Idol Chatter & Voice Views

Team Gwen in the live playoffs will include Rose Short, Jake HaldenVang, Kyndal Inskeep, Joana Martinez and Myracle Holloway. (NBC Photo)

Twenty artists are performing in the live playoffs for The Voice in Season 17.

Thirteen will advance to next week’s competition.

That will include the top two vote-getters from Team Gwen and one singer Gwen saves tomorrow night.

Here are song by song grades for the members of Team Gwen.

Rose Short: She’ll perform “What Have You Done for Me Lately” by Janet Jackson. Not sure I’m a fan of this song choice for her, but we’ll see. Rose is one of the show’s most powerful vocalists. Not sure this is the best song to show that off. Well, you can’t totally contain that voice, and she’s turning in a fun performance. But I still think a better song choice would have made her a shoe-in for the Top 13. Kelly calls her performance “so sexy.” Grade: B

Kyndal Inskeep: She’ll sing “Ten Thousand Hours” by Macklemore & Ryan Lewis. Now here’s a unique voice I just want to here more and more from. Really like this song choice from Kyndal. This is quickly turning into my favorite performance of the night so far on The Voice. Dang, she looks like a star, doesn’t she. John says he loves her tone and calls it a lovely performance. Gwen calls her “so unique.” Grade: A–

Joana Martinez: She’ll sing “You Can’t Stop the Girl” by Beba Rexha. Okay, I wasn’t expecting this from Joana. She delivers a lovely start to the stop. This young lady has a world of potential. Her youth shows in places, but she can deliver her share of vocal fire too. She reminds me so much of Jacquie Lee, who did so well on Season 5 at about the same age. And Joana delivers a tender ending too. Grade: B–

Myracle Holloway: Myracle is singing “Get Here.” It’s been ages since we’ve seen Myracle perform. Her battle was one of the first aired and her knockout was the only one montaged. She’s turning in a solid vocal, but I was hoping for something a little more emotional from Myracle. What makes her special is the break in her voice when she’s pulling heartstrings. She delivered lots of vocal flourishes though. Gwen called it “so beautiful.” Grade: B–

Jake HaldenVang: He’s singing “Turning Tables” by Adele. Well, this is certainly a surprising song choice. And Jake stumbled a bit at the opening. Not sure turning Adele into a rock power ballad is the best idea, but it’s certainly a brave attempt. Jake’s giving it his all, but this didn’t come together as well as I had hoped. Gwen calls it “beautiful” and praises his vocal versatility. Grade: C.