Top 5 Singer Paris Winningham Stuns Coaches Twice on ‘The Voice’ Finale [Watch]
The remaining contestants on Season 21 of The Voice sang their hearts out on Monday night (Dec. 13) as part of night one of the show's two-night Top 5 Live Finale. One of them was Team Blake’s Paris Winningham, who delivered two standout performances.
The 37-year-old singer from Jacksonville, Fla., captured the coaches' attention with the Billy Paul soulful classic, “Me and Mrs. Jones,” a song he dedicated to his adoptive father, who he calls his number one inspiration.
During his performance, Winningham, a Navy veteran, showered listeners with his smooth vocals while backed by pianos and violin players. He also showed off his impressive stage presence, twirling one of his backup dancers beneath the lights. Winningham let out his powerful growl and some massive high notes throughout the song, earning him a chance to win over America's votes one last time.
“You are such a classic soul vocalist. It just oozes from you, and I love how you can go from being so smooth and silky to revving it up and hitting those high, powerful, raspy notes too, in such a beautiful combination. You are such a gifted artist and such a gift to this show,” John Legend praised Winningham's performance.
Blake Shelton echoed Legend's comments, saying, “You’re exactly right, it’s the sneak attack that he has."
"Obviously, you just raked in millions of votes, but you also just sold millions of tickets for concerts that you haven’t even booked yet,” Shelton told Winningham.
Winningham’s performance was one of two that he gave during the show. He later returned to the stage to sing “Ain’t Nobody” by Chaka Khan and Rufus.
“You have the perfect balance of power and restraint,” Kelly Clarkson said. “Your vocals are always insane…. You’re killing it! You’re so talented!”
Winningham will find out if his performances were enough to give him the crowning win during The Voice finale on Tuesday (Nov. 14) on NBC.