10 YEARS AND 20 SEASONS OF THE VOICE
Wow has it really been 10 years and 20 seasons of The Voice!? Man what an incredible ride it has been. So much talent and so many great performances have been delivered to us through this great show and hopefully will continue to be throughout the coming years. I still remember seeing commercials for a singing show featuring Christina Aguilera and was gonna give Episode 1 a chance no matter what I but at the time I was pretty played out of the usual American Idol type format so I wasn’t expecting to watch the entire season. But then I saw the hook, that the auditions would take place so that the coaches couldn’t see the singers and would only have their Voice to determine if they wanted them on their team. That difference really intrigued me. From the first note I was hooked and after the first episode was over, I knew that this show was special and that I’d be watching as long as it was on TV.
The Blind Auditions are the heart of the show, it’s impossible to get sick of that format if you love singing bc the contestants voice is the only thing the coach can judge them on. It’s fun to watch a long at home and experience the rollercoaster of emotions cheering for a chair turn and getting pissed off when the coaches don’t turn for a great audition lol then next you have the unique Battle Round that forces you to compete with the same person that you are trying to sing a great duet with. Obviously you want to stand out so you can move on but you’re also trying to create a piece of music that will stand the test of time so you want the other person to crush it too. One of my favourite parts of the show bc of how it challenges the singers and gives us some amazing duets. The Knockouts allowing the singer to pick their own song to sing gives you a look into who they are and introduces us to some songs we might never have heard.
The Live Shows are the soul of the show bc of how the Voice Stage brings out the best in people so it def sucks that there aren’t as many Live shows anymore but I understand it. 6 or 7 Live shows takes a significant time commitment from the coaches who have their own musical careers rolling too so it might not be feasible at this point. We have seen some unbelievable performances on the Voice Stage over the years but man in those early seasons they really went all out with the production and it would just blow your mind. Voice Finale night has always been 1 of my favourite nights of TV for the year. It really has palpable positive energy for me and I always get a boost after I watch it. I do miss the days where they would bring in pretty much the entire team and we would get 5/6 person performances bc man they would always just crush it. It has def shifted more to established artists performing but they always make great choices making for an awesome night.
Gonna try to go quickly through the coaches that have been on the show through the 10 years:
BLAKE SHELTON – The King of the Voice. 7 time winning coach and really gives the show a fun energy. I can’t lie I didn’t really know Blake when he started on the show but I quickly learned he was 1 of the best in Country music and became a big fan. His brotherly rivalry with Adam was so much fun to watch. Usually gives you a reason to laugh every episode. Not only has he helped the singers that won but he has even helped some of the ones that didn’t, backing up his words with actions. The show wouldn’t be the same without him and I hope he is a coach as long as there is a show.
ADAM LEVINE – Crushed it as a coach, thought he would be a lifer on the show with Blake. Was already a fan of Maroon 5 but I really gained respect for him as a musician with his display of knowledge to the contestants on the show. His interactions with Blake were so fun to watch and a reason why the show stayed popular. Hope he gets back in the chair one day.
CHRISTINA AGUILERA – The Queen. Loved getting to watch her share her gifts and knowledge with up and coming singers bc that is priceless. Arguably the greatest voice of our generation so it’s only fitting that she was a coach on a show called The Voice. Happy that she got a win during her run and obviously I hope she comes back as many times as she wants to.
CEE-LO GREEN – I was a fan of the music Cee-Lo was a part of but it was nice to get to know the man behind the music a bit. His mind for performance production is genius level and gave us some legendary moments. Always had good advice and was entertaining. Man I laughed so hard when it randomly cut to him petting a white cat on his lap LOL great coach.
SHAKIRA – I knew the main 4 coaches wouldn’t be on every season but gaining a coach like Shakira made the transition easy. Awesome to see her knowledge and passion for music and singing come out on the show. Would love to see her come back.
USHER – Man what a blessing for the singers on this show to be able to work with one of the greatest of all time. Usher has a lot of charisma and clearly knows what he is doing when it comes to making music so it was awesome to watch him as a coach.
GWEN STEFANI – It was such a pleasant surprise to hear Gwen would be coming to the show as a coach. Loved No Doubt and her solo stuff and she seemed like such a fun person so I thought she would make a great coach. No doubt about that(sorry) as she was so uplifting with her teams and got the win she deserved with Carter Rubin.
PHARELL WILLIAMS – Like with Cee-Lo, I was a fan of the music Pharrell had been a part of but wasn’t really aware of the man himself so I was happy to get a chance to watch him as a coach. Seriously great mind for music, def learned some things watching him teach.
MILEY CYRUS – 1 of my favourite people in music it really was a joy to watch Miley as a coach. Def gave her team 100% of herself and displayed a brilliant mind for singing. She deserves a win so I’d def love to see her coach again in the future.
ALICIA KEYS – Wow man I am def jelly of everyone on Team Alicia throughout her time as a coach. Not only is she an amazing singer and performer but she also seems like such a great person to be around. The coaching she gave her team is invaluable. Love for her to come back as much as she wants.
JENNIFER HUDSON – As someone that came from a reality show herself, Jennifer couldn’t have been a better coach for her teams. And she was so entertaining with the shoe throwing and all that lol loved her as a coach and would def welcome her back.
KELLY CLARKSON – The legend herself, Kelly is a joy as a person nevermind a coach. A force of positive energy for her teams that backs it up when the show is over whether they win or not. I will admit she usually drives me insane during the Blind Auditions lol but it will be a sad day when she leaves bc she is so great as a coach.
JOHN LEGEND – What a great addition to the show John has been it’s hard to think of it without him. Lives up to his name with the knowledge he has and advice he gives. Can be pretty frustrating during the Blinds sometimes lol but he always finds the great singers. Hope he is around for awhile.
NICK JONAS – People like to write off pop music when it comes to greatness but you can’t deny that Nick Jonas is a great singer and that the Jonas Brothers are a great band. And now Nick has established himself as a great coach too. Fits right in with the coaches on the show so I’m loving his run. He’ll get his win eventually.
ARIANA GRANDE – It was announced that Ariana will be a coach on S21 and I am def looking forward to seeing what kind of knowledge and passion she has for her team.
COMEBACK COACHES – KELSEA BALLERINI S15/BEBE REXHA S16 – There were a couple seasons where The Voice had a ‘Comeback Stage’ on The Voice app that saw a coach pick 5 or 6 eliminated singers and give them a chance to comeback to the main show. They would be coached and compete against each other until 1 was chosen as the Comeback Artist. Kind of a cool concept but not really fair to the other singers that made it through so it only lasted 2 seasons. But Kelsea and Bebe showed that they have what it takes to be coaches, giving good advice and making it a positive experience for the singers. Both have so much passion for music/singing. Kelsea also filled in for Kelly during the Battle Rounds in S20 so we got to see her in the one of the big chairs and she was great.
Now I’m going to run through the seasons and say a bit about them and who won:
SEASON 1 – Winner: Javier Colon
Winning Coach: Adam Levine
Been a bit since I’ve seen season 1 lol I was shocked at how consistently great Javier Colon was but I actually thought he got beat by Casey Weston in the Semi-Finals. Her performance of “I Will Always Love You” was 1 of the best I have ever heard. Always remembered that one. Blake has more wins but Adam won the first one and there is only 1 first. Vicci Martinez performing “The Dog Days Are Over’ might be the greatest performance in the history of the show. The way she crushed her vocals while hammering drums with both hands blew me away. Dia Frampton was one my favourites. Nakia. Xenia. Epic season to start the show. In 2018 we lost a really great soul and amazing singer way too young. RIP Beverly McLellan.
SEASON 2 – Winner: Jermaine Paul
Winning Coach: Blake Shelton
1st Season set such a high bar I wasn’t sure Season 2 could keep up but it did and more. Jermaine Paul was like Javier Colon, just unbelievably great every week and gave Blake his first win. He didn’t have it easy at all looking at the Final 4; Jermaine, Juliet Simms, Tony Lucca, Chris Mann. Crazy looking at the list, any of them could have won. Katrina Parker. Erin Willet. Jamar Rogers. Lyndsey Pavao. Gwen Sebastian. Adley Stump. Pip. Jesse Campbell. Introduced us to RaeLyn 1 of my favourite country singers. Looking back at the teams makes you realize how stacked with talent this season was.
SEASON 3 – Winner: Cassadee Pope
Winning Coach: Blake Shelton(2)
When Season 3 came and didn’t miss a beat you knew The Voice was a special show. Unreal talent on this season I mean just look at the Final 3; Cassadee, Terry McDermott and Nicholas David. 3 amazing singers that gave us some of the best performances the show has seen. Since the show, Cassadee has released some great music and is 1 of my favourite country singers. Melanie Martinez. Dez Duron. Michaela Paige. Trevin Hunte. Sylvia Yacoub. At the time it was pretty mind blowing to see all the talent coming onto the stage.
SEASON 4 – Winner: Danielle Bradbery
Winning Coach: Blake Shelton(3)
Another season of unbelievable performances. Blake’s 3rd win in a row and it was one of his best with Danielle Bradbery. She was amazing on the show and continues to be in her career after releasing some of my favourite songs of the 2010’s. This season saw the first ever duo make the finals in the Swon Brothers and I’m glad they let groups audition bc they have released some great country music. Judith Hill. VEDO. Sasha Allen. Garret Gardner. Josiah Hawley. Grace Askew. The intense competition from all the singers really makes the show.
SEASON 5 – Tessanne Chin
Winning Coach: Adam Levine(2)
One of my favourite seasons top to bottom this season had so much fn talent. Look at that Final 3; Tessanne, Jacqui Lee and Will Champlin. Some of the best performances in the history of the show. Adam breaks Blake’s winning streak with Tessanne, she was so great I’m surprised we haven’t heard more from her. Then you have Caroline Pennell 1 of my favourite artists, her post-Voice music is amazing and her voice is incredible. Caroline’s rendition of ‘Anything Could Happen’ is 1 of my favourite songs along with ‘We’re Going to be Friends.’ Cole Vosbury. Kat Robichaud. Holly Henry. Her version of The Scientist might be my favourite. Seriously this season was so awesome I fn wish I could watch it again.
SEASON 6 – Josh Kaufman
Winning Coach: Usher
Another one of my favourite seasons and it’s in the conversation for the best. It is legendary for the talent it introduced us too. Josh is another one like Tessanne that was so fn amazing on the show but we haven’t really heard much from him. This season introduced us to Morgan Wallen who legitimately has a chance to be the best Country artist in the world. His latest album Dangerous is one of the greatest country albums of all time and it’s a Double Album with no bad songs man the quality is just incredible. Jake Worthington. Kat Perkins. Bria Kelly. Paula DeAnda. Alaska and Madi. Sisaundra Lewis. Audra McLaughlin. And of course, Christina Grimmie. She was such a bright light in this world I don’t think I’ll ever comes to terms with how she died it just ain’t right. I have no doubts she would be a superstar right now with multiple hits. Christina was taken far, far too soon but thankfully her music can live on through remixes like the one I have on my 2021 playlist – Back To Life – Christina Grimmie DAVE AUDE REMIX – please give it a listen and keep the legacy of a sweet soul going. RIP Christina Grimmie.
SEASON 7 – Craig Wayne Boyd
Winning Coach: Blake Shelton(4)
The season saw the first male country singer get the win with Craig and he earned it by always crushing and never taking a step back. Adam had 3 singers in the Final with Matt McAndrew, Chris Jamison and Damien Lawson but that probably worked against him splitting his votes 3 ways. Just crazy to look back at all the talent. Reagan James. Taylor John Williams. Bryana Salaz. Ricky Manning. Allison Bray. With this level of talent, the winner has to be at their best every week.
SEASON 8 – Winner: Sawyer Fredericks
Winning Coach: Pharrell
Pharrell gets a win with 1 of my favourite Voice singers man Sawyer was so awesome. He crushed every single performance to such a high quality that I went out of my way to get them all on my ipod. A little surprised he hasn’t had more success but I’m sure it’s coming. Meghan Linsey was so good I thought she might steal it. Josh Davis and Koryn Hawthorne gave us some unreal performances. Mia Z. Hannah Kirby. Caitlin Caporale. So many great singers in this season.
SEASON 9 – Winner: Jordan Smith
Winning Coach – Adam Levine(3)
Wow what a season, look at that Top 4; Jordan, Emily Ann Roberts, Barrett Baber, Jeffery Austin. Holy shit man some of the best performances on the show were delivered by these 4 and they are in the same season. Then you have Mark Hood. Ivonne Acero. Keith Semple. Zach Seabaugh. Madi Davis. By this point you realize that The Voice is the greatest singing show of all time. There are times where I prefer Barrett Baber’s version of Die A Happy Man it was that good. Def 1 of my favourite seasons.
SEASON 10 – Winner: Alisan Porter
Winning Coach – Christina Aguilera!
Woo Christina gets her first win in the historic 10th season! Bout time but it was worth the wait to get it with Alisan she was so amazing. What a fn Final 4; Alisan, Adam Wakefield, Hannah Huston, Laith Al-Saadi. There is no hyperbole saying that any of those 4 could have won. Looking at the lists of the teams makes me want to watch this season again there is just so much talent. Owen Danoff. Emily Keener. Mary Sarah. That’s why this show is the best.
SEASON 11 – Winner: Sundance Head
Winning Coach – Blake Shelton(5)
I thought for sure this one was going to Billy Gilman but Sundance pulled off the win. I can’t call it an upset bc Sundance is a great singer that crushed every performance. That’s why I love this show, there are no bad singers so you can’t ever be upset at the results. Billy gave us some unbelievable performances. We McDonald is amazing and was so much fun on the show. Josh Gallagher just kept getting better. Ali Caldwell. Austin Allsup. Natasha Bure. Crazy to see the show keep delivering like this.
SEASON 12 – Winner: Chris Blue
Winning Coach – Alicia Keys
Damn what a season. You know you have a great singing show when your Final 4 is; Chris Blue, Lauren Duski, Aliyah Moulden, Jesse Larson. Chris absolutely earned the win with some of the best performances in show’s history and gave Alicia Keys a win on the show which was great to see. Lauren Duski was incredible on the show and continues to be in her post-Voice career. Her song ‘Costume Party’ is one of my all time favourite songs and I wouldn’t have that without this show. Brennley Brown. TSoul. Jack Cassidy. Hunter Plake. Mark Isaiah. What a season.
SEASON 13 – Winner: Chloe Kohanski
Winning Coach – Blake Shelton(6)
Def 1 of my favourite seasons between the singers and the coaches. Chloe is incredible and earned her win. Taking a bit longer than we all would have liked but seems like she has a post-Voice album coming soon so def looking forward to that. You can’t rush greatness. The rest of S13 def made her earn it I mean once again look at the Final 4; Chloe, Addison Agen, Brooke Simpson, Red Marlow. Unreal competition. Brooke was so amazing I thought she might win it. Addison and Red were so consistently great. Ashland Craft. Adam Cunningham. Adam Pearce. Noah Mac. Shi’Ann Jones. Show just keeps getting better which is insane after 13 seasons. Unfortunately we lost one of the best singers on the show way, way too young but she left such an amazing legacy on this show. RIP Janice Freeman.
SEASON 14 – Winner: Brynn Cartelli
Winning Coach: Kelly Clarkson
Amazing performances from Brynn on the show giving Kelly the win in her first season as coach but damn the other singers made them earn it. Look at the Final 4; Brynn, Britton Buchanan, Kyla Jade, Spensha Baker. All 4 were so unbelievable I don’t know how America picked a winner. Pryor Baird. Kaleb Lee. Rayshun Lamarr. Jackie Foster. Jackie Verna. You can never have enough great singing in the world.
SEASON 15 – Winner: Chevel Shepherd
Winning Coach – Kelly Clarkson(2)
At only 16, Chevel wins the Voice. It was mind blowing to watch the incredible performances she was able to deliver at her age, she more than earned the win. And now she has just released an awesome short-album EveryBody’s Got A Story. Gonna have a great career. The win makes Kelly the only coach other than Blake to win back-to-back seasons. Blake fought hard with Chris Kroeze and Kirk Jay who were on unbelievable runs. Thought Jennifer might get her first win with Kennedy Holmes who was just crushing it. Adam prob should have been in the Finale with Reagan Strange but then who do you take out? Like I said earlier, can’t be upset with how things play out bc there are no bad singers. Sarah Grace. Dave Fenley. Kameron Marlowe. Lynnea Moorer. DeAndre Nico. Kymberli Joye. Seriously we need the Voice archives on a streaming service bc these incredible performances can’t just be locked away. It’s a crime.
SEASON 16 – Winner: MaeLyn Jarmon
Winning Coach: John Legend
This was the ‘Live Cross Battles’ season and it is 1 of my favourites due to the Red Wedding type of shock I felt watching Adam’s team get massacred over 3 weeks and not even make the semi finals LOL sucked not to have a singer from Adam’s Team in the Finale bc he had great singers but we’ll never see a season like this again so I’m glad I got to experience it. In the end, the Live Cross Battles will go down as a legend to be feared lol the big advantage Blake had coming into the Finale didn’t factor into the win as MaeLyn won it also making John Legend a winner in his first season as coach. Blake had 3 killers in the finale with Gyth Rigdon, Dexter Roberts, and Andrew Sevener but like Adam in S7 it prob hurt him by splitting his votes. Mari Jones. Domenic Haynes. Betsy Ade. Kalvin Jarvis. No reason Adam shouldn’t have been in the semi-finals if not the Finale. Lisa Ramey. Oliv Blu. Pressley Tennant. Rod Stokes. Jej Vinson. Celia Babini. So much fn talent. Def one of my favourite seasons.
SEASON 17 – Winner: Jake Hoot
Winning Coach – Kelly Clarkson(3)
The last season before the pandemic. We didn’t know it would be at the time but they def gave us a great one to remember. Jake had some unbelievable performances to earn the win and just released a great short album ‘Love Out of Time’ that has an amazing duet with his coach Kelly Clarkson on it called ‘I Would’ve Love You.’ Bright future for him. What an unreal Final 4; Jake, Ricky Duran, Katie Kadan, and Rose Short. Could’ve gone either way with how Ricky was crushing it. Man I enjoyed Katie on the show, amazing voice and personality to match. Rose is just incredible and easily could have won. First season without Adam but they didn’t skip a beat. Hello Sunday. Kat Hammock. Will Breman. Brooke Stephenson. Gracee Shriver. Cali Wilson. Absolutely 1 of the best seasons.
SEASON 18 – Winner: Todd Tilghman
Winning Coach – Blake Shelton(7)
The season we thought we would never see, played out in a lockdown in the middle of a pandemic. Not a season anyone wanted but it was such a needed distraction that it will go down as 1 of my fav seasons. Todd was just amazing start to finish and was the perfect winner for this season. He just released an awesome song called ‘Jesus and You’ so I’m def pumped for his post-Voice career. Man what a Murderer’s Row of a Final 5; Todd, Toneisha Harris, Thunderstorm Artis, CammWess, and Micah Iverson. Unbelievable collection of talent. Toneisha crushed everything she did I just wish she had a crowd for it. Thunderstorm introduced me to the song ’Blackbird’ and from everything I’ve listened to, I feel he has the best version. It’s just not on Spotify so I can’t fn listen to it lol in the moment I thought Thunderstorm was going to win. CammWess might have won with the benefit of a crowd bc his awesome performances would’ve brought the energy. Can’t wait for an album from Micah Iverson bc he delivered some of my fav performances in the history if the show. Allegra Miles. Arei Moon. Todd Michael Hall. Cedrice. Zan Fiskum. Michael Williams. Joei Falco. Huge credit to the entire Voice team for pulling off this season from everybody’s individual houses lol unbelievable effort that shows why this is the best crew in the business. It wasn’t the season we wanted but it was the season we needed.
SEASON 19 – Winner: Carter Rubin
Winning Coach – Gwen Stefani
Not completely back to normal with fans in attendance but at least they were back in studio for this one. When I was 15 I was definitely not winning The Voice lol but that’s what Carter did. Incredible the range he has at his age, it was a joy to watch him crush his way through the competition. Happy that Gwen got the win she deserved after 5 seasons as a coach. Another unreal Final 5; Carter, Jim Ranger, Ian Flanigan, Desz, John Holiday. Man that performance where Jim is singing on that mountain set was one of the best of all time I thought that might be enough to get him the win it was that good. Ian I thought might win it with the consistent greatness he showed throughout. Was surprised Desz was 4th bc she delivered a run that was worthy of the win. John was crushing it so much I thought he might win so I was shocked when he was announced as 5th. That’s how good this show is, John Holiday was 5th lol he has that insane top range and he knows how/when to use it which is important. Payge Turner. Big fan of her. Cami Clune. Tamara Jade. Madeline Consoer. Ben Allen. Worth The Wait. Such a great group, can’t wait for an album. Prayers of healing, strength, perseverance, and wisdom up their sisters little guy and his Doctors. Continuing to deliver a great show in a pandemic solidifies The Voice as the best.
SEASON 20 – Winner: Cam Hunt
Winning Coach – Blake Shelton(8)
The historic 20th Season and 10 the year of The Voice. With such a legendary run over the previous 19 seasons, this season needed to be great so the pressure was on but they more than delivered. From the Blind’s to the Live’s through to the Finale this season was nothing but great. Couldn’t ask for a better winner to represent the show and 20th season than Cam Anthony. He crushed his performances the entire time but man did he step his game up to an even higher level for his Finale performances. His version of Dead or Alive was so fcking good. Happy he won and can’t wait for his career. Great Final 5 made it impossible to pick a winner; Cam, Kenzie Wheeler, Jordan Matthew Young, Rachel Mac and Victor Solomon. Thought that Kenzie might win with all the momentum he built up with his performances. He has that great old school country singin voice so I can’t wait to hear what comes out when he mixes it with the modern country sound. Jordan is a fn great singer and seems to know exactly where his voice fits best and you could tell when he was picking his songs. Great run for him. Rachel is so talented already for 16 and still has room to grow and get better. It’s not fair really lol really enjoyed her performances and can’t wait to see just how good her voice gets. Victor was 1 of my favourite singers the way he talked about God and just crushed his performances. Pia Renee. She might have been my fav singer this season, her elimination hurt lol couldn’t believe it but I’ll be waiting for whatever she does next. Dana Monique. Thought she was Nick’s first win and then she was gone. So shocking, nobody is a sure thing on this show. Corey Ward. Great run for him. Gihanna Zoe. Anna Grace. Jose Figueroa Jr. Gean Garcia. He has 1 of my favourite Blind Audition performances of ‘All I Want.’ A great season that lived up to the high expectations.
THE VOICE BAND – Have to spotlight this unbelievably talented group that puts the singers on the show in a position to succeed with how they crush every song they are required to play. I hope they know how appreciated they are bc we wouldn’t have a show without them.
THE VOICE CREW – Not only did they deliver 17 amazing seasons of high quality production pre-pandemic but they put on a season with the coaches and singers all at their own separate locations. And now they have delivered 2 seasons In studio with all of the covid challenges. Can’t give them enough love bc they really are the best.
CARSON DALY – What a champion lol he was already a legend of my generation but there’s no doubt about that now. Not just anyone can contribute positively to a show just by being the host but Carson does. Wouldn’t want to watch the show with anyone else as host.
And there we go that was a fun walk back through the history of The Voice, just wish we could watch it all again but that’s a conversation for another day. For now I’ll just focus on celebrating 20 seasons and appreciating that a show like this was even put on TV in the first place. It has been such an amazing run watching from the very first audition of Tarralyn Ramsey to Cam Anthony winning the 20th season. I pray this show lasts another 20 seasons and then another 20 after that and on and on bc it is such a great thing for music. I love to sing. I love music. And this show captures the best of both. So we’ll see ya in Season 21 where Ariana Grande will step in for Nick Jonas as a first time coach. Will she join Kelly Clarkson and John Legend as a winner in her first season? Can’t wait to find out.
It’s all about the music, man. The Voice celebrates singing and music in a way nobody else does. It introduces us to songs we have never heard sung by singers we have never heard of. It introduces us to incredible unique covers that make old songs new again. Voice Finale is such a celebration of positive energy. I can’t say it enough, I fcking love The Voice. Cheers, much love and God Bless to every singer, coach, host, Finale performer, mentor, fan, crew member, band member, anyone that was involved with making this show great.
“This is The Voice!”
