Vanessa Ferguson, Autumn Turner “The Voice” Battle Video: Watch “Killing Me Softly” Performance
Vanessa Ferguson and Autumn Turner sang “Killing Me Softly With His Song” for their Battle performance during Monday’s “The Voice,” sparking a steal. Watch below!
As Gossip Cop reported, Turner performed “Last Dance” for her Blind Audition, turning all four chairs. Ferguson’s audition with “Don’t Let Me Down” prompted three coaches to hit their buttons. Both chose to join Team Alica.
Now coach Alicia Keys pitted Ferguson and Turner against each other for the second phase of the NBC competition. Though singing jointly, only one would be allowed to stay on the team following the showdown. In rehearsal with guest mentor DJ Khaled, Keys told them to be “cautious” and not mimic Lauryn Hill.
They both nailed the official performance with their unique R&B-influenced voices, and the other panelists even gave a standing ovation. “I don’t even know how you choose between you two,” Gwen Stefani said. Adam Levine called them both “superb,” but confessed, “Autumn is the one I would want on my team.” He even noted he still has two steals to use, which prompted Stefani to point out that she has a card to play, too.
So, when Keys named Ferguson the winner, Levine and Stefani both hit their buttons to steal Turner. “I’m blown away that we’re sitting here right now with this chance,” the Maroon 5 front man admitted. And it was his pitch that won out, with Turner choosing to become a member of Team Adam. Check out the video below!
‘The Voice’ battle: Autumn Turner vs. Vanessa Ferguson with ‘Killing Me Softly With His Song’ for Team Alicia Keys [WATCH]
With such a blockbuster 1970s hit song like “Killing Me Softly With His Song,” this battle showdown on Monday’s “The Voice” had to be a great one. And it was as coach Alicia Keys pitted Autumn Turner vs. Vanessa Ferguson on the Grammy-winning song from Roberta Flack. A fierce coaching battle broke out after the duet when Gwen chose Vanessa, and then rival coach Adam Levine stole Autumn away from Gwen Stefani (watch the battle performance above).
Our writer John Benutty ranked this battle as one of his favorites on Monday. He says, “In their blind auditions both Autumn and Vanessa gave bold, high-energy performances so it’s interesting to see Alicia throw a slower jam at them for their battle. For this performance, the muted arrangement of the band allowed both of their voices to be in the forefront. On this particular track, the song definitely suited Vanessa’s tone more and for that reason I give her the edge, though the coaches seemed to think Autumn’s ‘surprise’ factor gives her a leg up. That may have been the tipping point for Alicia who chose Vanessa, expecting the steal to be used on Autumn. Both Adam and Gwen lobbied to steal Autumn, with Adam’s enthusiasm for her leading her to join his team.”
Want to take a closer look at all 48 contestants making it to the battle rounds? Tour our photo galleries for Team Adam, Team Alicia, Team Blake, and Team Gwen by clicking each name.
The NBC bio for Autumn: “Autumn was raised by a single mother with help from her mother’s friend and godfather – her big inspiration – before he passed away four years ago. She grew up singing in church and choir, even joining a local girl group called Bloom. At age three, Autumn enrolled in ice-skating, where she competed until she was 13 and eventually turned to coaching at 16. Autumn currently works as an English teacher at a local private school.”
The NBC bio for Vanessa: “Vanessa grew up singing with her family. Raised by her grandmother, she enrolled in piano lessons at age five and competed in her first competition in fifth grade. She moved in with her mother at age 13 and began taking songwriting seriously. After being diagnosed with endometriosis, she was hospitalized monthly and poured her heart into music. In 2011, she lived in Beijing, performing six nights a week at the LAN Club, and later toured the world on the Holland America cruise line for five months with the B.B. King’s Blues Club All-Star Band. For the past 11 years, Vanessa has made money strictly from gigging and touring.”
The Voice Recap: Thinning of the Heard
A blazing Black Crowes redo. An overnight transformation. Rehearsal-room drama. Robyn unplugged. Hmm. Night 3 of The Voice’s Battle Rounds must’ve been pretty decent, especially for what you’ve mentioned is a subpar Season 12, because by the end of it, even Adam Levine’s Gwen Stefani-blond ‘do was starting to grow on me. Let’s review Monday’s performances, shall we, then you can play favorites in the comments.
Team Adam: Johnny Hayes defeated Julien Martinez on “Hard to Handle” | In rehearsal, Johnny seemed to own the song from the word “go,” while Julien, coming from a theater background, stumbled slightly, as he was focused too much on enunciating the lyrics. Come battle time, Julien, nervous as he looked, came out growling. But still, Johnny appeared to have swallowed the song whole and was then spitting it back out like a fire-breathing dragon. His vocal was scorching. He also looked so natural working the stage, it could have been his living room.
Team Blake: TSoul defeated Josh Hoyer on “In the Midnight Hour” | As comfy as the guys’ coach hoped to make them by choosing the Wilson Pickett classic, they struggled with harmonies in rehearsal. Come showtime, however, the self-proclaimed soul brothers had their s— together. Josh sang from the gut, exuberantly smacking an exclamation point on every note. But TSoul’s runs were locomotives in motion — absolutely unstoppable. Moreover, his voice is unique. As well as Josh did, you’ve heard other singers like him (even this season, on this show). On the other hand, his teammate is, as has been said over and over, one of a kind.
Team Alicia: Vanessa Ferguson defeated Autumn Turner on “Killing Me Softly” (Autumn stolen by Adam) | The challenge for Alicia’s R&B-pop and R&B-soul songstresses in rehearsals was to adhere to the oh-so-familiar melody yet still find a way to sound different, like themselves. Neat trick. But they seemed up to the task, especially Vanessa, who even got smiley while practicing with the band. On stage, Autumn at first danced more than was perhaps advisable to nail a solid vocal, and Vanessa gradually pulled ahead — to me and Alicia, anyway — delivering stronger long notes than her teammate and, ultimately, the more memorable performance.
Team Adam: Malik Davage defeated Kawan DeBose on “Love Me Now” | In the gents’ first rehearsal, mentor John Legend suggested that Malik take the runs down a smidgen, and Kawan, turn up the volume a bit. (Oh, and mind the lyrics. This wasn’t “Hard to Handle.”) At Kawan and Malik’s second rehearsal, Adam called them out for being unprepared. (Yikes!) On stage, they seemed to have finally worked on their harmonies. And, though Malik did fine, he just did fine. And once Kawan unleashed that falsetto of his, it was all over. Or so I thought. Not only did Adam stick with Malik, no one stole Kawan. (Wha?)
Team Alicia: Jack Cassidy defeated Hunter Plake on “Dancing On My Own” (Hunter stolen by Gwen) | Nice that, as Jack offered up during his and Hunter’s critique, they’re besties, since they often looked right at each other while singing this bare-bones, ballad version of Robyn’s synth-pop hit. Otherwise, it could have been as awkward as a full-grown woman dueting on a mature song with a kid (a la Felicia Temple/Quizz Swanigan). As for the performance, the fellas scored anytime they got to howl in romantic angst, Hunter’s Nate Ruess impression continued to, well, impress, and when Jack let loose, he won even me over.
Team Gwen: Stephanie Rice defeated Caroline Sky on “The First Cut Is the Deepest” (Caroline stolen by Blake) | Coach Stefani seemed to be stacking the deck in Stephanie’s favor by assigning her and Caroline a song previously sung by Sheryl Crow — that was going to come about as naturally to the poised, polished teen as wearing denim would have to Lady Mary Crawley. But, during the battle, Caroline pulled a full-on Sandy-in-Grease transformation, uglying up her voice just enough to be serious competition for Stephanie, whose visceral vocals predictably slayed.
Via the dreaded montage treatment, we also learned that Enid Ortiz had defeated Valerie Ponzio on “Love Triangle” to stay on Team Blake, Hanna Eyre had outsung Sheena Brook on “Try” to remain part of Team Adam, and Troy Ramey bested Jozy Bernadette on “Angel Eyes” to retain his spot on Team Gwen.
As Gossip Cop reported, Turner performed “Last Dance” for her Blind Audition, turning all four chairs. Ferguson’s audition with “Don’t Let Me Down” prompted three coaches to hit their buttons. Both chose to join Team Alica.
Now coach Alicia Keys pitted Ferguson and Turner against each other for the second phase of the NBC competition. Though singing jointly, only one would be allowed to stay on the team following the showdown. In rehearsal with guest mentor DJ Khaled, Keys told them to be “cautious” and not mimic Lauryn Hill.
They both nailed the official performance with their unique R&B-influenced voices, and the other panelists even gave a standing ovation. “I don’t even know how you choose between you two,” Gwen Stefani said. Adam Levine called them both “superb,” but confessed, “Autumn is the one I would want on my team.” He even noted he still has two steals to use, which prompted Stefani to point out that she has a card to play, too.
So, when Keys named Ferguson the winner, Levine and Stefani both hit their buttons to steal Turner. “I’m blown away that we’re sitting here right now with this chance,” the Maroon 5 front man admitted. And it was his pitch that won out, with Turner choosing to become a member of Team Adam. Check out the video below!
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| Getty Images |
‘The Voice’ battle: Autumn Turner vs. Vanessa Ferguson with ‘Killing Me Softly With His Song’ for Team Alicia Keys [WATCH]
With such a blockbuster 1970s hit song like “Killing Me Softly With His Song,” this battle showdown on Monday’s “The Voice” had to be a great one. And it was as coach Alicia Keys pitted Autumn Turner vs. Vanessa Ferguson on the Grammy-winning song from Roberta Flack. A fierce coaching battle broke out after the duet when Gwen chose Vanessa, and then rival coach Adam Levine stole Autumn away from Gwen Stefani (watch the battle performance above).
Our writer John Benutty ranked this battle as one of his favorites on Monday. He says, “In their blind auditions both Autumn and Vanessa gave bold, high-energy performances so it’s interesting to see Alicia throw a slower jam at them for their battle. For this performance, the muted arrangement of the band allowed both of their voices to be in the forefront. On this particular track, the song definitely suited Vanessa’s tone more and for that reason I give her the edge, though the coaches seemed to think Autumn’s ‘surprise’ factor gives her a leg up. That may have been the tipping point for Alicia who chose Vanessa, expecting the steal to be used on Autumn. Both Adam and Gwen lobbied to steal Autumn, with Adam’s enthusiasm for her leading her to join his team.”
Want to take a closer look at all 48 contestants making it to the battle rounds? Tour our photo galleries for Team Adam, Team Alicia, Team Blake, and Team Gwen by clicking each name.
The NBC bio for Autumn: “Autumn was raised by a single mother with help from her mother’s friend and godfather – her big inspiration – before he passed away four years ago. She grew up singing in church and choir, even joining a local girl group called Bloom. At age three, Autumn enrolled in ice-skating, where she competed until she was 13 and eventually turned to coaching at 16. Autumn currently works as an English teacher at a local private school.”
The NBC bio for Vanessa: “Vanessa grew up singing with her family. Raised by her grandmother, she enrolled in piano lessons at age five and competed in her first competition in fifth grade. She moved in with her mother at age 13 and began taking songwriting seriously. After being diagnosed with endometriosis, she was hospitalized monthly and poured her heart into music. In 2011, she lived in Beijing, performing six nights a week at the LAN Club, and later toured the world on the Holland America cruise line for five months with the B.B. King’s Blues Club All-Star Band. For the past 11 years, Vanessa has made money strictly from gigging and touring.”
The Voice Recap: Thinning of the Heard
A blazing Black Crowes redo. An overnight transformation. Rehearsal-room drama. Robyn unplugged. Hmm. Night 3 of The Voice’s Battle Rounds must’ve been pretty decent, especially for what you’ve mentioned is a subpar Season 12, because by the end of it, even Adam Levine’s Gwen Stefani-blond ‘do was starting to grow on me. Let’s review Monday’s performances, shall we, then you can play favorites in the comments.
Team Adam: Johnny Hayes defeated Julien Martinez on “Hard to Handle” | In rehearsal, Johnny seemed to own the song from the word “go,” while Julien, coming from a theater background, stumbled slightly, as he was focused too much on enunciating the lyrics. Come battle time, Julien, nervous as he looked, came out growling. But still, Johnny appeared to have swallowed the song whole and was then spitting it back out like a fire-breathing dragon. His vocal was scorching. He also looked so natural working the stage, it could have been his living room.
Team Blake: TSoul defeated Josh Hoyer on “In the Midnight Hour” | As comfy as the guys’ coach hoped to make them by choosing the Wilson Pickett classic, they struggled with harmonies in rehearsal. Come showtime, however, the self-proclaimed soul brothers had their s— together. Josh sang from the gut, exuberantly smacking an exclamation point on every note. But TSoul’s runs were locomotives in motion — absolutely unstoppable. Moreover, his voice is unique. As well as Josh did, you’ve heard other singers like him (even this season, on this show). On the other hand, his teammate is, as has been said over and over, one of a kind.
Team Alicia: Vanessa Ferguson defeated Autumn Turner on “Killing Me Softly” (Autumn stolen by Adam) | The challenge for Alicia’s R&B-pop and R&B-soul songstresses in rehearsals was to adhere to the oh-so-familiar melody yet still find a way to sound different, like themselves. Neat trick. But they seemed up to the task, especially Vanessa, who even got smiley while practicing with the band. On stage, Autumn at first danced more than was perhaps advisable to nail a solid vocal, and Vanessa gradually pulled ahead — to me and Alicia, anyway — delivering stronger long notes than her teammate and, ultimately, the more memorable performance.
Team Adam: Malik Davage defeated Kawan DeBose on “Love Me Now” | In the gents’ first rehearsal, mentor John Legend suggested that Malik take the runs down a smidgen, and Kawan, turn up the volume a bit. (Oh, and mind the lyrics. This wasn’t “Hard to Handle.”) At Kawan and Malik’s second rehearsal, Adam called them out for being unprepared. (Yikes!) On stage, they seemed to have finally worked on their harmonies. And, though Malik did fine, he just did fine. And once Kawan unleashed that falsetto of his, it was all over. Or so I thought. Not only did Adam stick with Malik, no one stole Kawan. (Wha?)
Team Alicia: Jack Cassidy defeated Hunter Plake on “Dancing On My Own” (Hunter stolen by Gwen) | Nice that, as Jack offered up during his and Hunter’s critique, they’re besties, since they often looked right at each other while singing this bare-bones, ballad version of Robyn’s synth-pop hit. Otherwise, it could have been as awkward as a full-grown woman dueting on a mature song with a kid (a la Felicia Temple/Quizz Swanigan). As for the performance, the fellas scored anytime they got to howl in romantic angst, Hunter’s Nate Ruess impression continued to, well, impress, and when Jack let loose, he won even me over.
Team Gwen: Stephanie Rice defeated Caroline Sky on “The First Cut Is the Deepest” (Caroline stolen by Blake) | Coach Stefani seemed to be stacking the deck in Stephanie’s favor by assigning her and Caroline a song previously sung by Sheryl Crow — that was going to come about as naturally to the poised, polished teen as wearing denim would have to Lady Mary Crawley. But, during the battle, Caroline pulled a full-on Sandy-in-Grease transformation, uglying up her voice just enough to be serious competition for Stephanie, whose visceral vocals predictably slayed.
Via the dreaded montage treatment, we also learned that Enid Ortiz had defeated Valerie Ponzio on “Love Triangle” to stay on Team Blake, Hanna Eyre had outsung Sheena Brook on “Try” to remain part of Team Adam, and Troy Ramey bested Jozy Bernadette on “Angel Eyes” to retain his spot on Team Gwen.
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