The Voice: First Live Show – Review

Tuesday night was the first live episode of The Voice, and the night kicked off with a rocking start when the four judges/coaches gave us a small tribute concert to the legendary rock band Queen. The three songs they performed were “Bohemian Rhapsody,” “We Will Rock You,” and “We Are The Champions.” It was a fantastic way to start the night, and it set the tone for (mostly) impressive performances. Here is the low-down on the episode.

First to go on the stage was the tiny powerhouse Raquel Castro, who proved that she’s ready to rock the stage with her performance of Ke$ha’s song “Blow.” It’s the kind of song that requires the singer to show off a bold attititude, and Raquel brought it. Watching her on stage with energetic backup dancers made it feel like I was watching a really cool pop star on stage. What did the coaches have to say? They loved her!

Rocker and father of three Jared Blake brought even more of that energy to the stage with his rendition of Kings Of Leon’s “Use Somebody.” This song is a modern rock song that I didn’t originally care for, but I really enjoyed the way Jared took the song and turned it into his own. Despite the fact that Jared is one of the most talented artists on the show, Blake wasn’t really certain that Jared knew who he was as an artist: was he rock or was he country? But in the end, Jared proved to all the judges that he knew how to take the stage as a real rock star, and he finally convinced Blake what he was made of.

Next up was yet another rocker. Beverly McClellan sang a slammin’ rendition of “I’m The Only One,” originally sang by Melissa Etheridge. I loved the original song and enjoyed Beverly’s version just as much. During the practice sessions with Christina (her coach), Beverly was struggling with a small cold and was worried about how that would affect her performance, but if it did anything, it helped her. Her voice sounded edgy and raw in the best way possible. And everyone loved it! Adam even noted that judging by her voice alone, you wouldn’t even know she had a cold.

The next performance was Dia Frampton. Her song of choice was an interesting option: “Heartless,” a song originally performed by Kanye West. It was a brave choice considering that Dia is shy, and she chose to sing a song that’s full of attitude and emotion. Fortunately, Blake suggested that she should play the piano while she sings during the performance, because that would help bring her back to her comfort zone. And it worked well for her. She made the song her own, and it was an all-out enjoyable performance.

And then it was time for the second group performance of the night. Christina and her group of girls (Beverly, Frenchie Davis, Lily Elise, and Raquel Castro) performed “Lady Marmalade”- the same song she did a decade ago with P!nk, Mya, and L’il Kim. Good song and good performance, even if it did sound just like her Moulin Rouge hit.

Xenia was the fifth singer to perform that night, and she chose Jessie J’s “Price Tag.” I know, and I think everyone knows, that Blake is her biggest fan, but in my opinion, her performance last night was lackluster. You could tell that she was extemely uncomfortable on stage, and sometimes you could barely hear her voice. I’m not familar with the original song, but I really doubt that Xenia’s performance did the song justice.

The second lackluster performance of the night came courtesy of Lily Elise. She sang Fergie’s “Big Girls Don’t Cry,” but it just didn’t seem to resound with her personality. Lily has proven that she could sing a little, but last night it appeared that her nerves got to the best of her. Even so, all four coaches didn’t show an ounce of disenchantment, nor did they give her sound advice on how she might better her next performance should she make it to the next round.

The last group performance of the night was Blake’s group (Jared Blake, Xenia, Dia Frampton, and Patrick Thomas), and they sang “This Love” by Maroon 5. Adam, of course, loved the entire group performance.

Patrick Thomas was the seventh and next-to-last solo performer of the night. He sang “I Hope You Dance,” a country hit originally done by Lee Ann Womack. It was a nice song (he dedicated it to his sister).

The last song of the night belonged to Frenchie Davis! She stole the show with David Guetta’s “When Love Takes Over.” This song takes strong vocals and was the perfect choice for Frenchie.

The best part of the show? You can vote up to 10 ten times for one person from each team that performed this week. You can vote until June 13 at 10:00 a.m. EST via NBC.com, toll-free telephone, or by downloading your favorite songs on iTunes. Stay tuned and watch next week to find out if your favorite makes it.