It's taken four seasons, but Blake has finally (!) called out the Adidas logo on Pharrell's butt. And actually, to be specific, he catcalls him. ("That Adidas thing looks cute on your butt." - Blake.) Is this Gwen's label-conscious influence? Did Adam pass him a note? Has Blake really laid off the booze? It all remains to be seen. Unfortunately, so do any truly incredible auditions.
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Aijia
Aijia's married to Andy Grammer, which sort of makes this appearance doubly embarrassing for her. While her vocal are polished, there's no real emotion behind them. She packs her arrangement with technical skills, which is absolutely the wrong strategy to take when choosing to cover one of Christina's own songs. Still, she's currently making it as a background singer, and the professionalism shows. Maybe one day she'll have better luck with her own original material.
Song: "Say Something"
Team: N/A -
Evan Taylor Jones
Evan's great, and he really connects with the crowd, but the poor song choice leaves the coaches too confused to press their buttons. It's their -- and our -- loss, but let's hope he'll be back next season.
Song: "Homegrown"
Team: N/A -
Peyton Parker
Peyton's one of those precocious kids who convinced her parents to relocate to Nashville for her career, which is just horrifying. (Case in point: Taylor Swift.) Her twangy tone is nice to sing along with, but the full capability of her range remains to be seen, if it exists at all. She's obviously Team Blake material, but the real mystery is what caused Christina to push her button too.
Song: "Dreams"
Team: Blake -
Kristen Marie
Let's be honest: Kristen's audition is weird. The self-described indie jazz artist takes on "Mad World" with the weirdest vocal arrangement of all time, only landing a chair turn from Christina due to a randomly impressive run midway through. Christina's confidence is enough to convince Blake to turn too, but unless Christina really convinces Kristen to switch up her style, she won't be staying around that long.
Song: "Mad World"
Team: Christina -
Hannah Huston
Hannah's adorable, and she definitely has natural, untrained talent, but her range seems limited and none of the coaches really seems that excited to be pitching her; my best guess is that she was one of the later auditions, when both talent and spots left were limited. She's cute, but unlikely to go very far.
Song: "Unaware"
Team: Pharrell -
Brian Nhira
Brian takes a risk with his arrangement of "Happy," but it happily (sorry, had to) pays off for him, as both Blake and Pharrell turn their chairs. It's cute to see Brian lead Blake on as a fellow Okie, but he's ultimately aware that there's only one team for him. Pharrell will definitely take him far, and with that falsetto, Brian might end up teaching Pharrell a few tricks, too.
Song: "Happy"
Team: Pharrell -
Malik Heard
Malik's good, with a smooth tone, great vibrato, and solid delivery. As a church boy, he needs to come out of his shell, at least when performing, to really take command of the stage, which is something Christina should be able to help him out with.
Song: "Chains"
Team: Christina -
Brittany Kennell
Brittany has a uniquely affected tone and a "crispy" vibrato (Pharrell's word, not mine) that makes her sound like the love child Blake and Gwen are destined to have eventually. She's sweet, but there's a bit of edge, almost as though she's begging to be given some Kelly Clarkson to cover. TBD on if Blake will be able to coach her into being a standout, but odds are in her favor.
Song: "Strong Enough"
Team: Blake -
Nate Butler
Nate's good, but he's not great yet, which is essentially the argument Adam uses to win him over. Nate's personal swagger/confidence need to catch up with his more mature, crooner-style vocal, but that's certainly coachable. The right song choices will be key for him, but he can easily win over the grandma vote if he's smart enough to target it.
Song: "The Walk"
Team: Adam -
Ryan Quinn
Fair warning: Ryan's super-cute (blame the glasses and the scruff), so I'm basically going to be objectifying him for as long as he lasts on the show. That there's power behind his vocal doesn't hurt either, and his solid runs definitely impress as well. He could stand to move a bit more on stage, but the confidence he has in walking straight up to Christina to flirt with her speaks volumes.
Song: "Can't Find My Way Home"
Team: Adam -
Natalie Yacovazzi
Natalie auditioned last year (on the same night as Bryan Bautista; what does it say that two rejects are now on this season?), but missed out mainly due to her nerves and poor song choice. She's definitely learned from her mistake, though, and comes roaring back with not just a great song, but a great arrangement that has Adam pushing his button out of natural impulse before she even finishes the first lyric. Her range is great, and if Adam's dumb enough to let her go, Christina will definitely be waiting for the steal.
Song: "Mr. Know It All"
Team: Adam
As always, honorable mentions to the montaged Gina Castanzo and Trey O'Dell, who are both on Team Blake. We'll (maybe) see you around eventually.