Idol Chatter & Voice Views

Reba McEntire with Jacquie Roar, Ruby Leigh and Jordan Rainer on The Voice. (NBC Photo)

The Top 9 took the stage Monday night during The Voice Season 9 semifinals.

Each artist performed one solo song.

Then the remaining nine split into trios to perform a Taylor Swift cover.

Fans can once again vote overnight via The Voice website or The Voice app. One vote per email address per method.

The top four vote-getters automatically advance to next week’s finale.

The fifth spot in the finals will be determined by an instant save at the end of Tuesday’s 9 p.m. results show.

Voting following Monday’s show ends at 7 a.m. eastern time Tuesday morning.

See also …
Ranking the Top 9 on The Voice

Niall Horan with Nini Iris, Mara Justine and Huntley on The Voice. (NBC Photo)

1. Ruby Leigh, 16, Foley, Missouri (Team Reba), “Take Me Home Country Roads” by John Denver: Wow, this song choice should have been a fastball down the middle of the plate for Ruby. But between Reba’s yodel advice and Ruby’s tendency to oversing a laidback country song, it turned into another misfire for the teen I thought was a sure finalist just two weeks ago. Prediction: That will not be one of the night’s five best performances. Grade: C+

2. Bias, 23, Little Rock, Ark. (Team Gwen), “Bless the Broken Road” by Rascal Flatts: Sending worship leader Bias to the stage with a country song that has God in its title must have seemed like sound strategy. Folks, like Tanner Massey on the save song last week, don’t judge Bias by that vocal. He’s sounded much better nearly every other time he’s taken The Voice stage. Grade: C–

3. Jacquie Roar, 38, North Plains, Oregon (Team Reba), “Alive” by Sia: Reba talked about how far out of Jacquie’s wheelhouse this song is. Then why the hell is she singing it? This is the semifinals, folks. Every artist deserves a song in their wheelhouse. Anyway, Jacquie’s fierce stage presence and soaring vocals made it work for what to this point is easily the best performance of the night. But I would have loved to hear Jacquie sing the song Jordan tackled just a few minutes later. Grade: B

4. Jordan Rainer, 33 Atoka, Okla. (Team Reba), “Ol’ Red” by Blake Shelton: Jordan’s eye-hiding broad-brimmed hat is gone, but the dark shades are back. Love her attitude on this song. Just wish I loved the way her voice sounded on that great sing-along chorus that made the song such a hit for Blake Shelton. Instead, it sounded too close to shouting. I wouldn’t call the result a foul ball. But it wasn’t the homerun Jordan needed after needing an instant save last week. Grade: C+

5. Huntley, 33, Fredericksburg, Va. (Team Niall), “Way Down We Go” by KALEO: No way all that hair is Huntley’s, right? Anyway, I’ve been reading lots of comments about how he should let his hair down. Perhaps he read them too. Getting back to the music, if there was any doubt Huntley was finals bound, I think he just squelched those doubts with another commanding performance. This week, he did it without the help of a Voice choir to carry the melody. That, folks, was finale worthy. Grade: A

6. Mara Justine, 21, Galloway, N.J. (Team Niall), “Parachute” by Chris Stapleton: A county song for Mara. Interesting strategy. Heck, what am I talking about? I’m beginning to think this young lady can sing anything upbeat. County-soul? No problem for Mara, who performs like she absolutely owns The Voice stage. And notice how she goes big and it doesn’t sound like she’s shouting. That performance should be her ticket to the finale. Likely the best of the week for the second week in a row. Grade: A+

7. Mac Royals, 30, Wrightsville, Ark. (Team Legend), “Love TKO” by Teddy Pendergrass: Sometimes you have to play to your competition. And if I’m looking at a semifinal cast this talented, I’m sending Mac to the stage with a song capable of making a much bigger impact than “Love TKO.” Mac delivered a quality vocal, especially once all the silliness around the couch ended and he stepped behind the mic. It just wasn’t especially memorable given the stakes. Grade: B+

8. Nini Iris, 27, Brooklyn, N.Y. (Team Niall) , “No ime to Die” by Billie Eilish: Wow, there’s no doubt in my mind that every member of Team Niall belongs in the finale. Nini just delivered another superb performance, singing with passion but control early in the song, then showing how powerful her voice is as the drama built. Not sure it will be as crowd-pleasing as the performances from Huntley and Mara, though. So Nini might want to brush up on her save song for Tuesday night. Grade: A–

9. Lila Forde, 24, Seattle, Wash. (Team Legend), “River” by Joni Mitchell: Sorta surprised to see Lila in the pimp spot because it’s usually reserved for big ballads or flashy production numbers. But maybe it’s a nod to the fact that Lila really needs to finish in the Top 4 Tuesday so she’s not singing for a save on East Coast time. Anyway, she sounded excellent again. In fact, this was my favorite non-Team Niall performance. But I would have sent Lila to the stage with a song that had more of an emotional impact. Grade: B+

Trios (Taylor Swift covers):

1. Lila Forde, Huntley, Mac Royals, “Exile”:

2. Mara Justine, Jacquie Roar, Nini Iris, “Don’t Blame Me”:

3. Bias, Ruby Leigh, Jordan Rainer, “Mean”