Idol Chatter & Voice Views

This is reunion week on The Voice.

That means three former coaches are returning the help mentor the teams.

Usher will assist with Team Adam Levine. You’ll recall he’s the only coach not named Adam or Blake to have one of his artists win a Voice title.

CeeLo Green will assist Team Blake Shelton. You have to love what Blake said last week about what that could mean for his team in terms of crazy outfits and staging.

And Gwen Stefani will pull double duty, helping out with the members of Team Christina and Team Pharrell. Not much help needed on the latter count, considering how well teens Koryn Hawthorne and Sawyer Fredericks have been doing.

For a look at my latest rankings of the remaining Voice singers, head here.

For a look at where the Top 8 stand on social media, head here.

We start off the night with group numbers.

Corey Kent White, Joshua Davis and Sawyer Fredericks team up for a very nice version of Avicii’s “Hey Brother.”

Now the five remaining ladies — Koryn Hawthorne, Kimberly Nichole, India Carney, Meghan Linsey and Hannah Kirby — join forces for Avicii hit, “Wake Me Up.” Very nice start to the show, folks.

1. Hannah Kirby (Team Blake): Carson describes her as a Texas rocker. And Hannah is going to sing Tina Turner’s “We Don’t Need Another Hero.” And CeeLo isn’t shy about trying to put his stamp on this upcoming performance. As for style, they certainly have Hannah looking like a lady rocker. Hannah is delivering another fine vocal, but her performance is actually a little more subdued than the last two weeks. And here comes the children’s choir. Well, or maybe it’s just a children’s dance troupe, because they’re doing a lot more dancing than singing. Christina compliments her on powerhouse vocals. Adam says what I thought, the kid dancers were actually a distraction from what Hannah was doing. Blake says she turned in a perfect vocal. Grade: B

2. Joshua Davis (Team Adam): He’s decided to sing Sting’s “Fields of Gold,” saying it sounds like an old folk song and something he would write. Usher reminds Joshua that America will vote with its heart as well as its ears, so the emotion of the song needs to come through. Joshua says this performance “is me swinging for the fences.” Hey, really strong opening, which hasn’t been the case his recent performances. No doubt, that was Joshua’s best vocal since the finals began. Just wondering if it will be enough to keep him out of the bottom three with flashier performances likely yet to come. Blake says Joshua got back to what he does best. Adam says he did “an absolutely stunning job.” Grade: B+

3. Kimberly Nichole (Team Christina): Christina wants Kimberly to have a vulnerable moment to keep herself in the competition. Not sure I’d change direction with Kimberly, she’s been doing so well lately. And she’ll be singing “Creep,” which has been done a number of times on singing shows. We have a candlelit stage, and Kimberly in a flowing gown. If her outfit was supposed to scream “Creep,” it doesn’t. And I’m not sure I like this re-arrangement of the song. Kimberly, as usual, is providing a strong vocal, I’m just not sure this is working that way Christina and Gwen envisioned. All that said, Kimberly’s vocal ability is undeniable. And she might have salvaged that with a really superb final minute. Pharrell says if that’s what insecurity sounds like, we could all use some. He calls it masterful. Adam liked the fact that it was refreshingly different. Blake loves Kimberly’s natural talent. Christina says “that was crazy.” I’d give the vocal an A; the concept a C. Grade: B

4. Meghan Linsey (Team Blake): Meghan says she always hoped to land on Team CeeLo if she got on The Voice. Now she has him as a guest mentor. Meghan is going to tackle “Something” by The Beatles (George Harrison). And she’s giving the song a soulful touch, with a touch of country twang. Again, he’s encouraging Blake to go over the top with the staging. Really nice, near a cappella opening by Meghan. Sure enough, she’s flanked by string performers. No doubting the emotion Meghan is delivering this with, but it might be a wee bit overproduced and she may be oversinging just a touch. Yep, just a little too much bombast in that performance for me. But, hey, that might be nit-picking because she too delivered a powerful vocal. Blake called it a classy performance and says he expects to see Meghan in this year’s finale. Grade: B+

5. India Carney (Team Christina:) India is singing one of her favorite songs, “Somewhere Over the Rainbow.” Really? Some songs should be retired from singing competitions, and this is one of them. Gwen Stefani wants a better idea of who India is as an artist and what type of album she’d make. This song isn’t likely to be on it. India starts a cappella and looks lovely in a white gown and lots and lots and lots of hair. India delivers a couple of killer glory notes in the middle of the performance. But, overall, I wasn’t moved the way she needed to move viewers with that performance. Technically, it was fine, but there were a few too many frills and a little too little emotion. Another dual grade: Hair — an A; concept — a C. Blake can see her moving on. Christina says India took her on a journey. Grade: B–

Time to hear Matt McAndrew’s new single, the rocking “Counting on Love.” Always nice to see The Voice welcome past performers back to perform their new music. And Matt’s turning in a high-energy performance, but I’m not sure if this is supposed to be an all-out rocker or a pop song.

6. Sawyer Fredericks (Team Pharrell): He’s going to sing Lynyrd Skynyrd’s “Simple Man.” Pharrell wants him to move more on stage, to walk around with his guitar and meet members of the audience. He’s going to slow this down. And this is headed straight to the Top 10 on iTunes. Sawyer is singing it very, very well. I really think this might be his strongest performance since the finals began. And he’s following Pharrell’s advice for the second half of the second … or at least momentarily, but going out and meeting the audience. Really smart song choice, Sawyer. Perhaps the smartest we’ve heard so far tonight. And that ending was superb. Best of the night so far. Adam likes the purity of his voice. Pharrell is encouraging fans to support Sawyer. I doubt they need that encouragement, judging from past iTunes results. Grade: A–

7. Corey Kent White (Team Blake): Blake says Corey has to do “something to rattle the cage.” He’ll have him sing “When I See You Smile,” a classic rock song. But Blake says it would be a country song if it came out today. No fancy set from CeeLo this time. Corey is simply perched by a piano. I’m not sure this is the song he needed to rattle that cage, Blake. His voice simply isn’t come through strong enough on the chorus. Of course, maybe The Voice country fans will pull him through anyway. Hey, Corey did kick up the energy and vocal level pretty impressively during the last 30 seconds or so of that performance. And he delivered a tender ending. Carson again reminds us he’s the only country artist on the show. Adam liked the song choice. Blake calls it his best performance of the season and calls it Corey’s breakout moment. Not so sure of that. Grade: C+

8. Koryn Hawthorne (Team Pharrell): No one has picked up more momentum in the last three weeks than Koryn. And, tonight, she gets to close the show. She’ll be singing “Girl on Fire” by Alicia Keys. Koryn says she’s changed it around. The title certainly fits, considering how well Koryn has been doing on The Voice. Koryn sings with incredible intensity, and she’s doing it again tonight. At 17, Koryn is having no problem dazzling us with her vocals and her performances. In that respect, she reminds me of Jacquie Lee from a couple seasons ago. Adam is amazed by her evolution on the show. Christina says Koryn is thriving under the pressure and killing it every time she steps on stage. Pharrell says she’s an inspiration. And he’s pleading for votes again. Another really strong performance from Koryn, with perhaps a few too many vocal gymnastics. Grade: B