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It’s night three of the blind auditions, and boy, are the results mixed. Some singers are so impressive they have virtually all the coaches clamoring for a chance to coach them, while others are…not quite as impressive.

Let’s take a look at who makes it through tonight, shall we?

Christiana Danielle (22 — Fort Wayne, Indiana)
“Hotline Bling” by Drake

Every season, there are a couple of artists whose blinds make them instant favorites for the long haul (see also: Alisan Porter), and Christiana Danielle seems to fit into that category based on this performance. The pre-grad student is lucky to have her voice back after a touch-and-go experience with a throat infection, but her mom must’ve been rapping the right kind of prayers because her sound is completely unhindered.

“Hotline Bling” might not immediately come to mind as the kind of wistful melody that can show off a girl’s range with both sultry R&B and earthy folk tones, but here we are. This arrangement works for her on so many levels, and what’s even better is we haven’t heard everything she’s got to offer yet. Everyone except Blake Shelton turns for her, and while Kelly Clarkson makes an impassioned plea to recruit her and Adam Levine’s even slinging around hyperbole, Alicia Keys has her with the promise that “the canvas can be everything we imagine it to be” and “I get you.” As Kelly observes, when Alicia starts drawing from the universe, everyone else is done for.

Team: Alicia Keys

Brett Hunter (30 — Pasadena, California)
“She’s a Bad Mamma Jamma” by Carl Carlton

Blake Shelton might not have wanted to throw his hat in the ring to woo Christiana to his team, but he’s more than willing to be the lone chair turn for Brett Hunter here. This ukulele-playing hipster abandoned a solid job opportunity to share a room with his brother and pursue the musical life and somehow landed on this arrangement to show off his quivery yet ordinary vocal tones that have just enough high notes to get Blake’s attention. Blake thinks he’s got “the next Tiny Tim,” but Kelly Clarkson’s right: This whole thing is confusing. We’ll have to wait and see whether he’s an easy trim in the knockouts, or if he channels all that unique energy into something that’s not quite so forced next time.

Team: Blake Shelton

Jamai (24 — Chester, Pennsylvania)
“U Got it Bad” by Usher

Another one-chair turn comes by way of Jamai, a telegram singer (you can’t make this stuff up) who has a touch of trouble trying to reach those low notes that make this song so sultry, but who has enough silk in his full voice to get both Kelly and Alicia interested. Alicia’s struck by his variety and style, and Kelly is feeling his high notes. Ultimately, he aligns with Alicia because she’s “hypnotic,” and head-to-head with her, Kelly just has trouble sealing the deal with prospects.

Team: Alicia Keys

Mitch Cardoza (22 — Dartmouth, Massachusetts)
“No Woman, No Cry” by Bob Marley

Oof. Mitch Cardoza seems to have a lot of things going for him: supportive parents, a long-held interest in performing, etc. But song selection is definitely not his forte. His soft voice would be so much better served with an old radio rock anthem from the ’90s or even some smooth jams from the likes of John Mayer or Jack Johnson, but this…this is not a good fit. Mercifully, he doesn’t try to force it too much and do a reggae redux, but it still sounds messy. It’s not hard to see why no one turns for him tonight. Maybe next time?

Team: N/A

Mia Boostrom (24 — Boston, Massachusetts)
“Pillowtalk” by Zayn Malik

Now, here’s a surprise. Mia Boostrom seems nice enough and sounds like she’s always on the cusp of something interesting. But like the auditioner before her, there’s something missing from her performance that makes it incomplete and thus unimpressive. To her credit though, she does hit a power note or two after coasting all song long, and it’s enough to get Adam Levine’s attention. He thinks there’s some serious potential here and that he’s lucky to have the singular opportunity to coach her, which…okay, fine. We’ll see.

Team: Adam Levine (Recap continues on page 2)

Jackie Foster (21 — San Diego, California)
“What About Us” by Pink

Being classically trained in music is usually a plus for this competition for a couple of reasons: (1) There’s enough history and theory training to understand what genre really works for your sound, and (2) you’re just better at recognizing pitches, harmonizing, and staying in key. Granted, it can render some singers boring to have been brought up in musical theater (thinking of Emily Luther here), but that doesn’t seem to be a problem for Jackie Foster. Her timing could use some work, but her voice is strong, and Alicia is impressed with her note accuracy. She honestly sounds an awful lot like early Kelly Clarkson, without all the rawness, so it’s a pretty good fit that she lands on her team.

Team: Kelly Clarkson

Kayla Woodson (23 — Waggaman, Louisiana)
“Turn On Your Radio” by Harry Nilsson

Another major miss of the evening comes by way of Kayla Woodson, a young lady whose heart seems to be in the right place, while her vocal chords have gotten lost somewhere. As Alicia notes, her audition is wall-to-wall scream-singing with no breaks in between (doesn’t that hurt after a while?), and she’s also pitchy throughout. This is far and away the least enjoyable audition yet, but she’s young enough to turn it around if she can dial back the intensity and instead focus on offering some nuance.

Team: N/A

Reid Umstattd (34 — Austin, Texas)
“Take Me to the Pilot” by Elton John

Some of the song choices for this season’s blinds have been inspired indeed, because this guy clearly knew he’d turn some chairs — Adam Levine’s especially — by opting for a song that hasn’t been overdone but is mainstream enough to make an impact. It’s a smart choice because, otherwise, Reid Umstattd is a relatively ordinary singer, with strength and consistency but nothing to truly set him apart from every other decent jam bander with a dream around here. Adam is in love, though, and practically begs the guy to join his team, so we’ll have to wait and see what comes of this.

Team: Adam Levine

Jorge Eduardo (24 — Los Angeles, California)
“Despacito” by Luis Fonsi

We’ve seen some Spanish-speaking singers go pretty far on this show (e.g. Bryan Bautista), but Jorge Eduardo is even more qualified than most because he’s already placed fourth in Mexico’s La Voz. Kelly Clarkson is feeling his rendition of “Despacito” from the start, and while the others are rendered completely confused by what they’re hearing, she’s delighted to get the chance to work with him (and learn to sing that song for herself, too).

Team: Kelly Clarkson

Angel Bonilla (31 — Laguna, Philippines)
“Lay Me Down” by Sam Smith

Angel Bonilla’s audition has been montaged with another singer — namely, Jamella Perkins, a Meghan Markle look-alike who ends up on Kelly’s team — but considering the importance of her story to this show, well, she deserves some individual attention here. While we don’t get to hear much of her performance in the redacted segment, we do learn that Adam feels strongly enough about what she does to court her onto his team. Angel is also openly transgender, which is relatively new to The Voice, following Jordan Gray’s successful run on The Voice UK. In an era when representation is being recognized as extremely valuable to audiences, downplaying the importance of Angel’s appearance on the show is disappointing, so let’s hope we get to hear at least as much about her journey as we do all these other contestants.

Team: Adam Levine

Austin Giorgio (21 — Rochester, New York)
“How Sweet It Is (To Be Loved By You)” by Marvin Gaye

It’s not a real season without a Frank Sinatra-slash-Michael Bublé wannabe taking the stage, is it? Usually, it’s Adam who’d jump at the opportunity to scoop up the classicist du jour, but this time he’s not interested, and it’s not hard to see/hear why. Adam has proven time and again that he knows how to sing in his style, so he recognizes a choppy, unrefined singer when he hears one. Austin Giorgio is probably a lovely guy, but he doesn’t have the same polish as, say, Riley Elmore, and even that guy couldn’t make it far on this show.

Team: Blake Shelton

Johnny Bliss (26 — New York, New York)
“Preciosa” by Marc Anthony

Now, here’s a Spanish singer everyone can get on board with. Perhaps it’s the fact that his song isn’t at breakneck speed or that he’s not quite as pitchy as Jorge, but Johnny Bliss, the karaoke host, has everyone excited about what he can do. In fact, he’s so good and convincing that Adam uses his lone block to stop Kelly Clarkson from recruiting him (to be fair, she was his first choice based on the pre-audition interview), and, even more convincingly, he inspires Alicia Keys to sing “If I Ain’t Got You” in pristine Spanish, with nary a lyric forgotten. Who wouldn’t be wooed by that?

Team: Alicia Keys

TEAM STANDINGS:

Team Adam: Rayshun LaMarr, Drew Cole, Levelle Davison, Mia Boostrom, Reid Umstattd, Angel Bonilla

Team Alicia: Britton Buchanan, Kelsea Johnson, Justin Kilgore, Jaclyn Levey, Christiana Danielle,Jamai, Johnny Bliss

Team Kelly: Brynn Cartelli, D.R. King, Molly Stevens, Dylan Hartigan, Jackie Foster, Jorge Eduardo

Team Blake: Kyla Jade, Kaleb Lee, Pryor Baird, Brett Hunter, Austin Giorgio

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