Before reading this piece, check out our last blog post of the Knockouts if you missed it!

This week on “The Voice,” the Knockouts continued, and mega mentor Ed Sheeran was back as well. Since NBC showed fewer performances this week, we are ranking our top three performances instead of top five.

Our Top Three

1. In our favorite performance of the week, Paris Winningham and Jershika Maple represented coach John Legend’s team to provide us with a well-matched, entertaining Knockout. Maple performed first with “Inseparable” by Natalie Cole, and her powerhouse vocals and runs started off the performance with a bang. Maple’s performance was so good that we were unsure if Winningham could keep up, but he delivered with an equally entertaining and emotional performance of “Tennessee Whiskey” by Chris Stapleton. In the end, Maple was declared the winner, but coach Blake Shelton used his steal on Winningham.

“It was painful for me, but I had to pick Jershika,” Legend said. “She deserves to go far in this show; I can see her making it all the way to the finale.”

2. Also from Legend’s team, Samara Brown and Shadale performed a surprising Knockout. Brown sang “The Best” by Tina Turner in a powerful stage presence with long notes and runs, but what really surprised the audience and coaches was Shadale’s performance of “Impossible” by Shontelle. Her emotion during the rendition connected with the entire audience, and even brought coach Kelly Clarkson to tears. The song choice and delivery also showed Shadale’s versatility, as she had auditioned for the show with a “fun” song (“That’s What I Like” by Bruno Mars). Clarkson admitted that she didn’t expect Shadale to win before the Knockout, but she deservedly won because of her emotion and ability to connect with the audience.

“I think vocally, Shadale, you gave the best vocal performance you’ve given, and the thing that made it breakthrough was the emotion,” Legend said.

3. For Clarkson’s team, Jeremy Rosado and Xavier Cornell performed another competitive Knockout. Singing “Run To You” by Whitney Houston, Rosado took a huge risk because of the range required for the song. However, the performance was well-executed and filled with emotion and control. Cornell sang “Falling Slowly” by Glen Hansard and Markéta Iglová and had an amazing tone throughout his performance. Although both performances were great, we agreed with the coaches’ decision to advance Rosado.

“Jeremy has such a solid voice; he’s just a pure vocalist, and then he wears his heart on his sleeve,” Clarkson said. “He’s kind of that perfect artist.”

Comebacks & Behind the Scenes

At the end of the Nov. 1 Knockouts, NBC announced a special event: viewers could vote for one eliminated contestant out of four, hand-picked by coaches, to return for the live shows next week. 

The four artists were Aaron Hines (Team Kelly), Vaughn Mugol (Team Ariana), Hailey Green (Team Blake) and Samara Brown (Team John). Voting was done via Twitter, where viewers could tweet “#VoiceComeback” along with the name of the contestant they wanted to return. It concluded at 7 a.m. on Nov. 2.

Since they showed fewer performances this week, Tuesday’s episode, “The Road to Live Shows,” featured the behind the scenes and personalities of the coaches. 

The majority of the episode focused on this season’s new coach Ariana Grande. From the live studio audience and her large presence on social media, she seems to be the fan favorite, as well as ours. She truly cares about each member on her team, sometimes tearing up when she had to choose who the winner of a Battle or Knockout was. Grande’s witty and bubbly personality fits perfectly into the chemistry between the other coaches.

The episode also recapped the journeys of the remaining contestants on each team. It was helpful for viewers to learn a little about each contestant before live voting begins next week. 

Team Rosters (as of Nov. 2) after The Knockouts, Week Two

Team Kelly: Jeremy Rosado, Girl Named Tom, Hailey Mia, Gymani, Katie Rae

Team Legend: Shadale, Jershika Maple, Samuel Harness, Joshua Vacanti, David Vogel

Team Ariana: Bella DeNapoli, Jim and Sasha Allen, Raquel Trinidad, Holly Forbes, Ryleigh Plank

Team Blake: Libianca, Wendy Moten, Lana Scott, Paris Winningham, Peedy Chavis

We are so excited for the live performances next week! Viewers like us can vote via The Voice App or their website. Don’t forget to tune into next week’s show to cast your vote to determine who advances to the finals!