The Voice 11: Top 11 Report Card

Disclaimer: All these opinions are clearly subjective and I am in no way affiliated with The Voice or any other corporation. 

Well, The Voice was on this week.

ALI CALDWELL (TEAM MILEY)
"9 to 5"

I have to applaud Ali. This was probably the strangest, most random song choice of the evening (and it came at the beginning of the show, to make matters worse!). Somehow she made it work. Ali had enough charisma to turn what could have been a very cheesy performance to an entertaining performance with flawless vocals. The last half sounded absolutely amazing. And that last note?! I don't know what she was wearing, but this is the definition of making more than the most out of what you're giving. B+

SUNDANCE HEAD (TEAM BLAKE)
"No One"

This man is such an Alicia Keys stan and I love it. I'm starting to come around to Sundance more and more each week. His song choices and delivery aren't predictable (*cough*Brendan*cough*). It's not that I'm not into country singers, it's just rare to find that diamond in the rut that will actually take risks and do more than just give a pretty good, boring vocal. He totally flipped the song upside down on it's head and sounded great doing so. B+

AARON GIBSON (TEAM MILEY)
"Hurt"

While Aaron's not my cup of tea, there's no denying there was something strangely powerful about his rendition of 'Hurt'. It was haunting, intimate, and he (or Miley) always seems to pick the perfect song for the tone of his voice. I don't think anyone else could have pulled it off with the same intensity and power that he did. B

COURTNEY HARRELL (TEAM BLAKE)
"What I Did for Love"

On paper, this should have worked. On a normal day, this song fit her voice brilliantly and it was in her range. There was just something off about this, however. Her tone was off and she looked to be struggling a bit during the softer and more sublime parts of the song. She seemed to be just under each note in the first half, it just sounded really muddy. She's lucky that second half hit or else this entire performance would have just collapsed. C+

JOSH GALLAGHER (TEAM ADAM)
"Drunk on Your Love"

Great singer. I can't say enough how painfully generic he is. Somehow I was dreading Josh's performance even more after Sundance killed his performance. It was commendable how he at least tried to work the stage, though. The song just didn't go anywhere for me. C

BILLY GILMAN (TEAM ADAM)
"All I Ask"

There we go, Billy! I'm a sucker for a fantastic vocalist, which Billy is. However, so far since the live shows begun it seemed Billy was just showing off his big voice for no reason. Instead of just randomly belting out big notes this week, he pulled back a little. There was some belting, but it wasn't overindulgent and felt like the song called for it as opposed to him just yelling out "YES I CAN SING I HAVE A PRETTY VOICE!" Towards the end, I could see his connection to the song and it made everything more believable. Oh, also, he sung it without flaw. I'd still prefer to see him loosen up and have some fun, but this was a step in the right (more honest) direction). A-

CHRISTIAN CUEVAS (TEAM ALICIA)
"Rosanna"

The groove to the song was enough for me to really like it. Christian seemed a little stiff at first but loosened up the more the song unfolded. It's a bit different that what he's been doing so far, I appreciated it. It was a bit forgettable to me, but it was by no means a bad performance and he sounded great. B

AUSTIN ALLSUP (TEAM BLAKE)
"Do Right Woman, Do Right Man"

If I was dreading Josh after Sundance, it's no secret how I felt with Austin coming up. My main issue is that I just forgot he was coming up because he hasn't left his stamp on the competition yet. I expected a performance like this from him and he did a solid job at delivering it. On the plus side, it seemed like a very honest performance even if I won't remember it in the morning. B-

DARBY WALKER (TEAM MILEY)
"You Don't Own Me"

Can we just take a minute to thank The Voice Gods that Darby is on this season? Miley and Darby are a match made in heaven. It was so refreshing to see something different on the stage. The production, as last week, was absolutely gorgeous. The colorful lights and the background were beautiful touches to a song that's already about being free. Her vocals aren't the best in the competition but she gave an emotionally riveting performance that kept my attention the whole way through (something I've had trouble with from other contestants this season). Her control at the end was a breathtaking finish to an already outstanding performance. Sure, Darby isn't everyone's cup of tea but it's good to be different. Especially on this show. A-

BRANDAN FLETCHER (TEAM ADAM)
"The River"

I'm sorry, he just sounds like he's singing with a mouthful of water. Once again, I think the saving grace of not just this specific performance, but his entire on stage persona, is the rawness. He has the way of delivering a compelling performance that's gritty, intense, yet soothing. I don't know, I'm confused, myself. Haha. B

WÉ McDONALD (TEAM ALICIA)

"Love on the Brain"

So confused, is what I am. Without a doubt, the girl has pipes. This performance, however, was really disappointing. Everything seemed, just, way too forced for me. That bark squeal, after the first first, was just a lot. Her tone was also kind off of. Her lower, deep register is absolutely breathtaking but when she goes higher, her voice gets extremely shrill and a bit annoying. Hey, she looked like she was feeling the song, though. So I'll give her credit for that, because I genuinely felt like she had some love on the brain! Haha. B-

RANKINGS:

11. Josh Gallagher C (Last week's position: #9 // -2)
10. Courtney Harrell C+ (Last week's position: #12 // +2)
09. Austin Allsap B-  (Last week's position: #11 // +2)
08. Wé McDonald B- (Last week's position: #1 //-7)
07. Aaron Gibson  B (Last week's position: #8 // +1)
06. Brendan Fletcher B (Last week's position: #4 //-2)
05. Christian Cuervas B (Last week's position: #5 // +0)
04. Sundance Head B+ (Last week's position: #3 // -1)
03. Ali Caldwell B+ (Last week's position: #2 // -1)
02. Darby Walker A- (Last week's position: #10 // +8)
01. Billy Gilman A- (Last week's position: #6 // +5)