Idol Chatter & Voice Views

The Top 12 on The Voice (from left), Chris Jamison, Matt McAndrew, Damien, Jessie Pitts, Craig Wayne Boyd, Reagan James, Sugar Joans, DaNica Shirey, Luke Wade, Taylor John Williams, Anita Antoinette, Ryan Sill. (NBC Photo)

The Top 12 take The Voice stage tonight.

And except for helping the singers prepare for their performances, the coaches no longer have a say in their fate.

That rests with voters, who decide which nine singers advance to the Top 10 and which three will have to compete for an instant save tomorrow night.

Follow along as I grade each of tonight’s performances.

After the show, I’ll post photo blogs of tonight’s performances and let you know how the songs from Monday’s show are doing on iTunes, so check back for those as well.

Before the singing begins, we learn that the singers will be performing originals at some point this season.

Now, the performances:

Sugar Joans

Blind audition: Turned two chairs with her performance of “Chain of Fools.”
Battle round: Defeated Jean Kelley; they sang “Survivor” by Destiny’s Child in one of Season 7’s most impressive battle round performances.
Knockout round: She sang Beyonce’s “Love on Top,” but lost her Team Gwen match to Bryana Salaz. She was immediately stolen by Pharrell.
Live playoffs: She sang “I Say a Little Prayer” by Aretha Franklin. Her cover landed at 85 on the iTunes singles chart and 39 on the pop chart. She was Pharrell Williams’ pick to advance to the finals.

Pharrell has given Sugar, hair still purple, “Take Me to the River,” saying it’s in “the wheelhouse” of what she’s about as a singer. Sugar calls Pharrell, the first person who “understands me as an artist.” She has the difficult task of kicking off the show and hoping to turn in a performance so memorable people will remember it two hours from now. About halfway through, Sugar turns on the soul in a big way. Nice little rasp to her voice. Wow, she really got into that during the last half of the performance. It brings Pharrell to his feet. Gwen calls it incredible but said it seemed a little “retro.” Adam says she did a great job. Blake likes the “edginess” to her voice and says she sounded great. Pharrell says he’s proud of her. Fine performance to open the show. Grade: B

Ryan Sill

Blind audition: He performed OneRepublic’s “Secrets” and enticed two judges to turn their chairs.
Battle round: He defeated Jessie Pitts; they sang “I Need Your Love” by Calvin Harris and Ellie Goulding. Jessie was stolen by Blake Shelton.
Knockout round: He defeated Beth Spangler with a performance of Ne-Yo’s “Miss Independent.”
Live playoffs: He sang OneRepublic’s “I Lived.” The song hit number 181 on the iTunes singles chart and number 70 on the site’s pop chart. Ryan was Gwen Stefani’s choice to advance to the finals.

So, it appears they’re making the singers who were saved last week sing first this week. Sorta makes sense. Gwen is giving him Duran Duran’s “Ordinary World.” She says it’s up his alley because it’s emotional and dreamy. Her wild card: She plans to make Ryan look “super cute” so all the girls scream when he takes the stage. Not loving the opening. A little too sleepy for a performance this early in the show. And his voice isn’t soaring on the chorus the way I suspect he and Gwen had in mind. In fact, he seems to be straining a bit to hit the high notes. But the coaches loved it. Adam says he killed it and rock and roll music is the way he should go. Pharrell concurs: “Rock for sure.” Gwen calls it so perfect and compliments Ryan for coming so far in such a short amount of time. I wasn’t quite as enthused. Grade: C+

Jessie Pitts

Blind audition: Turned a pair of chairs singing Brandi Carlile’s “The Story.”
Battle round: Lost to Team Gwen’s Ryan Sill; they performed “I Need Your Love” by Calvin Harris and Ellie Goulding. But Jessie got a reprieve when she was stolen by Blake Shelton.
Knockout round: Defeated Tanner Linford with a performance of “Your Song” by Elton John.
Live playoffs: Sang Bonnie Tyler’s “Holding Out for a Hero.” The song landed at number 60 on the iTunes singles chart and number 29 on the site’s pop chart. Jessie was Blake Shelton’s choice to advance to the finals.

Jessie wants to play an instrument this round and do something a little more upbeat. She’s going to sing “Don’t You Worry Child.” Jessie says the song sorta matches her journey on the show. Love this young lady’s voice, and it’s magnificent on this opening. I’m pretty sure this is going to be my favorite Jessie performance since the battle rounds. Oops, actually I might have liked it better if she had stayed at the keyboards. Though she delivered a very nice glory note near the end of the performance. Gwen called it “so good”and liked the way she changed the song. Adam wants her to keep exploring the big part of her voice. Blake says it’s hard for him to talk about Jessie without smiling. Blake compared her to wife Miranda Lambert for her ability to take songs and make them her own. That’s pretty high praise. Grade: B–

Damien Lawson

Blind audition: All four coaches turned their chairs when he sang Boyz II Men’s “It’s So Hard to Say Goodbye to Yesterday.”
Battle round: Defeated Kelli Douglas; they sang Otis Redding’s “Knock on Wood.”
Knockout round: Defeated Toia Jones with his performance of “How Do I Live” by LeAnn Rimes.
Live playoffs: He sang “I’m Not the Only One” by Sam Smith. The song landed at number 40 on the iTunes overall singles chart and number one on the R&B/Soul chart. He was voted into the finals.

Hmm, this should have been Chris Jamison’s turn, but Damien is up instead. He’ll be singing, “He Ain’t Heavy, He’s My Brother.” Adam describes it as “a tough one.” But he’s looking for emotion from Damien, and that is Damien’s forte. Damien says he likes the message of the lyrics. This guy was incredibly impressive last week. This week, Damien started a little slow, but wow did he crank it up during the second half of that performance. He brought both Adam and Pharrell to their feet. That was the best vocal we’ve heard so far tonight. Blake congratulates him on a great performance. Pharrell isn’t sure whether the church or Donnie Hathaway would be prouder. He, too, loved the performance. Adam says he blew the audience away with his interpretation of the song. Yep, Damien deserves to advance. Grade: A–

DaNica Shirey

Blind audition: Turned three chairs with her performance of Jessie J’s “Big White Room.”
Battle round: Defeated Toia Jones in one of Season 7’s most celebrated battle round matches; they sang Beyonce’s “Halo.”
Knockout round: Sang Whitney Houston’s “Saving All My Love for You” and defeated young Katriz Trinidad.
Live playoffs: She sang “Help Me” by Joni Mitchell. The song landed at 120 on the iTunes singles chart and 52 on the pop chart. She was voted into the finals.

And it’s time to hear from the gal from York. DaNica is going to sing “Creep” by Radiohead. She says she wants to show off an artistic side of herself, taking a song and making it her own. Pharrell’s looking for tenderness from DaNica during this performance, and DaNica says she’s hoping it’s a risk that pays off. She’s singing backed by six giant fans. And she impresses yet again with that big voice of hers. Wow, she just held a note forever. I also liked the tender ending, which added a touch of emotion to the song that had been missing to that point. Gwen calls her “a freak of nature.” She also compliments her on how great she looks. Adam says she’s got such a great voice, she can sing anything and appreciated the fact that she choose a song that was a risk. Pharrell called the performance amazing. Grade: B+

Taylor John Williams

Blind audition: His stripped-down version of “Heartless” prompted two coaches to turn their chairs.
Battle round: He defeated Amanda Lee Peers; they performed Dolly Parton’s “Jolene.”
Knockout round: He defeated Troy Ritchie with a performance of “Mad World” by Tears for Fears.
Live playoffs: Sang “Stuck in the Middle with You” by Stealers Wheel. The song landed at 63 on the iTunes singles chart and number one on the site’s rock chart. He was voted into the finals.

Gwen is reaching way back for her song selection for Taylor John, giving him “If” by Bread. She says the song matches his persona, kinda dark, but really not. Taylor John calls the song a risk because it’s so simple, he could make missteps. Gwen is hoping the performance shows off his vulnerability. This is an interesting song choice because it is such a simple song, without lots of big vocal moments. Taylor John is doing a better job than usual of maintaining eye contact with the audience. I have a feeling that will go over much better with female voters than it did with me. Adam likes the purity of Taylor John’s voice. Blake says he always sounds great. Pharrell says his vocal brought the tenderness out in the song. Gwen calls it beautiful. Oh, and she also mentions that he’s cute and cool, as if the ladies in the audience needed a reminder. Grade: B–

Reagan James

Blind audition: Turned two chairs singing Ed Sheeran’s “Give Me Love.”
Battle round: Defeated fellow teen Kensington Moore; they sang Lorde’s “Team.”
Knockout round: Defeated Grant Ganzer with a performance of “Hit Em Up Style.”
Live playoffs: She sang “Try” by Colbie Caillat. The song hit number 53 on the iTunes singles chart and number 27 on the site’s pop chart. Reagan was voted into the finals.

Blake reminds us that Reagan turned 16 on the night she learned she made the Top 12. He has given her Lenny Kravitz’s “It Ain’t Over Til It’s Over.” This young lady is incredibly impressive for being so young. Reagan clearly buys into the song choice. I’m not loving it. In fact, that’s my least favorite Reagan performance so far. I think Reagan’s popular enough to squeak through this round. And Reagan seemed perfectly comfortable on stage. Pharrell likes that she did her own thing. Adam liked the fact that she changed up the original, but said she seemed to run out of breath from time to time. All in all, he called it awesome. Blake says he’s blown away by the way Reagan navigates a melody. I’d like a better song choice next time, Blake. Grade: C+

Luke Wade

Blind audition: Got all four judges to turn their chairs for his performance of Otis Redding’s “That’s How Strong Love Is.”
Battle round: Defeated Griffin; they performed “Maybe I’m Amazed” so well that Griffin was stolen by Blake Shelton.
Knockout round: Sang Hall and Oates “Rich Girl” and defeated Taylor Phelan in a battle of singers who had turned four chairs in the blinds.
Live playoffs: He sang Marvin Gaye’s “Let’s Get It On.” The song landed at number 66 on the iTunes singles chart and 32 on the pop chart. Luke was voted into the finals.

Pharrell’s giving this performance big billing, saying Voice viewers are about to experience something they’ve never experienced before. He’s singing Ed Sheeran’s “Thinking Out Loud.” Oops. Luke just lost the second line of the song. He recovered pretty well, but that flub was very obvious. The good news for Luke is that he has an incredible voice and sounded great for the rest of the song. Especially the middle, where he got to show off the power in his voice. He gets high marks from the judges for his ability to recover from the early stumble, but the look on Luke’s face says it all: He’s quite disappointed by the stumble and the attention it drew. Grade: C+

Matt McAndrew

Blind audition: He sang “A Thousand Years” by Christina Perri and enticed three judges to turn their chairs.
Battle round: Defeated Ethan Bulter; they performed Coldplay’s “Yellow.”
Knockout round: Defeated Rebekah Samarin with a performance of Train’s “Drops of Jupiter,” but only a snippet of the match aired.
Live playoffs: He sang the Beach Boys’ “God Only Knows.” The song was the best received from night one of the live playoffs, hitting number 31 on iTunes’ singles chart and number 18 on its pop chart. Matt was voted into the finals.

Adam says he wants to help Matt get a check in that box on his wrist, the one he plans to fill in when he gets signed to a record deal. He’ll be singing “Take Me to Church.” Matt likes the song because it’s more rock than anything he’s gotten to perform so far. Adam thinks the potential here is “explosive.” Matt sounds really strong on this opening. Prediction right now: This will do better on iTunes than any of the songs we’ve heard so far tonight. That was a great song choice. Matt delivered a wonderful opening. And if his voice wavered from time to time on that dynamic ending, it didn’t matter because he sold it so well. That is my new favorite performance of the night. The crowd won’t shut up so Blake can critique the performance. Pharrell said he can’t wait to hear the album Matt makes after the show. Gwen thought the song was perfect for Matt. Adam says “this guy’s got it all.” And he compliments the energy and emotion Matt poured into the performance. Grade: A

Craig Wayne Boyd

Blind audition: Turned a pair of chairs singing Travis Tritt’s “The Whiskey Ain’t Workin’.”
Battle round: Lost to James David Carter, but was so impressive performing “Wave on Wave” that he was stolen by Gwen Stefani.
Knockout round: Lost to Anita Antoinette, but sang the Marshall Tucker Band’s “Can’t You See” so well he was stolen back by Blake Shelton.
Live playoffs: He sang Grand Funk Railroad’s “Some Kind of Wonderful.” His cover hit number 59 on the iTunes singles chart and number seven on the site’s country chart. He was voted into the finals.

Craig Wayne will sing George Strait’s “You Look So Good in Love.” Blake said it will give him a chance to slow things down and show off the emotion in his voice. Dang, Craig Wayne sounds great on this opening. Heck, he sounds great on this song, from start to finish. Hey, Blake, great idea, that slowing-it-down thing. That will go over huge with the country fans in The Voice audience. And, judging from past seasons, there are an awful lot of them. Gwen calls him “a natural” and compliments him on a good job. Adam liked the change of pace after a number of kick-butt type songs from Craig Wayne. Pharrell calls it a “clean, clean super professional performance.” Blake says Craig Wayne just delivered his second straight breakout moment on the show. I’d have to agree. Craig Wayne should have no worries tomorrow night. Grade: A–

Chris Jamison

Blind audition: He sang John Mayer’s “Gravity” and prompted all four coaches to turn their chairs.
Battle round: He defeated four-chair turn recipient Jonathan Wyndham; they performed “Young Girls” by Bruno Mars.
Knockout round: He defeated another four-chair turn recipient, Blessing Offor, with a performance of Otis Redding’s “Sitting on the Dock of the Bay.”
Live playoffs: He sang Ed Sheeran’s “Don’t.” Chris’ version of the song hit number 133 on the iTunes singles chart and number 50 on the pop chart. He was Adam Levine’s choice to advance to the finals.

I’m not liking the fact that Chris is getting special treatment tonight. All the other “saves” from last week had to sing in the one to three spots on the show, but Chris gets the next-to-last spot. What’s that about? He’ll be singing “Jealous” by Nick Jonas, which Adam tells us is right up Chris’ alley. Oh, and he reminds us again that the ladies should love Chris. Adam has him wearing a tux for the performance. Chris shows off nice range. I’m just not sure his voice is that distinctive, given some of the other talent on this show. Chris also needs to learn to open his eyes when he sings. He’s getting a solid reaction from The Voice crowd, though. Pharrell calls it “100 percent” his best performance so far. He loved Chris’ falsetto. Gwen thought the song was perfect for him. Adam calls him a “talented, talented singer.” Grade: B–

Anita Antoinette

Blind audition: Sang Bob Marley’s “Turn Your Lights Down Low” and got all four coaches to turn their chairs.
Battle round: Defeated Mayra Alvarez; they sang Johnny Nash’s “I Can See Clearly Now.”
Knockout round: Defeated Craig Wayne Boyd with a performance of “Rude” by Magic! Her foe was stolen by Blake Shelton.
Live playoffs: Sang Meghan Trainor’s “All About That Bass.” The song hit number 56 on iTunes singles chart, best from night two of the live playoffs, and 28 on the pop chart. Anita was voted into the finals.

Anita will sing Bob Marley’s “Redemption Song.” Gwen’s hoping this will allow Anita to share her story of growing up in Jamaica with viewers. Anita starts the song sitting out among members of the audience. And then waltzes out to the stage midway through the performance. It’s tough to believe she couldn’t get a chair to turn back in Season 3. Anita sounded great throughout that number. Adam says she should feel really good about that performance. Blake calls her voice “soothing, calming and relaxing;” in other words “great job.” Gwen calls it authentic, beautiful and true and compliments Anita on an amazing job. I’d say she has nothing to worry about either. Grade: B+