So it was a night of spilt milk and erectile dysfunction as two of The Voice’s power players failed to inspire voters. Jaz had felt over-hyped for quite a while and Tyler’s ascension made a kind of sense in the overall narrative of the series but the elimination of Ruth Brown was a true shock of the biggest kind. For once, I was doubtful of the validity of Saturday night leaks. I mean, who voted for Leanne Mitchell? True, she’s an incredible vocalist but she’s about interesting as a moist towelette and about as hip as a pair of sensible slacks. Was Ruth just so pimped that her fans felt voting wasn’t necessary? The mysteries of the results show were infinite. Let’s review them in order.
First up was dreamboat Max vs Lady Bo Bruce. There were no big shocks here, as Bo had been gently pimped throughout the series thus far and Max had never really been shown much favour. There was certainly a possibility that the latter might progress, having become the only male for Team Danny and the most obvious crush vote. However, Max was systematically pushed into the shadows and made boring with dull song choices and lukewarm, ambiguous praise. Bo, on the other hand, has been nudged all the way to the final with popular song choices, good running slots and subtle favour. It does look somewhat likely that The Voice have Bo in mind for the win, although whether the public will continue to play ball is another matter.
In the battle of Team Jessie, it was Vince who took the crown of public affection and progressed to next week’s glittering final. It wasn’t much of a surprise – Vince has long been the most memorable and distinctive contestant on Team Jessie but I had rather wondered about his ability to woo a mainstream audience. Becky seemed to me to have a broader appeal but ultimately she had not wowed enough to make it through to the final. How Vince will fair against more seemingly favoured contestants is unclear but I wish him luck, as he is the best of a bad bunch in a rather motley final four.
The first of the two big shocks came as Leanne trumped market favourite Ruth Brown in the public vote. It’s hard to pin down the upset but the most likely cause is that the public simply felt Ruth was safe as houses and didn’t need votes to remain in the competition. As eurovicious ponders, “The Voice has completely failed to account for the widely-known phenomenon of underdog voting, i.e. the more you pimp someone, the more they look like a shoe-in.” Whether this was a foolish oversight on The Voice’s part or a clever trick to clear the win for another contestant is anyone’s guess. If Ruth’s elimination was truly accidental then producers must be kicking themselves.
I had been wondering about Tyler’s chances of pulling off an underdog win and squeezing Soft Jaz Ellington out of the competition but last night’s rendition of Bohemian Rhapsody was something of an embarrassment and encouraged me to believe in the power of Jaz. However, something about the Rhydianesque palaver must have endeared the public as Tyler sailed through to the final over his more accomplished ‘team mate’. It sort of flew in the face of the show’s premise that “it’s all about the voice” but I’m glad that I don’t have to endure Jaz’s human autotune and ballady boredom in the final.
So what are the chances of our four finalists? The market reckon that the most likely order is Bo, Tyler, Vince then Leanne which sounds about right to me. Leanne is just too boring to inspire hoards of voters and whilst I love the idea of Vince winning, he’s just too left-field to be an obvious front runner. I’d love to have some faith in his chances of winning but I just don’t have that much faith in the Great British Public. It seems more likely that one of the whining hipsters, Bo or Tyler, will take the crown. The former seems particularly like a plan a for the producers of The Voice. Why, exactly, is a mystery considering the limited performance she can offer.
What do you think? Is Bo the producer plan a? Could Vince sneak up on the crown? Has Tyler’s charm run out? Is there any point in Leanne Mitchell turning up at all? Was the elimination of Ruth the result of a foolish oversight of a twist in a grand plan to push Bo for the win? Our comments section awaits.
I agree with you and the bookies’ order.
Vince does keep surprising me though. For someone who I’d expect to bomb on any other talent show he has done exceptionally well (Becky wasn’t exactly easy competition).
Considering the voting window is so short and the viewing figures so low (embarrassingly so) the great British public trend may not come into play and Vince’s loyal (and extremely dedicated fanbase) may just get him to the finish line.
Bo and Tyler are very popular but I wonder if their ‘shtick’ will get boring with two (or is it three) performances next Saturday. Those two are the most the repetetive in performances and whilst they’ve got away with it up until now, two similar performances on the night may dampen their chances slightly (Bo more so as she seems to have less of an unwavering ‘fanbase’ but just people who like her voice who can be swayed away).
Leanne got her win by beating bookies’ favourite Ruth. But it’s a three horse race next Saturday.
Also it should be noted that the contestants have to duet with their coaches next week as one of their performances. This favours Vince the most as him and Jessie suit each other vocally and chemistry wise. Tyler+Will and Bo+Danny will probably pull it off but it will still seem a bit awkward with the clash of styles. Tom seemed to have no problem showing absolute horror and disappointment at Leanne beating Ruth so I doubt they’ll have much chemistry on stage 😉
The only risk is if Jessie’s ego can handle sharing the limelight with Vince without trying to scream over him..
It was just the botox.
Too much Leanne bashing here; she’s just dumped out the short-priced jolly! A duet between Leanne and Tom may be more suited to the Beeb audience.
I tend to agree with Ronnie here. As you say, Dug,
– but, well, isn’t that exactly the kind of person we were led to believe The Voice would be all about finding, back in those innocent days of the early blind auditions, before the audience were caged like foie gras geese and force fed a diet of JAZRUTHJAZRUTHJAZRUTH? Someone with a great voice who would struggle to make it in, ahem, other talent shows which flog image and backstory?
I do find it highly amusing that the finalist who seems the best fit with the claimed raison d’etre of the show is the one who appears to have got there entirely by accident.
I think the whole pimpin thing can be over thought, especially on this show. I didnt expect ruth to go out but I really fancied tyler’s chances of beating Jazz. The price is completely gone now on tyler but even 5/2 now is good, should be favourite for me. He even got through by enacting one of will’s trips so if will doesnt scupper his chances anymore he has the most appeal. As long as leanne doesnt win then the producers will be happy enough with any of the other 3.
I agree with you Ross. I think it’s important not to analyse The Voice through the lens of the X-Factor. For one thing, they have different production teams and the head of the record company they will be signed to is not a judge or executive producer. To be fair to Ruth and Jazz, they both had performances which were suited to the “pimp slot” as was Toni’s overwrought take on Sorry Seems to Be the Hardest Word.
I don’t think the producers will be too bothered about losing Ruth. She has the potential to be a great vocalist but needs a lot of training. Any of the finalists can be spun to be what the Beeb wants The Voice to be about. Leanne especially can take on Ruth’s mantle as the big girl with the unassuming personality who’s not a popstar. Whereas, Vince can be the oddball, Bo the outsider and Tyler the one who’s stepped out of the shadow of his famous dead friend.
I dont have 2k but if anyone wants a free £1.95 after comission then lay aleks josh here http://beta.betfair.com/special-bets/market?id=1.105539596
Bo is Plan A but literally anything could happen, insofar as the show isn’t in control of its narrative. I’m positive there was no “grand plan” to have Ruth and Jaz go out, much as there was no plan to have Max go through and David Julien knocked out the other week. It’s pretty much random.
Don’t underestimate Leanne. We live in an era where Adele is considered the musical gold standard. Leanne, her spitting image, could win precisely because she’s comes over as humble, self-effacing, safe, non-threatening, lovely, homely, normal, teatime-friendly etc. And she does have a great voice. This is BBC1 after all.
DUBSTEP BREAKDOWN
Have to say Bo was given a pretty amazing production on Saturday. I didn’t find her singing of it to be especially impressive, but the whole spectacle of the thing was something to behold…of course, that really is something that shouldn’t be being thought in a show called ‘The Voice’ but whatever. It shows that the producers have a lot of love for Bo to me. Personally though, I fancy Vince to snatch it.
Yeah I agree, the whole staging felt like a winner’s performance. They even had the confetti cannons.
It could be Leanne offers the best value right now on the betting markets as who knows what might happen on the night. My sixth sense though tells me Vince will rightly sneak it. Tyler was fortunate as his jarring production of Bohemian Rhapsody was slightly less bad than Jaz’s Let It Be disaster. Bo is fine although for me she is still a Dido lite minus the song writing talent.
It’s still Vince for me.
I am so glad he is not in the Tom Jones team because Jone’s ego is huge and his voice is not too everyone’s taste – he’s an old washed up has been in nmy view and has done nothing good since “Green Green Grass”.
Will.i.am is not a great live singer either, he’ll be through a tuner, although Danny will be good – he comes across well and modest. Anyhow I reckon it is VINCE and the top odds of 4.33 with Ladbrokes are tasty, tasty, very very tasy. They’re very tasty.
That should be “to everyone’s taste” not “too ev eryone’s taste”. Sorry about that.
Well I loved the dysfunctional teenager. Becky’s habit of messing up the words and slipping the odd unwanted one in made her even more endearing to me.I didn’t need her to be perfect, just bloody different from the other disappointing rabble.
She was energetic, joyful, fearless and had a unique tone. It’s a shame the judges didn’t follow her lead.
BTW you might have guessed who my money was on.
I liked Becky too though my money was never on here. Routing for Vince for the money, but I also tipped Bo just after her blind audition and hope not putting money on her will come back 2 bite me.
Bo is not going to win. She’s too ‘tree hugging’ and we learned from X Facotr last year from that Irish girl who was also yodelling.
Tyler is wet, really wet=- he’s a good singer but he’, well, boring and as for having thee voice? Do me a favour- I’ve heard better karaoke singers on Blackpool front.
That leaves the bottom 2. I just think if Vince is given his best songs he will win.
He is by far the most distinctive act left and also the best male singer. That should be enough.
I disagree, Simon. I think Lady Bo is going to win. She seems to have built up quite a fanbase online – polls show her as the people’s champion with 38% at the moment. The producers have majorly pimped her throughout – more so than any other contestnt – so we can safely assume she is Plan A to win. I’d say her price as favourite is justified.
I don’t think it’s accurate to dismiss her chances because of things that happened on X Factor – The Voice is a different beast, largely because it’s on BBC1 which has a much more middle class and southern demographic than ITV1.
I’ve gone big on Bo to win with a saver on Tyler. If anyone’s going to cause an upset, it will be him I reckon. Funnily enough, I already have Leanne covered as a while back I placed a bet on “Sir Tom Jones winning manager” as for some reason I could get better odds than on a Ruth victory! Funny how things turn out eh? I have laid Vince very heavily on Betfair – my reasoning being that he is too left-field to carry off a victory on this BBC1 show. He’s also trailing in last in the digital spy and tellymix polls, but is 3rd favourite on Betfair, so I recognised some value in laying him today.
Anyone else doing any win bets for the final?
Before this point I would have completely agreed with you that Vince is far too leftfield for a TV singing contest (yet alone one on the BBC).
However, he has continued to surprise every week, topping the vote out of those in his team. To be fair, Becky was his only competition, but she was a very strong act.
Considering the audience for the Voice is so small in comparison to BGT or the X factor, I think that a contestant’s large dedicated fanbase can overcome the casual BBC viewer who’d be appalled at Vince’s image, and rather pick tuneful Leanne or handsome Tyler.
Personally I think it’s between Vince and Tyler (who really shouldn’t be underestimated). I think Bo has a shot at 2nd place but I don’t think she’ll win.
One thing to note is that the format for this Saturday includes 1 new song, team duet and a series best.
The ‘series best’ benefits Tyler the most as his ‘Higher Love’ will definitely be a vote stealer. It’s what bounced him from no chance in hell to potential winner.
Have to disagree too. Janet and Bo’s treatment have been from opposite ends of the spectrum.
Bo has a big fanbase and is seen/ being touted as the one who offers something different.
I’ve just seen a trailer for The Voice on BBC1 (7PM) which was all and following Leanne’s story in the final. Are they doing this just for her, or are each of the acts getting their own trailers? If all, how much of an effect will the timing of these trailers be? And who will get the prime-time slot?
Dander is up…
“people’s champion Lady Catherine Anna Brudenell “Bo” Bruce”
“almost as if her life force (or inheritance) is ebbing away with every word she sings”
Can we get over Bo’s accent and background, please? Being against the class system or choosing to exist outside of it means being against prejudice and discrimination on grounds of perceived social class in all directions, up and down.
“the class warrior in me is a little depressed at Bo topping the vote from third”
Really – you’re unhappy Bo won the public vote because she’s “posh”, regardless of other factors? Bo is part of society like everyone else and if we ever hope to have an equal (or more equal) society in the UK, it means treating people on a level playing field. Judge her on her vocal and performance skills, not her background. It’s comments and attitudes like these that actually only entrench the similar negative attitudes some people in the historical upper classes hold towards those “below” them, and mutual dislike never got anyone (or any society) anywere. It’s one country, let’s try and not prejudge each other on how we speak or what our family background is.
(For the record, Bo Bruce’s father was apparently once called a “class traitor” by the Daily Telegraph (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Brudenell-Bruce,_Earl_of_Cardigan) and sounds like a decent bloke, not that any of that matters in terms of this debate.)
Hey there eurovicious. In defence of the lines you quote for which I’m responsible, the only reason I’ve been tongue-in-cheek snarky about Bo’s background is that she/the BBC chose to turn it into a sob story in her audition –
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m6ZX954mJHI
“I’ve been around the music industry for a while and I get so far then I feel judged for where I’ve come from”.
Which, okay. I’ve no reason to doubt that inverse snobbery exists in the music industry and, joking apart, I entirely agree with you that prejudice and discrimination are to be deplored in all their forms.
But on the flipside of Bo’s comment, there are many many many people who’ve “been around the music industry for a while” without making a breakthrough. And Bo presumably has a considerable advantage over most aspirants who keep persevering in the face of knockbacks, in that one assumes she doesn’t have to work a day job to make ends meet. One assumes she can also afford to employ good music teachers.
Which is of course fine, and would not be worthy of snarkiness if she/the beeb hadn’t chosen to make a thing of it. It just seems disingenuous to me to draw attention to the disadvantages of being privileged in the music industry without also acknowledging the advantages.
The “a little depressed” comment referred to the BBC audience apparently falling for the sob story, not to the mere fact that Bo is posh and popular. It just seemed to me symptomatic of the unwarranted deferential sympathy for the upper classes that has helped perpetuate the class system over the years.
And yes, of course, we should judge her on her vocal and performance skills. Which I am, in the sense that if I thought these were good enough to explain her topping the vote without the pimping and sob story, I wouldn’t be poking fun at the pimping and sob story. I think she’s okay, and has needed the pimping and sob story to get to this position.
Another reason why I don’t think Vince will win – he’s an inappropriate personality to be promoted on flagship shows like BBC Breakfast and The One Show. Any of the others would be fine, but Bo would be perfect.
I’m half expecting Vince to be nobbled with some boring/weird/unsuitable song choices.
Why, what’s “unsuitable” about him?
He can barely string a sentence together, plus his image is very very wrong for BBC1. IMO, of course 😉
I don’t have any observation on where Bo Bruce comes from any more than I do VInce.
The best entertainer is Vince and the youngsters who are kingmkaers in these competitions will vote him through over the blue rinse brigade of middle class England who will like the-boy-next-door image of Tyler.
Bo is not a great singer ant more than the rest of them are. The best singers in the competition went out last week, but onc the public get stuck into the competition all plugs are meaningless. Vince is the most entertaining act left, and he has the best voice. That should be enough.
The songs are out now….
http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/tv/s154/the-voice-uk/
BO has “Nothing compares to U” which she will do yodelling well. Vince has Jessie Jays “Price Tag” as a duet and Jimmy Cliff’s ‘Many rivers”.
It will be interesting to see how the markets react but I’m happy with Vince’s choices.
Leanne will cover James Brown’s ‘It’s A Man, Man, Man’s World’, (been done to death on X facotr in the pasr) before singing ‘Mama Told Me Not To Come’ with Sir Tom Jones.Oh dear. Problem with Jones is he is too over the hill.
Tyler James is covering Michael Jackson’s ‘I’ll Be There’ and then teaming up with will.i.am on Usher’s ‘OMG’ but he isn’t in the same class.
Hiya Simon, Last time Man’s World was done on XF it was Mary Byrne in week 1 of 2010, when she stormed the public vote – the only time in ten public votes that anyone beat Matt Cardle.
So it seems like a pretty solid choice to me. She can belt it out, always a plus in these grand final situations, and it should play to what I assume is her core demographic, women of a certain age.
Which actually seems like it might be a pretty good core demographic to have on a Saturday night BBC1 show, especially as neither of the boys are exactly of the “would like my daughter to bring home” variety.
I frankly haven’t a clue what to expect tomorrow, but not giving up hope on Leanne just yet.
Hi Andrew
Yes I remember Tesoc Mary singing it very well and have not overlooked its effect. The thng is in previous knock out rounds the contestants have been very cerfully pitched against one another to give all the judges a horse in the race. Now it is a free for all and I dont see either BO or Tyler getting enough of the floating vote. Tyler looks boring and Bo a bit one dimensional with her druidish yodelling – fine voice though she has. Leanne could do it but Sir TOm Jones is a has been – let’s see if the duet of “Mamma told me not to come” is all about Leanne and not Jones. I doubt it.
Anyhow all the acts have done really well to get as far as they have. May the best performer on the night win although whoever it is I cannot see any of them having a mainstream career.
Oh dear! Some of your punters’ seem to be looking for a fight, Andrew and Dug. Whilst I’m on, can I just say I love hugging trees, but, the “Irish girl from X Factor” doesn’t compare, she is far superior to Bo and as R mentioned, her treatment was quite the opposite. Very unfair. I don’t see Tyler as “boy next door”. Of the three Leanne seems most wholesome. Perhaps the public would like Sir Tom to be winning judge. Personally, feel Vince has more to offer, but, not keen on his image.
Sorry. Of the four 🙂