‘The Voice': Brayden Lape Serenades With Brett Young Ballad During Top 8 Live Performances [Watch]
The semi-finals on The Voice are here, which means eight solo artists will be whittled down to five on Tuesday night (Dec. 6) as part of the reality TV singing competition's weekly results show. On Monday evening (Dec. 5), the current contestants in the running for the crown took the stage with another round of solo performances, which saw them singing their hearts out in hopes to win over America’s votes.
Brayden Lape — one of three Team Blake standouts vying for a win — has so far managed to escape elimination. Despite being the youngest artist and perhaps the greenest in the competition, having only sung on a few stages throughout his life, the teen from Grass Lake, Mich., seems to have something special, and Blake Shelton has taken notice.
“It’s hard to put a finger on what it is about Brayden that is so special. He’s just got that thing,” Shelton shared in rehearsals.
“Being 16, you get your mom to come out with you, and I think it’s cool because she gets to see the things I’m doing. She gets to meet with Blake,” Lape added. “She’s here to make sure I can put the microphone stand on right.”
While Lape is in the process of learning the ropes from one of the best in country music, he doesn’t look or sound amateur to even the smallest degree when he takes the stage. He proved that during his Live Top 8 performance.
Leaning into his sentimental side, the tall talent channeled Brett Young’s romantic country ballad, “In Case You Didn’t Know.” Onstage, he melted hearts with his soft, earnest set of vocals alongside a full band of musicians.
While Lape delivered a impressive take on the tune, he may have chosen to go the safe route. This isn’t the first time he has covered a Young tune. He performed Young’s “Mercy” early on in the competition as part of the Knockout Rounds. Despite that, coaches were moved by Lape’s version of “In Case You Didn’t Know.”
“I’m so excited about your career and where you’re going. It’s so easy for us to think at this stage in the competition, there are people that can belt and pull out these Olympic dynamic tricks. But you have such a gorgeous-sounding voice that might be more subtle. But that doesn’t make it less impactful. You have so much more room to grow, and you’ve grown so much in this competition. I’m so excited for you,” Camila Cabello told Lape.
“There’s just something so understated about your performance, it’s almost like you’re unaware of how cute and talented you are,” Gwen Stefani added. “It’s very subtle, and there’s something lovable about that.”
“I wanna speak to that particular performance… We’re going into the finale from here. You stepped up. You hit it at the end,” Shelton applauded. “I haven’t heard you sing like that until this point, man.”
Lape will find out whether or not he moves into the finale when The Voice returns with a 1-hour results episode on Tuesday night.