Celebrity News June 11, 2013
'The Voice' Recap: Danielle Bradbery Is 'Amazeballs' Says Usher
It was all about power vocals and emotional hometown visits Monday night as the top five “Voice” finalists, Sasha Allen, Danielle Bradbery, Amber Carrington, Michelle Chamuel and the Swon Brothers, Colton and Zach, vied for a chance to compete in next week's finale.
After a “Twisted” performance by coach Usher, the Swon Brothers kicked off the show with a dynamic rendition of Bob Seger's “Turn the Page,” dedicating the performance to their band back home in Oklahoma.
“My brother wanted to do a little more of a rock song and let people see the other side of his voice,” Colton explained. “I was like, 'Alright dude, but don't mess it up!' He did a great job. It was a good call on his part.”
Adam Levine gave the brothers the Swon Salute, while coach Blake Shelton was “blown away,” telling his team they “set the bar really high for tonight. As far as Blake was concerned, their second song, Kenny Loggins' “Danny's Song,” was “perfect” and “unbelievable.”
Sasha Allen, in a white flowing gown, held nothing back when she sang Whitney Houston's “I Will Always Love You” for her children. “I felt like it was do or die at this point and I had to pull out all the stops,” Sasha said of choosing the song. “I'm thinking of it as a tribute to her, because there is no outdoing her.”
The panel gave their stamp of approval with Sasha's mentor Shakira telling her, “I think you made Whitney's fans really proud tonight.”
The panel gave their stamp of approval with Sasha's mentor Shakira telling her, “I think you made Whitney's fans really proud tonight.”
Later in the night, Sasha showed off her sexy side with Donna Summer's “Bad Girls.” Her name in lights and a troupe of hottie backup dancers made the perfect backdrop.
Michelle Chamuel's performance of Zedd's “Clarity,” had her coach, Usher, on his feet, and he later commended her for always bringing her “A-game.” Blake joked that she's always showing everyone up with her “power squatting” onstage.
The 26-year-old explained that she chose “Clarity” because “the viewing audience of this show doesn't necessarily have an immediate reference when you say Foxes or Zedd.” It was quite different from last week's song choice, “I Knew You Were Trouble,” which everyone associates with Taylor Swift's “blonde hair and red lips.”
“Time After Time,” Chamuel's second song, was dedicated to Usher. She told the singer via video that he's like “family” and “someone I look up to and who leads by example both on and off camera.”
The youngest remaining contestant, Danielle Bradbery, 16, wowed with Tim McGraw's “Please Remember Me.” Usher summed up the performance in one word, “amazeballs”! Her coach, Blake, gushed, “I love you Danielle, I love you!”
“'Please Remember Me' is a powerful song and I got to wear that amazing dress, it was amazing singing that song and knowing that Tim McGraw was probably watching, because he gave me that big shout out. I wanted to make sure I made him and Blake proud.”
Next, she sang Jessica Andrews' “Who I Am,” with a slideshow of childhood photos playing in the background. It was especially touching when Danielle found her mom, dad and stepmom in the crowd.
Shelton called Team Adam's remaining contestant Amber Carrington “so freaking good,” and Levine told her she could do “anything” after she sang Katy Perry's “Firework.”
The Texas native chose Maroon 5's “Sad” as her second song choice. She revealed that Adam wasn't on board with the song choice at first, but eventually came around, telling Amber, “I trust you with 'Sad.' I want you to do it.”
The contestants had a whirlwind week. Aside from practicing for the Monday night sing-off, they flew home to spend time with friends and family. In addition to lots of tears and hugs, the show had plenty of surprises in store for the contestants.
The Swon Brothers won the Rising Star Award from Oklahoma Music Hall of Fame (Blake Shelton won 10 years ago), Danielle sang the National Anthem at a Houston Astro game, and Michelle belted out “God Bless America” at a Red Sox game.
Find out who is staying and who is going home, tonight at 8 PM on NBC.