Idol Chatter & Voice Views

The Voice Top 5 take the stage tonight in the Season 19 performance finale.

Ian Flanigan and Jim Ranger of Team Blake, Carter Rubin of Team Gwen, John Holiday of Team Legend and DeSz of Team Kelly will square off for the Season 19 title.

You have to figure the favorites are the country-leaning guys from Team Blake or young Carter Rubin from Team Gwen.

After all, country-leaning artists have prevailed in seven of the shows 19 seasons, and Team Blake artists always seem to be among the fans’ favorites.

Meanwhile, teens have won four seasons of The Voice, including two of the last five thanks to Brynn Cartelli’s win in Season 14 and Chevel Shepherd’s triumph in Season 15.

Carter was 14 when he auditioned, has since turned 15 and would become Gwen Stefani’s first winner in five seasons as a coach should he prevail.

Blake, meanwhile, is the winningest coach in Voice history, leading seven artists to the winner’s circle, including Todd Tilghman in Season 18.

To me, the finals will seem empty without Tamara Jade and Cami Clune, both of whom were eliminated last week. Oh, well, I’ll eagerly await their post-show music.

And to me, going from a Top 17 to a winner in three weeks is the definition of ludicrous if you want to host a respected, credible, legitimate singing competition show.

But that’s not what The Voice is about these days.

So good luck to the singers. And my advice to the fans who have stuck with The Voice through its sad demise is not to take anything that happens too seriously.

Remember that Danielle Bradbery, a teen at the time, had to sing 14 times to win Season 4. And that teen Chevel Shepherd took the stage 12 times to win Season 15.

The Season 19 champ will have earned the title based on just seven performances.

Each artist will perform twice tonight, one original song and one cover. Here’s what we’ll hear. The links take you to the YouTube versions of the new originals.

The originals:

Jim Ranger (Team Blake), “Last” — A earnest performance and perfectly satisfactory vocal from Jim. Unfortunately, this original isn’t especially memorable. In fact, it sounded like a country music cliche. Fortunately for Jim, he would end the night on a much more memorable note. Grade: B

Ian Flanigan (Team Blake), “Never Learn” — This isn’t a particularly memorable original either. But Ian’s unique vocal salvaged the song, along with his emotional connection. And it occurred to me while listening that, among the final five, it’s Ian’s post-show music that I’m most eager to hear. Grade: B

Carter Rubin (Team Gwen), “Up From Here” — Remember, Carter’s just 15. He’s loaded with potential. But nearly every one of his Voice performances has come off as half-baked, and that was the case with this one. I really hope Carter doesn’t win Season 19. Because there must be two dozen Season 19 contestants with equally impressive vocals who are more ready to deliver post-show music. Grade: C

DeSz (Team Kelly), “Holy Ground” — Okay, what the hell was going on halfway through this performance when DeSz completely disappeared in a cloud of smoke? LOL, The Voice. The good news is that by the end of the song, I didn’t care, because DeSz absolutely slayed the chorus every time it came around, delivering the night’s most vibrant vocal. Grade: A–

John Holiday (Team Legend), “Where Do We Go” — John’s got lots of range doesn’t he. He also got the fire left over from that oddly staged Jim Ranger performance from the semifinals. Unfortunately, I don’t think John’s a budding pop star, and he was saddled with a pop song here. That result was … well, something I don’t want to hear again. Grade: C–

The covers

Jim Ranger (Team Blake), “With a Little Help From My Friends” by The Beatles — Jim got to close Monday’s show with this number. It’s overdone on singing shows, but there was no arguing that Jim delivered a fun, soulful, show-closing moment. If he wins Tuesday night — and he just might — this performance will have a lot to do with the victory. Grade: A

Ian Flanigan (Team Blake), “In Color” by Jamey Johnson — A brilliant song choice, wonderfully executed by Ian. His raspy, weathered voice was the perfect match for the story told by the song. Yep, this is a cover I’d listen to over and over. My favorite of the night. Grade: A

Carter Rubin (Team Gwen), “The Climb” by Miley Cyrus — Everyone has a song that annoys the hell out of them, right? A song that makes them cringe the moment it starts? For me, it’s “The Climb.” Would Carter be the singer who changed my opinion of the song? One minute in, it was clear. Nope, he wouldn’t be. Two minutes in, I was ready for it to end. A mix of potential, shouty moments and breath-control problems. Grade: C–

John Holiday (Team Legend), “Halo” by Beyonce — On the other hand, I like this song. But, yikes, what the heck was that? I should have known we were in trouble when John showed up on stage standing between those big fake white rocks with some dime-store halo behind him. If this was the original version of “Halo” though, it might have made me appreciate “The Climb.” Grade: D

DeSz (Team Kelly), “Landslide” by Fleetwood Mac — DeSz delivers the most unexpected song choice of the night. And she made it work. Wow, that ending. By the time she finished this ballad, preceded by her original song, there should not have been one iota of doubt about who is the best singer left in the competition. It’s DeSz, hands down. Grade: A–

How they should finish:

1. DeSz (Team Kelly)
2. Ian Flanigan (Team Blake)
3. Jim Ranger (Team Blake)
4. John Holiday (Team Legend) based on all his Voice performances, not just Monday’s
5. Carter Rubin (Team Gwen)