounds of Season 11 so far, and one is named Billy Gilman. Who’s the other? Well, I guess I gave away the answer by putting the question here, but it’s a clear indication this Christian is clicking with viewers.

5. Sa’Rayah (Team Alicia): She will probably not finish this high (see Ali Caldwell above for the reason why) and there’s nothing subtle about her performances. But Sa’Rayah has a distinctive style, a take-no-prisoners approach to her performances and the vocal firepower to back it all up.

6. Brendan Fletcher (Team Adam): The only round in which Brendan didn’t hit the iTunes 200 was the battle round. Last week, his cover of “To Love Somebody” was the second most popular on the charts. And with Josh Halverson and Sophia Urista eliminated, he stands all alone as Season 11’s rocker.

7. Josh Gallagher (Team Adam): Voice fans love country singers and, though he hails from Pennsylvania, Josh is as traditional a country singer as Season 11 has to offer. And wouldn’t Adam love to challenge Blake Shelton with a country singer stolen from his team?

8. We McDonald (Team Alicia): Last week was a surprising stumble for We, who gets no bonus points in these rankings for her young age, though she seems to on the show. She didn’t seem nearly as comfortable in the live setting as her powerhouse R&B counterparts, which could prove problematic.

9. Aaron Gibson (Team Alicia): Musical identity is important on The Voice, and I’m not sure what Aaron’s is since two alternative rock performances have been wrapped around a blues song in the battle round and a country song in the knockout round.

10. Courtney Harrell (Team Blake): Courtney’s cover of “River Deep, Mountain High” in the knockouts was a Season 11 highlight, perhaps the best performance of the season yet. But does Blake know what to do with a female R&B powerhouse? Last week’s song choice — Roxette’s “Must Have Been Love” — was a real head scratcher.

11. Austin Allsup (Team Blake): He was a one-chair turn who has made it all the way to the finals based on fan voting. He also has a distinctive sound that could help him climb in these rankings. His knockout round cover of Tom Petty’s “Breakdown” was especially impressive.

12. Darby Walker (Team Miley): The first concert she ever went to was a Hannah Montana show, and she’s won over Miley’s heart with her unique style and quirky performances. But they might be too quirky for Voice viewers and the fact that she’s West Coast based will do her no favors when it comes time for a Twitter save.