"The Voice": Let the knockout rounds begin
They call them the knockout rounds for a reason. On Monday night's episode of "The Voice," Adam Levine and Cee Lo Green cut their teams in half.
With the battle rounds over, contestants were faced with a new task. Coaches had two of their team members go up against each other. Each contestant performed a song of their choosing while their opponent watched from the sidelines. On top of that, the contestants didn't know who they would compete against until that night.
But not everyone can make it. Coaches ended up giving one person in each pair the boot, whittling their respective teams down from 10 to 5 contenders.
So how did they do?
Team Adam
Joselyn Rivera and Kayla Nevarez were the first to take the stage. Rivera took on Beyonce's "Love on Top," and Nevarez sang "Shark in the Water" by V V Brown. Levine liked both of the singer's pop star qualities, but ended up going with Rivera. He liked that she picked a more ambitious song.
Next up was Joe Kirkland versus Bryan Keith. Kirkland sang "Mean" by Taylor Swift, while Keith performed Bryan Adams' "Everything I Do (I Do It for You)." Kirkland took a risk by going with a Swift son, but it probably worked against him. Keith's rendition did the song justice, prompting Levine to choose him to move to the next round.
Team Adam's competition continued with Amanda Brown and Michelle Brooks-Thompson. Brown took on "Paris (Ooh La La)" by Grace Potter and the Nocturnals, and Michelle Brooks-Thompson performed Jennifer Hudson's "Spotlight." Levine liked both contenders, but ended up going with Brown for her unique singing style and chops.
Loren Allred and Nicole Nelson competed next for Levine. Allred sang "You Know I'm No Good" by Amy Winehouse, and Nelson chose to perform Alicia Keys' "If I Ain't Got You." Allred won over all of the judges, including Levine. So she advanced.
Team Adam's knockout competitions wrapped with Melanie Martinez, who sang "Bulletproof" by La Roux, who was pitted against Sam James, who performed "Walking in Memphis" by Marc Cohn. Martinez got the coaches' attention with her performance. "Melanie, when you open your mouth and you sing, it's almost haunting, it really invites you into this special world that only you are capable of creating," Christina Aguilera said. Levine agreed and went with Martinez.
Team Cee Lo
Green paired up fan-favorite Avery Wilson with Cody Belew. Wilson did a version of Chris Brown's "Yeah 3x," and Belew performed "Jolene" by Dolly Parton. Many seemed to agree that Wilson appeared to be trying a little too hard. Green chose Belew to advance.
Next up was Mackenzie Bourg and Daniel Rosa. Bourg sang Carly Rae Jepsen's "Call Me Maybe," and Rosa performed "Back to December" by Taylor Swift. Green enjoyed what Bourg did with the song and decided to have her advance.
Next up for Green were his "two powerhouses" -- Terisa Griffin and Trevin Hunte. Green took on Whitney Houston's "Saving All My Love for You," and Hunte sang "Against All Odds" by Phil Collins. Hunte dedicated the song to his eighth grade teacher who told him he'd never amount to anything. It was a tough call for Green, who chose to go with Hunte.
Team Cee Lo's competitions continued with Nicholas David and Michael Wastman. David sang Corinne Bailey Rae's "Put Your Records On," and Wastman performed Elton John's "Don't Let the Sun Go Down on Me."Green liked David's choice and picked him to advance.
The evening wrapped with one last performance: Caitlin Michelle versus Diego Val. Diego chose "Are You Gonna Go My Way" by Lenny Kravitz, and Caitlin sang "Bring Me Back to Life" by Evanescence. Both of their rock styles impressed Green, making it a tricky choice. But Green ended up going with Diego.
The knockout rounds continue Tuesday with Aguilera and Blake Shelton pairing their artists in instant eliminations. They, too, will cut their teams in half in a single night.
Tell us: What did you think of the knockout rounds?