Blake Shelton Scores Promising Young Star on ‘The Voice’ Season 12 Auditions
It was another great night of auditions on night two of The Voice Season 12 on Tuesday (Feb. 28).
While no country singers took the stage, several other strong performers did make a statement with their auditions. Autumn Turner, an ice skating teacher from New Jersey, got all four chairs to turn with her soulful rendition of "Last Dance" by Donna Summer, a song she says is symbolic of her life and music career. Turner selected Alicia Keys as her coach, saying she connected to Keys' message of being true to yourself, something she tries to instill in her skating students.
Jesse Larson of Minneapolis, Minn., says he was inspired to become a musician after learning how to build guitars as a child, a skill he still uses today. His performance of John Lennon's "Jealous Guy" warranted Adam Levine to be the sole chair turner, with the coach saying he hears a wide range of abilities in Larson's sound, ranging from Cee Lo Green to Van Halen.
15-year-old Aliyah Moulden of La Habra, Calif., also wowed the judges with her unique take on Elvis Presley's "Hound Dog." But The Voice isn't her first dance with fame, after she won a competition to open for pop star Jesse McCartney and attended the BET Awards after performing at the BET Experience. Her performance had Blake Shelton, Gwen Stefani and Keys all vying for her to be on their team. Shelton's compelling argument citing previous young female winners Cassadee Pope and Danielle Bradbery both being his protegees worked in his favor, as Moulden selected the country star as her coach.
Savannah Leighton, a 16-year-old singer from Alabama, sang the most contemporary song of the night with "Unconditionally" by Katy Perry, admitting that she's watched the show since Season 1. Star couple Stefani and Shelton duked it out over the young singer, who was in tears after the performance, and ultimately picked an elated Stefani as her mentor.
The final performer of the night, Lilli Passero, is both an actor and singer based in Los Angeles. Her dreams of moving from waiting tables to singing onstage came true when Shelton, Stefani and Keys all turned around, guaranteeing her a spot on the show after a beautiful performance of "A Love of My Own" by Carla Thomas. Keys pleaded with the contestant to pick her as a coach, going to so far as to turn her argument into a song, which clearly sealed the deal for Passero who chose to be on Team Alicia.
The Voice Season 12 continues on Monday and Tuesday nights at 8PM EST on NBC.
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