The battles continued on The Voice on Tuesday, but it wasn't without its share of delay.
"I think I have had a birthday since this battle started," said Blake Shelton at one point to Adam Levine, who was taking incredibly long to deem a winner of a particular match. But when Levine finally made his heartbreaking decision, a singer broke out into tears while being sent home, and was walked out by Pharrell Williams with a pep talk: "If you stop now, the 'no' was right."
The episode of sudden-death duets were aided with guest mentors: Stevie Nicks to Levine, Little Big Town to Shelton, Alicia Keys to Williams, and Gavin Rossdale to Gwen Stefani.
See more 'The Voice': Meet the Season 7 Singers
See who will continue beyond the second night of the battles:
Team Pharrell's Jordy Searcy vs. Taylor Phelan
Song: "Breakeven"
The indie-pop matchup on the Script hit was helped by advice on breath control from Keys (to pretend they're gonna "take a poop") and Williams' tip to slow down the performance to help them emotionally connect: "Don't over think; over feel," he told them. Onstage, their harmonies — vocally and via acoustic guitar — clicked. Levine and Shelton just barely preferred Phelan for his stage presence, as did Williams, who moved him forward.
Team Adam's Alessandra Castronovo vs. Joe Kirk
Song: "Stay"
The Rihanna and Micky Ekko duet was a perfect song choice for these two, who were both encouraged to loosen up and take more vocal risks during rehearsals. After the battle (that brought Stefani to tears), Shelton said Kirk gave one of the most perfect vocals he'd ever heard, and Williams praised Castronovo's "purring," diva-esque stage presence. After a ton of delay, Levine finally went with Castronovo, and Williams walked a teary Kirk out with words of encouragement.
The episode also quickly noted that Levine moved Rebekah Samarin forward over Clara Hong, and Shelton picked Grant Ganzer over John Martin, as well as Tanner Linford over Justin Johnes.
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Team Gwen's Menlik Zergabachew vs. Troy Ritchie
Song: "Maneater"
The two contrasting performers blended their sound on the Hall & Oates track: Ritchie's rasp and Zergabechew's reggae vibe. Onstage, they figured out how to toughen up their attitudes to match the lyrics, and Levine complimented their coolness and progress, as well as Zergabachew's versatility. Despite everyone's praises for Zergabachew, Stefani went with Ritchie, and Levine and Williams went in for the steal. In the end, Zergabachew went with Williams.
The Voice continues Tuesday at 8 p.m. on NBC.
Email: Ashley.Lee@THR.com
Twitter: @cashleelee
