‘The Voice’ 2016 Live Semi-Finals Recap: Adam Wakefield, Alisan Porter expected on iTunes chart [VIDEOS]
Original air date: May 16, 2016 on NBC
“The Voice” 2016 a.ka. Season 10 aired its live semi-finals on May 16, with two contestants from Team Adam Levine, two more from Team Cristina Aguilera, one from Team Pharrell Williams and three from Team Blake Shelton. Shalyah Fearing, Adam Wakefield and Alisan Porter are showstoppers with their next iTunes hits.
Here is a recap of the semi-finals of “The Voice” Top 8 on NBC:
Pink joins as a guest mentor on “The Voice” Top 8 in the show’s May 16 episode. Pink’s latest hit is "Just Like Fire" from the movie “Alice Through The Looking Glass.”
Shalyah Fearing is up first with Jennifer Hudson’s “And I Am Telling You I’m Not Going” from “Dreamgirls.” This 16-year-old belter has shown commendable growth since the blind auditions, dishing out an excellent number in a very crucial moment on the show. The coaches love her. This same teenager also crushed Beyonce’s “Listen” a couple of weeks ago. Her coach Adam Levine begs for votes, saying Shalyah deserves to be in the Top 8.
Paxton Ingram, fresh from the Instant Save a week ago, hits the stage with Meat Loaf’s “I’d Do Anything For Love (But I Won’t Do That).” Pink compliments his tone, showing faith in the dance instructor and aspiring recording artist. Paxton starts off beautifully, but some emotions are lost in the mid part of his live performance. The end part of his number is pretty compelling, though. His coach Blake Shelton urges the fans to vote.
Professional musician Laith Al-Saadi has opened for renowned music icons like B.B. King and Gregg Allman, but he is now enjoying the limelight with his iTunes hits on “The Voice” 2016. He takes on Adele’s “One and Only” to gain a spot for Team Adam in the finals. Pink is impressed by the notes he can reach. Pharrell Williams says his journey on the show is a “success story.”
“Curly Sue” star Alisan Porter sings “Desperado” by Eagles and wows the judges. A frequent charting artist on iTunes, Team Cristina’s Alisan is widely expected to win “The Voice” 2016. Porter’s greatest strength in the competition is pulling the audience in when she sings. She is always compelling and believable in her vulnerability as an artist.
Frequent iTunes charter Adam Wakefield took on a Blake Shelton song. His coach explains “I’m Sorry” (written by Chris Stapleton) is the type of track that he sees Wakefield as doing in his career. Wakefield goes behind the keyboards for this, and the result is mesmerizing. He is expected to land high on iTunes again.
Bryan Bautista of Team Cristina sings his coach's heartbreak tune, "Hurt." In the video package, he talks about not getting a message from his dad whom he misses. Pain is on free stream in Bryan's number as he fights to make it to the Final Four. Cristina is pleased with his performance albeit and says she would buy his version on iTunes.
Mary Sarah sings “I Told You So” by Randy Travis, impressing Pink with her tone. The guest mentors says such songs are not played in the radio enough today. Mary Sarah makes good use of her vintage vocals and pulls off a magical vocal moment on stage. She is also expected to rank well on iTunes with this cover. Her coach Blake Shelton thinks this is her best performance on “The Voice” so far, echoing Cristina’s remark that it seems Mary Sarah has grown a lot as a woman on the show.
Hannah Huston, the last artist standing on Team Pharrell has a lot of pressure being her coach’s only chance at getting into the finals. Her cover of “When A Man Loves A Woman” by Michael Bolton is so captivating. This preschool teacher has a really good chance at making it in next week’s finals.
WATCH: Mary Sarah sings ‘I Told You So’ on ‘The Voice’ 2016
WATCH: Adam Wakefield sings ‘I’m Sorry’ on ‘The Voice’ 2016
WATCH: Shalyah Fearing sings ‘And I Am Telling You’ on ‘The Voice’ 2016
Duets are part of the semi-finals, allowing the fans to see the contestants to musically interact with each other. Here are the talents that collaborated this week for “The Voice” duets:
- Team Cristina’s Alisan Porter and Team Blake’s Adam Wakefield: “Angel From Montgomery” by Bonnie Raitt and John Prine
- Team Cristina’s Bryan Bautista and Team Blake’s Mary Sarah: “Break Free” by Ariana Grande featuring Zedd
- Team Pharrell’s Hannah Huston and Team Adam’s Laith Al-Saadi: “Knock on Wood” by Eddie Floyd
- Team Adam’s Shalyah Fearing and Team Blakes’s Paxton Ingram: “Masterpiece” by Jessie J
RELATED: ‘The Voice’ 2016 Videos: Alisan Porter’s ‘Stone Cold’ and Adam Wakefield’s ‘Soulshine’ are iTunes favourites (Review)
Four artists will perform in "The Voice" 2016 finale. Adam Levine points out Hannah Huston is like an assassin that sneaks out at exactly the right time. It won't be surprising for Team Pharrell to make it next week. Meanwhile, there are consistent strong ones like Alisan Porter, Mary Sarah and Adam Wakefield.
UPDATE: The four finalists have been announced. One talent from each team advances on the show. For the May 23 finale, the following will be battling for votes: Adam Wakefield (Team Blake), Hannah Huston (Team Pharrell), Alisan Porter (Team Christina) and Laith Al-Saadi (Team Adam).
Who is your favourite in the tenth season of NBC's The Voice? Let us know in the comments section below.
