[Image credit: The Voice]
Joie Fulco (age 22) performs Linda Ronstadt’s “When Will I Be Loved” against Levi Watkins (age 14) singing “I Ain’t Living Long Like This” by Waylon Jennings during The Knockouts Premiere on The Voice 2020 (Season 18).
John Legend said both gave perfect performances but chose Levi as the winner of the Knockout because of his little extra “It” factor. Nick Jonas wondered over Levi’s song choice, while he said Joei showed so much more of her voice. Nick picked Joei as the winner. Kelly Clarkson chose Levi as the winner of the Knockout because he’s so cool for knowing and singing Waylon Jennings at his age.
Coach Blake Shelton said Levi was incredible at selling a song about being in prison when he’s just 14. As to Joei, he said that she picked her moments and did not over sing Linda Ronstadt’s version of the song. Blake picked Joei as the winner of the Knockout.
Artists: Joei Fulco, Levi Watkins
Songs: “When Will I Be Loved” by Linda Ronstadt and “I Ain’t Living Long Like This” by Waylon Jennings
Coach: Blake Shelton
Knockouts winner: Joei Fulco
Steal/Save result: N/A
Auditions: Joei Fulco audition, Levi Watkins audition
Judges Comments:
John Legend said both gave “perfect performances” and did exactly what they’re supposed to do. “You sang the notes with power and precision,” he said. John said there’s something about Levi, “just the little things you did – it just gave a little extra “it” factor.
Nick Jonas said it was so much fun. With Levi, he was kind of scratching his head at the song choice and perplexed by it but said it was well done. To Joei, Jonas said he enjoyed watching her grow in the competition and seeing her push herself. He said that a lot of times they compared her voice to Cher, “But there’s so much more that we got to hear today.” Jonas praised Blake Shelton’s coaching then said that Joei would be his pick for the knockout.
Kelly Clarkson said, “When I saw Levi singing Waylon Jennings, and the fact that you even know that song, you’re so cool.” To Joei, Kelly said she loves Linda Ronstadt “’cause you can really showcase like how big your voice can sound, how round.”. She said she loved Joei’s performance especially towards the end when she got really rock n’roll. In the end Kelly picked Levi for singing Waylon Jennings at his age. “So, you’re 14 years old and singing Waylon Jennings. I have to go Levi,” she said.
Coach Blake Shelton said, “Levi, you’re 14 and you’re singing a song about being in prison, you know? I was like, you got to figure out a way to sell that to people. And buddy, you did it. It was incredible.” To Joei, Blake Shelton commented, “You know one of the things that we talked about with James Taylor was picking your moments and not overdoing it and jumping on harmony parts. It’s a tough balance. I think you did a great job of honoring that Linda Ronstadt version and not over-singing.”
Eventually, Blake went with his gut and picked Joei Fulco as the winner of the knockout round. Blake said Levi was great but he likes to keep exploring Joei’s country-rock edge that she has.
Season 18 of The Voice premiered at 8PM on February 24, 2020 on NBC and will air Mondays at 8 PM. John Legend, Kelly Clarkson and Blake Shelton returned as coaches for their third, fifth and eighteenth seasons, respectively. Nick Jonas joined the panel as a new coach, replacing Gwen Stefani. Meanwhile, Carson Daly returned for his eighteenth season as host.
On the question of whether or not The Voice Season 18 will continue airing amid the coronavirus pandemic, John Legend said that the program have pre-taped shows until the end of April. Whether the three weeks of planned live shows will push through in May is still unknown at this point. John said in his interview with Billboard that everybody’s playing things by ear because no one knows “where the world’s going to be in May.”
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