"The Voice": Playoff rounds hit a high note

It's playoff-time on "The Voice," which calls for more performances, viewer input and additional eliminations.

Now that the blind auditions, battle and knockout rounds have wrapped, it's time for viewers to vote on their favorites. That means 20 singers will be narrowed down to 12 finalists this week.

The fun got under way Monday night with live playoffs for Adam Levine and Blake Shelton's teams.

Team Adam

Joselyn Rivera kicked things off with a version of Demi Lovato's "Give Your Heart a Break." Both Shelton and Aguilera enjoyed the performance.

"You just look good on a big stage like this," Shelton said.

Levine told Rivera, "You thrived in this environment."

Next up was Melanie Martinez, who sang "Hit the Road Jack" made famous by Ray Charles. Levine also enjoyed Martinez's performance, noting, "I didn't find myself comparing" it to the original.

Bryan Keith took the stage next with a rendition of Goo Goo Dolls' "Iris." The coaches were impressed.

"That's the most passion I've ever seen you perform with," Aguilera said, while Levine cautioned him about the low notes.

Wedding vocalist Loren Allred then hit the stage to sing "All Around the World" by Lisa Stansfield. Coach Cee Lo Green was a fan, and Levine offered some words of advice: "At the end, when you did the thing that you did...I want to hear more of that."

Amanda Brown wowed the judges with her version of Aerosmith's "Dream On." Levine called it the best performance of the night.

Team Blake

Terry McDermott was the first to take the stage for Team Blake; he took on Journey's "Don't Stop Believin'" - a performance that won over Aguilera. "You're always dead-on, you hit those high notes so well," Aguilera said.

Shelton agreed, saying, "When God was passing out the ability to rock, he gave Terry just a little bit more."

Country music entered the competition with Liz Davis' cover of "Independence Day" by Martina McBride. "It made me proud to be in America, where at least I know I'm free," Green said.

Shelton noted that he was proud to have Davis on his team.

The first playoff round continued with Cassadee Pope singing Avril Lavigne's "My Happy Ending." Shelton was impressed, giving Pope a standing ovation.

And Michaela Paige showed that age is just a number. The 16-year-old competitor is the youngest contestant on the show this season --- and her performance of Neon Trees' "Everybody Talks" got all of the judges to stand up and listen. Both Green and Shelton called it the best performance of the night.

Monday's episode wrapped with Julio Cesar Castillo singing "El Rey" by Jose Alfredo Jimenez, a performance that prompted the audience members to get out of their seats.

"I don't know if you noticed what happened in the audience, but it was pretty good, buddy," Shelton said.

The playoffs continue Wednesday at 8 p.m. ET on NBC at when artists from Aguilera and Green's team compete for a chance at the finals.

Tell us: Which was your favorite performance on Monday's episode of "The Voice"?