Competition was so stiff on Monday night (April 24) between two Team Kelly members that Blake Shelton slammed his red buzzer to cash in the final steal of his 23-season run on The Voice.
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Country crooner and Kelly Clarkson charge Holly Brand began the one-on-one matchup with a stunning take on Bill Monroe's "Blue Moon of Kentucky" with a similar arrangement as LeAnn Rimes' version. Brand started off with Rimes-esque high notes that elicited an audible "whoa" from coach Niall Horan. Brand and the house band peppered it all with honky tonk swagger before a grand finale that pointed to the yodeling and whistle notes from the early days of country music.
Rachel Christine reshaped one of the ultimate singer's songs, Fleetwood Mac's "Rhiannon," to play up her vocal strengths-- all without sullying the original's mysterious allure.
"You guys both did great. What is not awesome is Knockout Rounds. They suck," Shelton said afterwards. "Holly, you have a great yodel. You really have awesome control of it. Rachel, I felt like after what Holly came out here and did, I was just like, 'And now she's going to come out here and do Rihanna? But you did an awesome job."
Shelton did indeed say Rihanna instead of "Rhiannon," which earned some good-natured teasing from his fellow coaches. However, he got the last laugh after Clarkson made her tough decision and selected Brand.
"Holly, the whistle notes, and how you somehow incorporated them into a Patsy Cline hit, I thought that was incredible," Clarkson said. "Rachel, you remind me so much of me when I was younger. You come after someone singing whistle notes, and the crowd is like, 'Ah' and then you have to start so mysterious, and all Stevie Nicks, I don't know if anyone sitting here could do that and not feel shaken. You are an incredibly gifted singer."
Instead of letting her go home after such a powerful showing, Shelton stole Christine for Team Blake.
"I think in a moment like that, I mean, what Holly did was flashy, and it's undeniable. But now you get to show somebody you can do just as incredible," Shelton told his new understudy. "You are my last steal— my last steal ever."
