Tuesday, April 30, 2013

The Voice: Knock Out Round No. 1 Teams Adam & Shakira





The Same Page is a blog; currently dedicated to reviewing Season 4 of NBC’s The Voice. Written by friends for life Giselle Carrington and Tonia Holder, this blog puts together all their thoughts while watching episodes of The Voice. This Blog is a bit different from your average review blog between friends, mainly because Giselle is in Grenada and Tonia is in Trinidad! They converse over Whatsapp on Mondays and Tuesdays and DRAMATICALLY express their views on the happenings of the episodes. They now wish to share their comical analyses with the world at large!




The Voice: The Knockout Rounds – Part 1 (Team Adam & Team Shakira)


Tonz: Now I was anxiously awaiting these rounds ‘cause I mean, we are down to the best of the best now and really; who do you want to see go home?
So for team Adam there were the following 8 persons from which 4 would make it to the live rounds, they are: Amber, Miades Wales, Amy, Caroline, Judith, Orlando, Warren and Sarah. My choices of who I believe would make the strongest team for Adam are: Judith, Sasha, Amber and Caroline.
The 8 persons from team Shakira are: Garrett, Tonya, Kris, Mary, Karina, Monique, Sasha and Shauna. My choices for the strongest team for Shakira are: Monique, Karina, Sasha and Kris.
Let’s see how good I am *wiggles eyebrows*.

Giz: My choices for Team Adam are: Judith, Amber, Warren and Sarah. For Team Shakira I choose: Kris, Karina, Sasha and Shawna. I’m hardly ever wrong! But sometimes I have illusions of grandeur sooooooo…lol. Anywhoozle, I’ll be reviewing the first 4 battles. Here goes it!!!

*Please click the battle headers to view video clips of each battle*

It’s no secret that Amber and I share the same last name. But, unlike TONIA, though I can be biased, when it comes to it, I judge based on what I hear and see on stage. I love Amber though.
Amber sang I’m With You, a passionate, strong song for a passionate strong individual. She came out and did what she had to do. I loved her dynamics, from soft and gentle to loud and uninhibited. Powerful!!! Tonz and I both agreed that she was wonderful. I mean, seriously, SAME PAGE.
Maidas Wale came out and did a good performance of Stevie Wonder’s Higher Ground. Personally, I didn’t get the usual Maidas feeling, but as the coaches rightly said afterward, they took a more serious approach. Maybe, the harmonies sounded a bit off to me, but that could just be me. I still enjoyed them to the max. (Max is the name of Tonia’s dog btw, for all the internet stalkers! Bahaha). Tonia doesn’t like Maidas Wale too much. She can be a hater at times you know. I had to tell her to “learn to go outside the box”. She does not listen to me at allllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll.
In the end, it was Amber who came out victorious! It’s obvious why she would be the winner, but it was also because she sounded awesome. See what I did there?! Lol. Anyway, congrats to Ms. Carrington on a job well done and we look forward to seeing you in the LIVE SHOWS! Yay! Maidas Wale, you guys are awesome, keep being different. Abresos y besos! J xoxo

Next up: Team Shakira: Garrett Gardener – Too Close vs Tawnya Reynolds – Hell on Heels
I still had no idea who Tawnya was, up to this point. *Shrugs* Tonia didn’t know either. Oh well. She was up against Garrett, who I didn’t think would have made it past the battle rounds, but did!
Garrett was up first with his rendition of Too Close, which, I will admit, surprised THE HELL out of me. I loved his performance. He sounded GREAT! #thatisall!
Tawnya came up to do her rendition of Hell on Heels. *shakes head* I have nothing against her, but her performance lacked the energy and most everything I’d be looking for at this stage of the competition. I was not impressed. In my passionate state, I may have used the word horrid, but that does not reflect how I think of her as an artiste, just the performance itself. Tonia defended her, but I was already on Garrett’s side. I did love her yodel though. Blake didn’t see the need for there to be so much.
Well, Garrett was the winner! I was right!!! Lol! But nice attempt by Tawnya. Maybe it wasn’t the best song choice by her for this round. Maybe Garrett was just better. Either way, good luck to Garrett, because next week is BOUND to be tough. I sincerely wish Tawnya the best too. :D

I did not know who Amy was. I swear I missed WEEKS! Anywho, she was against Caroline, who both Tonz and I love. She’s Tonia’s Nerd. She’s adorable and I love her weird voice. So unique.
Amy did her rendition. She started off VERY shaky. That put off the entire performance for me. Even though she landed an almost perfect note at the end, it didn’t quite make up for the beginning for me. As far as I’m concerned if you don’t save yourself very quickly after a shaky start, then in these competitions its EXTREMELY hard to come back. I know it was just nerves, but, still.
Caroline came really reserved and stuck with what she knew. It was really nice. There was nothing EPIC about it, but there was also nothing wrong with it and I liked it. I’m always afraid though, that when a gentle singer goes up against a more powerhouse singer, people get so caught up with the power that they overlook the potential of the gentle singer. Amy made a note at the end of her song that made even Caroline say wow.
When time for the results, Caroline pulled through. YAY! Tonia was VERY glad! So was I. I look forward to seeing how she fairs in the live shows. I wish the best of luck to Amy though.

I love Kris, if you’ve read previous reviews you’d know that. I just love his voice and the miraculous things he can do with it. I like Mary Miranda as well; she’s a strong Latina Singer.
Kris came on stage to sing What a Wonderful World and he did not over do it. I saw his wonderful world when he sang. His vibrato is so, smooth…Jesus! There’s not much I can say. He just did so well.
Mary Miranda chose The Police’s Every Step You Take. Her rendition was ok, but it still had that Latin vibe to it that I don’t even think she was going for. As Shakira said, the song wasn’t what she was accustomed to. She did try her best and owned the bridge of the song. Unfortunately, she did not do well enough for me. To come against Kris, you would have to come really good.                                                  
In the end, Kris was the winner, moving on, as we all knew he would. Mary, we love you and wish you the best!!!!          
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                      Tonz: So I’m going to be reviewing the last four battles of the night, beginning with one of my personal, all-time favorites, Judith and one of the stolen artists Orlando.

First off let me just say I love Judith, from the very beginning! Her voice is the bomb and I want to see her win this entire thing. Ok now that that is out of my system, on to the battle. Judith started us off and she was smooth and perfect. Her presence on stage was so awe inspiring, she had her soft smooth moments and she had her nice high ones. Never once did she lose her pitch. She stayed true to herself, her voice and I could honestly not find one thing wrong with that performance. Judith for the win for me! Giselle and I were totally on the same page with Judith, she said and I quote ‘her voice is sik’.
Orlando came out and at first he started pretty ok for me, but kind of got pitchy after a while; I think maybe he got nervous after watching Judith perform. As the band started to power up, he lost some of his power, because I began to struggle to hear him a bit. He got a lot more pitchy and I was wondering what in the name of music was going on with him. Giz didn’t like his performance at all, she said it was horrible, he was all over the place (again I think it was nerves).
In the end there was no need for a long deliberation, I think Adam did that just to be nice to Orlando, because all the coaches called it, Giselle and I called it and Adam knew it to be true as well Judith for the win, punto finale.

Giz: I just need to point out…I like Orlando. I don’t think he’s horrid at all, just this one performance. Maybe horrid is a harsh word to use, HOWEVER, it’s the word I used while watching.

Well this paring kind of took me for a loop; I was not expecting Shakira to pair these two ladies together because basically they are two of her strongest singers. But maybe it is because of this exact reason she did.
Karina came out rough and gritty, real rock and roll. She has a beautiful strong voice, and I loved her stage presence, totally showing the rock genre. Giz even had to comment here that ‘ rock really is her thing’, she believed that Karina stayed true to herself which is always kind of hard. But for me I think she kind of pigeon holed herself into being a rock and roll artist alone, she didn’t really show a different appreciation for the other genres. But she did rock that performance.
Monique looked so pretty but as Giselle likes to point out, this is the voice and not a beauty contest. I love Monique (sings ‘loca loca loca’) and I love her voice. She was admittedly kind of pitchy at the beginning but she got stronger, however there were times when she fell flat. I think it’s because of the latin accent that the Latinas have, that impedes their vocal ability a little bit. The last high note was not as strong as I would have liked it to be, because I know how strong she can hit those kinds of notes. Giselle felt she sounded tired lol. I think she did well though and I wasn’t sure who Shakira was going to choose as I like both these artists. In the end she chose to keep Karina and while I was sad to see Monique go I was glad Karina stayed.

Giz: Singing a Celine Deon song can be tiring. I mean, it’s frickin’ CELINE DEON!

Back to Team Adam: Warren – I just Died in your Arms vs Sarah – Wild Horses
I am totally biased in this competition, I am all for team Sarah, sorry Warren but I love Sarah’s voice. Now not to say Warren didn’t come out with his guns blazing. He started off a little low and a little flat but as the chorus kicked in, he found his footing and I was forced to say ‘Wow Warren’. He did great as his confidence (not that he needed a boost in that direction) soured. Giselle loved the choice of song and was equally astounded by Warren as her comment to his performance was ‘Jesus’.
Sarah saw what Warren did and wasn’t backing down at all. She hopped off that stool, took to centre stage and let loose the power of her voice. She lost some power in her low parts and I couldn’t hear her properly at some points but I blame it on nerves. She came out strong and in her element during the chorus. I totally love her ability to go from rock to falsetto in a heartbeat and so smoothly. I was firmly behind my girl and as it turns out so were all the other judges including Adam. Sarah smashed this round and took home the win. Adam rightfully said ‘Sarah is just so good, it’s amazing’. Giz agreed with her fully, same page all the way, top marks for Sarah.

On to the final battle of the night, it was here that Giselle tried to pull a, me. She wanted to go and sleep, well obviously I was not having it because there was only one battle left. Stay up Dammit!

Now anyone who has read my previous posts will know how passionate I was/am about Sasha. I was devastated when Adam didn’t choose her, totally devastated. But Shakira claimed her, dusted her off and gave her a new shine.
She came out strong, guns drawn and blazing. Through and through she showed her powerful voice and range and I was proud! It was a perfect rendition of ‘At Last’ even my dad who never really watches the show had to agree. To me she totally showed Adam what a fool he was for not choosing her and put him in his place, ‘suck it Adam’ (I still love you though).
Shawna sang a song completely out of her genre. I know her to be hardcore and rough and gritty with a growl of a mama bear. But she came out somewhat soft, with a low growl that I hardly distinguished. She makes a lot of funny faces while she sings and this distracted me a bit during her performance. Although it lacked what she was known for and what got her through all the other rounds, it was a pleasant change of pace for Shauna.
The judges were blown away with Sasha’s performance, with Adam admitting that he was a fool for letting her go and totally regrets it *duh*. Blake commented that she had positioned herself as a front runner in the competition and Usher stated that he hated that he hadn’t fought harder to steal her. They all felt that even though Shauna’s performance was good, it wasn’t as great as it could have been, as they were all waiting for her fire to come out. No surprise her Sasha wins this knockout rounds.

Tonz: That’s how we end it for the first Knockout Rounds. Here are the artistes left standing, for Team Adam: Amber, Caroline, Judith and Sarah (please note ALL of my choices made it through!) Adam we are so winning this thing!!
And for Team Shakira: Garrett (not one of my choices), Kris, Karina and Sasha (3 out of 4 isn’t bad, really thought Monique would have made it to though *tear*).

Giz: Sooooooooooooo, three of mine from each team made it. I think I did alright!!! J

We can’t wait to see what Team Blake and Team Usher have in store for us. Until then, *clears throat and sings* “This is the Voiceeeee”

Continue to look out for our reviews. Comment, like, share and follow us on twitter: @shiversniffles and @tonzmarie. We look forward to hearing your thoughts.

Till Next time!
Giz & Tonz

Sunday, April 28, 2013

The Voice: Battle Round No. 4 FINAL BATTLE





The Same Page is a blog; currently dedicated to reviewing Season 4 of NBC’s The Voice. Written by friends for life Giselle Carrington and Tonia Holder, this blog puts together all their thoughts while watching episodes of The Voice. This Blog is a bit different from your average review blog between friends, mainly because Giselle is in Grenada and Tonia is in Trinidad! They converse over Whatsapp on Mondays and Tuesdays and DRAMATICALLY express their views on the happenings of the episodes. They now wish to share their comical analyses with the world at large!

Today I, Giselle, will be reviewing the FINAL BATTLE ROUND and boy am I excited.

Point to note though; Those battles that we missed because we saw them only in montage; NO BUENO!!! We would love to see them all! But I guess, we can understand that on a Tuesday, there's only a one hour spot! Tonz isn't please either NBC. She is not pleased! LOL! #Lehgo!

*Please click the battle headers to view video clips of each battle*

Team Shakira: Brandon Roush vs Shawna P - Piece of my heart
Going into this battle, we saw Shawna at the auditions, older, experienced but with a power house of a voice! I'm not sure how I felt a few weeks ago at her auditions, but I do know I felt she would be serious competition. Brandon; I loved because of his soulful voice and his "carrot top" look. (Tonz brought that to my attention Tuesday night). Anywho, at the practice, the main advice given by Shakira and Joel was for Brandon to maintain his sound, his soul and for Shawna to keep up her style, but maybe control. I agreed with it. Tonz liked Shawna, but I stuck with Brandon.
During the Battle Rendition, they brought all they had. Shawna with her vintage sound, did her thing. Brandon stepped up his game, not loosing his Brandonness. In the end, Shakira chose Shawna as the winner, choosing her potential and obviously her powerful vocal chords to take with her team into the Knock Outs. Congrats to Shawna. To Brandon, I say keep doing you! You've got style, you've got great vocals and a lush head of head hair that tops it all off! lol. See what I did there?! Moving on....

Team Adam: Duncan Kamakana vs Sarah Simmons: Wanted it More
Sarah, oh Sarah...the grit and dirty within Sarah Simmons' voice is only compared to the sweet angelic nature of her voice. Two sounds, one person. WOW! I loved her One Of Us audition. She turned my chair fo sho! Duncan's audition was one in a montage, however, he's pretty cute. Hey Duncan from Giz and Tonz! *wink*
They were given Lady Antebellum's Wanted it More. So I guess this battle was less of a competition to sing the parts sung by one person, but more of one to compliment each other yet own their own part. Adam and Hillary so rightly told Duncan not to get lost in Sarah's shadow, to be bigger and to Sarah, they asked for control. Hillary even let them know that the song is emotional and let them in on the part of the song which often gets to her the most. Wow...to be in front of a great singer like Hillary for advice, I could only wish.
During the Battle Rendition, they sang so sweetly together. Sarah, twirled her voice in so many different directions, from low to high it was just in awe of what she did on stage vocally. Duncan reminded me of Rob Thomas of Matchbox Twenty. "Can you help me I'm bent..." But his voice, while sweet, did grab me and I think he was indeed lost in Sarah's shadow. In the end, Adam chose Sarah as his winner, something both Tonz and I agreed on. We also agreed that Duncan was super cute. Congrats to Sarah, you are definitely someone to beat in my books! To Duncan, best of luck you handsome handsome man! To Adam..."how you doin'?"

Lastly: Team Shakira: Mary Miranda vs Cathia - Antes de las seis
Mary Miranda and Cathia came into auditions as primarily Latina singers. Obvious fans of the legendary Shakira, who turned her chair for them. To me, Latin singers are so strong, so powerful, so talented, I knew for a fact that this would have been a difficult pair to choose from. In the practices, it was a bit tough at first, with Mary Miranda not knowing the song and well with Cathia having the obvious advantage by knowing it. Personally, I thought Cathia complaining that it was a hard practice because Mary wasn't 100% certain about the song showed poor taste, which made me lean on Mary's side. Tonz agreed. Ain't no need to be snitchin'.  But after all the advice given by Joel and Shakira, the girls both upped the ante and did their very best.
During the Battle Renditions, the girls sounded marvelous. Cathia had a more mature sound in my opinion. Mary Miranda sound so sweet and smooth, it was like it was effortless. In the end, our girl Mary Miranda won the battle remaining on team Shakira!!! Well done, for a girl who didn't know the song! *side eye to Cathia* At the very end, Cathia was stolen from Shakira by Usher, whose wonderful coaching skills and sternness I think would work well with her. Congrats to Cathia as well!

From the montage of battles; Justin Rivers remains on Team Blake, Amy Whitcomb remains on Team Adam and Michelle Chamuel remains on Team Usher.

Battles are now over...now to the KNOCK OUT ROUNDS! K...O! "Killer Instinct Voice". We're excited and hope you are two! Stay tuned and look for our next review. Share with your friends and like us on twitter!

Giz: @shiversniffles and Tonz: @tonzmarie

Till next time!

Giz and Tonz

Tuesday, April 23, 2013

The Voice: Battle Round No. 3





The Same Page is a blog; currently dedicated to reviewing Season 4 of NBC’s The Voice. Written by friends for life Giselle Carrington and Tonia Holder, this blog puts together all their thoughts while watching episodes of The Voice. This Blog is a bit different from your average review blog between friends, mainly because Giselle is in Grenada and Tonia is in Trinidad! They converse over Whatsapp on Mondays and Tuesdays and DRAMATICALLY express their views on the happenings of the episodes. They now wish to share their comical analyses with the world at large!




The Voice Battle Round 3


Now after last week’s battle I was a bit skeptical but I went into this battle round with an open mind. I was very anxious to see what the coaches had in store for us with the pairings and the song selection.
So we jump right in it:

*Please click the battle headers to view video clips of each battle*

Now when I saw this pairing I was immediately on Jessica’s side. I LOVE HER! I loved her audition! That rendition of Burno Mars - Marry Me was the best for me and I was excited that Usher saw the potential and turned his chair. Vedo I barely remember his audition and I did not turn my chair but he does have a nice smooth voice. In the practice session he starts off strong, clearly he knows the song, Jessica on the other hand was a bit unsure about this song and if she could make the notes necessary to successfully win the battle. Pharell steps in and just boosts her confidence and I just literally melt. Gis thought Vedo was showing off a little bit on Jessica but she agreed with Pharrell that she could hit the notes, she just wasn’t accustom to doing it and she sounded great when she did hit them. As Jessica’s confidence grew we started to look at Vedo and hoped he doesn’t get lost in the battle. From the get go though they both came out swinging, they were both strong. They harmonized perfectly with Jessica hitting some high notes perfectly and Vedo not backing down and hitting his high notes equally as perfect. I was diehard Jessica throughout but Gis thought Vedo was stronger and thought he should get it. We were definitely not on the same page, actually I was pretty annoyed with her because she wasn’t on my page. I felt that they both did their thing, and left it all out on the stage. I liked Shakira’s comment that Jessica looks like she could be everybody’s friend and I LOVED that Adam wanted to be her friend J. I wanted Usher to pick Vedo just so Adam could steal Jessica and I thought with all my heart that, that is what was going to happen when Usher did choose Vedo but I was so disappointed, so very disappointed when Adam did not steal Jessica. I was ready to pack it in, but I rallied on. Bye Jessica, call me and I’ll be your friend.

Giz: Womp womp wooooooomp. Bye Jess!!! Yay Vedo!!!!

I remember Monique’s audition because I loved it! I loved the song and I loved her energy. I didn’t see Luke’s audition though and because of this and because I like Monique I was more on her side than Luke’s. Luke however totally shocked me during the practice session and I was impressed and I anxiously awaited the actual battle.
When it started all I had to say was – Oh hey Luke where did you come from with that strong voice. I was definitely not expecting that, then I looked at Monique and was like oh hey Mo I love that dress and I love that voice! Monique was hitting those notes fantastically and on pitch I was in love with it. Luke was not backing down though and I loved it, he hit a high note and it raised my pores and that was like him saying ‘hey look at me, I am still here and singing this song to you know.’ And oh honey we heard you. They both had great chemistry on stage and just like the judges I had to wonder if something was going on between them. But for me the battle was Monique’s even though Luke surprised us all and we loved it, I hoped someone steal him if he didn’t win. Although the other judges chose Luke, Shakira chose to stick with her genre and picked Monique to win. Thankfully the other judges were on the ball and both Usher and Blake went in for the steal (side note: I was baffled as to why Adam didn’t push his button tho). Blake went all in and Usher just played it cool, which I was surprised at. I think Luke was surprised as well so he went with Blake and I wasn’t too trilled but hey at least he is still in the competition.

I saw both auditions and totally expected that Blake would have chosen Savannah but it was out of left field for me when he chose Jacqui because her genre is not country. But it was somewhat interesting how he paired them. From the get go Savannah was excited about the song because she’s familiar with it and I just knew that Blake was going to choose her.
This battle wasn’t moving or epic or spectacular for me and neither was it for Giselle. It was mediocre to me and I barely paid attention. I did notice that Savannah had a great ballad voice, she hit the notes strong and on point. Jacqui tried to hold her own and her voice was not bad but not for the song. Oh Blake you are such a genre stickler with this country song. To  me the battle was always Savannah’s and  now thinking of it, maybe that is what Blake always wanted, hmmm. Anyways Savannah won and Jacqui was not stolen. Bye Jacqui.

Giz: My tuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuurn!!!

Sooooooo, It’s now my turn to review the last three battles of the evening. I just want to put out there that none of these battles could top Holly and Michelle’s rendition of Blown Away. That was by far the best battle (vocally) I’ve seen on The Voice!
I’d also like to say that though I was supposed to be watching with Tonz, she wanted to sleep when the last 3 battles started. I thought this was UNACCEPTABLE!!!!!! Therefore I had to put her on blast (aka rat her out). DIFFERENT BOOK Tonia, DIFFERENT BOOK!

Anywho,the first battle was between Team Shakira: C. Perkins and Kris Thompson – Itwill Rain
Honestly, I didn’t have much of an opinion about C, seeing that we did not see his audition. See what I did there? …and there? Lol. Anyway, Kris, on the other hand had a wonderful audition, turning my chair immediately  I love Kris, I hope he reads this. I can appreciate a smooth voice that can go places not others can. So Kris was my choice from the start.
In the Battle practices, Kris had the clear advantage while C struggles to embrace his own wonderful sound. Shakira urged him to not try to do what Kris does naturally with his voice but to master his own. And boy did he! C came back to practice with a confidence that blew me away. I was impressed. Tonz on the other  hand, was waiting for the battle to be over! LMAO! She was upset from the loss of Jess and that transcended through the entire night! She did however agree that last night was a Bruno Mars Night! SAME PAGE!
During their rendition, I was amazed, it was almost flawless. A little reserved, but near perfection. C had me impressed, but Kris, with his…Krisness continued to have my heart. His smooth voice just slid those vocals out effortlessly and he won in my book. But C, *standing ovation* because I wasn’t expecting it.
In the end, Kris won, which was what Tonz and I expected. But we were sad to see C go. BUUUUUT! Usher, in his infinite wisdom, pushed his button at the last minute for the steal and I agree that it was well worth the suspense. Congrats C…Congrats Kris, you both get to stay! Wonderful Rendition and I love you Usher!!!!

Next: Team Adam: Maidas Wale vs Patrick Dodd – Burning Love
Let me just say, Patrick Dodd should cover the Baywatch Theme song!!! His voice is so much Jimi Jamison of Survivor it’s ridiculous!!! I love his voice. That is all.
I lied, that’s not all. Tonz, in her depressed state was waiting patiently for the episode to be over, HOWEVER, since Patrick has a rass, that peaked her interest. She said, and I QUOTE, “He has a drop draws voice”. *crickets* Well I know his voice is awesome, but to say ALLLLLL that…smh. Gotta love Tonz!
Maidas Wale, I love their sound, but Patrick won my heart!
During their practice, I guess the major issue for me was for Patrick to be heard and I think this view was emulated by Hillary Scott (I love your voice Hillary especially in Need You Now), who told Patrick to let his voice be heard along with Maidas Wale. In truth and in fact, when I did hear him, I thought all three fit together. Most notably for me was the fact that Adam decided to put a Bluegrass feeling to the song, to bring it up to tempo and make it more enjoyable! I loved it.
During the Battle rendition, both Maidas Wale and Patrick did their thing. They really did compliment eachother. I did think however, that the duo overshadowed Patrick, not in terms of vocal quality because he’s a rasta Jimi Jamison, but in terms of volume. They were loud! But Patrick was just awesome.
In the end, Maidas Wale emerged victorious and Patrick was sent home. Adam, I was disappointed, however, I’m at home singing in my shower and you’re the coach, so I guess I have to have faith in you! *avid TeamAdam supporter over here*. Tonz was rather upset as well. Same Page!!! She wasn't as nice in her thoughts about Adam’s decision though. Different Book! Please excuse her, she was VERY upset no one stole Jess! To Patrick, I say continue to do what you do. I love your voice. Please cover The Baywatch Theme song!!! To Maidas Wale; good luck in the next round! To Adam; sing to me!


Finally: Team Usher Orlando Dixon and Ray Innes – Aint No Sunshine!
I remember Orlando’s audition. It didn't turn my chair. Ray on the other hand astounded me and I loved him from that moment. That’s the mindset I went into this battle with.
I was so glad when Usher and Pharrell chose Ain’t No Sunshine. I love that song. *sings song*. During the practice, Ray tore it up, as I expected him to. He brought that, old school passionate feel that he brought in his audition to this classic with no effort at all. Orlando was having a harder time. Usher and Pharrell advised that he work on his approach, to feel the lack of sunshine. Then he had a one on one with them. Pharrell, with his gorgeous self, told him to open up and not hide behind the frills and thrills of his vocals and be vulnerable to the song (which makes a whole lot of sense, cause that song oozes vulnerability).  Sadly, Orlando began to cry, speaking of his need to do well in order to support his mother and sister. I hate the waterworks, but I truly felt for him. But, in the next practice, Orlando stepped up to the plate. Way to go Orlando!!!!
The battle was lovely!!! I love this song! I really couldn’t say who would have stayed just by listening to their battles, however, Ray was my choice. Such soul, such passion, such…*insert appropriate sound which describes the word I can’t find here*. When Ray and Orlando sang the “I know I know I know” part, HELLO! Pores raised!!! Orlando brought that Magic. See what I did there?! Lol. "Waddup Sports Reference" (Thanks iiSuperwomanii! Follow her on twitter and instagram and watch her vids on the youtubes). He surprised me and I loved it and I see that the judges saw it too! Wow!
Needless to say, Ray was the winner, because, well, in spite of Orlando’s come up, Ray is still Ray! Congrats to Ray! But Adam stole Orlando! Which was a big thing for me!!! Orlando got the chance to remain in competition, take Usher’s advice and use new advice from Adam! Congrats to you Orlando, you definitely deserve it! To Usher I say; how many red sneaks do you own?!
J J


There you have it folks! That’s our take on Battle Round 3!!! Hope you like it! We promise to try to have these on time next time!  Stay tuned for Giselle’s review on the FINAL BATTLE ROUND! *suspense music*

Much love to you!
Giz & Tonz

The Voice: Battle Round No. 2




The Same Page is a blog; currently dedicated to reviewing Season 4 of NBC’s The Voice. Written by friends for life Giselle Carrington and Tonia Holder, this blog puts together all their thoughts while watching episodes of The Voice. This Blog is a bit different from your average review blog between friends, mainly because Giselle is in Grenada and Tonia is in Trinidad! They converse over Whatsapp on Mondays and Tuesdays and DRAMATICALLY express their views on the happenings of the episodes. They now wish to share their comical analyses with the world at large!

Giz: So sorry this review is late!!! We both work and live in different countries! It's kinda hard to be on time, buuuuuuuuut, we are trying! Battle No. 2 is being reviewed by Tonz! Woohoo!



Ok so after that fantastic start to the battle rounds I was expecting this one to just blow me away (pun intended) just the same. But I have to say it didn’t really live up to my expectations.  But they were good non -the -less. 
But I have to say I have one BIG GROUSE with NBC about this battle rounds. Why, oh why were there not one, not two, but THREE battles that were excluded from showing? And where exactly can I see them? Is it because this one was a one hour show instead of two?? Anyways as Carson would say ‘ let the battle begin’…

*Please click the battle headers to view video clips of each battle*

Now I barely remember Warren’s audition but I do know he is country and Adam wanted a country artist, Gis didn’t remember Warren’s audition at all. Incredibly Michael is also a country artist and I do remember his audition. Both artists are in the service with Warren being a fireman and Michael a sheriff. I don’t really know this song but I have faith in Adam and I know he knows what he’s doing. Warren starts off strong and he has a sexy swag about him that I’m immediately drawn to along with his dance moves lol. Michael has a strong voice as well and he looks like a teddy bear I just want to hug him tight with his big belly lol. They harmonize together really well.  Gis thought Warren was smooth and Michael was rough. Throughout the battle Warren was a bit inaudible according to Gis and she believed Michael was the better singer. I wasn’t sure who Adam was going to choose because in their own right they were each good, I mean they had to be in order to get Adam to turn his chair. In the end Adam chose sexy fireman Warren to be the winner and we really couldn’t argue with him there. Good luck teddy bear sheriff Michael.

First thoughts – well hello Josiah! (from both Gis and I). I don’t recall his audition but Gis does and she liked it a lot. Jeff is ok in the looks department and well I don’t think I saw his audition.
During the practice time Josiah and Jeff had a little bromance going on and they both thought they sounded good and low and behold they got Usher mad! I mean who does that?! Who makes Usher mad?! Gis makes mention of Usher’s coaching style, he is good, same page. I believe the producers really like Usher’s teaching technique because they showed his practice session a bit more than the others. The battle round was kind of short but Josiah really sang his heart out and he had a rough sexy edge to his voice. While Jeff sounded a bit pop-ish but he still held his own. The battle was spectacular and the other judges did agree on this much to Usher’s annoyance lol. But ultimately it did belong to Josiah and I’m glad he won, if only so I could see his sexy model face one more time ;). So long Jeff.

Now these two are great country/pop singers. I turned my chair for them both and was glad when they were chosen. BOTH their auditions were that good. I feel like I’ve heard Caroline’s voice before though and not in a bad way because I really like it. Danielle is young and untrained but her voice is strong and she was able to find the confidence that was missing during the practice session. Giselle’s thought was that she is ‘real good’.  She felt that Caroline’s voice is different and a bit soft but she loves it just as me. Danielle really belted out some notes and immediately we knew that Blake is going to choose her and we’re hoping Adam is listening an as impressed as we are with Caroline to steal her. It was a tough battle though because even though Danielle was strong in her notes and very confident and consistent Caroline held her own and I am really attracted to her voice. So in the end Blake chose Danielle as we knew he would and we are urging Adam to push his button and he DOES! Yes! *fist pump* but wait so does Usher *double fist pump* it’s a battle for her and I love it (ha in your face Blake). Overall Adam wins because he did turn his chair for her during her audition so YES! She is not out of the competition and we are thrilled. Take that Blake.

So this was a good enough battle round overall. I am again most peeved with NBC about the missing battles that weren’t shown. 

Tuesday, April 16, 2013

The Voice: Battle Round No. 1





The Same Page is a blog; currently dedicated to reviewing Season 4 of NBC’s The Voice. Written by friends for life Giselle Carrington and Tonia Holder, this blog puts together all their thoughts while watching episodes of The Voice. This Blog is a bit different from your average review blog between friends, mainly because Giselle is in Grenada and Tonia is in Trinidad! They converse over Whatsapp on Mondays and Tuesdays and DRAMATICALLY express their views on the happenings of the episodes. They now wish to share their comical analyses with the world at large!



The First Battle Round!

Tonz: It’s that time again, the time that we all love it’s time for The Voice *this is the voiceeeee*! I’ve been a strong Team Adam fan from the beginning with Blake close behind, but since Usher has joined the cast whooo! I find it hard to stay away from him. Don’t get me wrong I’m still loyal to Team Adam, they are always first, it’s just that Usher has come and taken a bit of a lead from Blake *I still love you Blake*

Giz: I'm in no way a professional; however, I believe I can carry a tune. I like to critique singing, but I love when I do it with Tonz. We're always on the Same Page, sometimes in different books though *side glare*.
Side note: I'm a loyal Team Adam fan, because he's awesome. I'm also Team Bladam, cause Blake and Adam's Bromance is totally cute. Seeing Usher's technique last night though, I'm opening myself to his Team as well.

Tonz: Season 4 has begun, the blind auditions are over, the teams have been formed and it’s time to battle.

Giz: Anywhore, here's my take on last night's Battle Round. I’ll take the first 3 battles as seen on TV

*Please click the battle headers to view video clips of each battle*


From the auditions, I loved both Amber and Sasha. Sasha, we saw first! Tonia and I were excited! Powerhouse! Same Page. Amber, I loved firstly because she's a Carrington and needless to say, she's awesome by nature! Tonz, being the hater that she usually is, was not impressed by my excitement. Different Book! But Amber's dirty sound made me turn my chair, which is hard to do since, it's a three seater couch and can't turn easily.

During their Battle Practice, Adam rightly told Sasha not to overthink and told Amber to be bolder. I agreed, especially since Sasha has been trained, she would tend to be more technical in the approach. Amber, not having any sort of training would tend to be more, intimidated by Sasha.
Their rendition on stage was powerful. Amber stepped up to the plate and brought the edge. Sasha, I found to be a little more uncertain. 
In my opinion, Amber won the round. Tonia did not feel the same. Different Book!...
Needless to say, we were at war when Adam chose Amber! In my opinion, a powerhouse is not always a good thing, unless with that power, comes great responsibility. No...that's Spiderman! I meant unless, with power comes control, which enables the singer to master any song type! Sasha seemed to lack the control, which is why she lost in my books! Amber is not what I call a powerhouse, but she has a strong voice and she brought it, like Gabrielle Union told Kirsten Dunst to do! Besides all that, she's a Carrington, I mean COME ON!!!
Tonz and I were at war over this, I had to tell her to CALM DOOOOOOOOOOOONG! She believes a powerhouse is great in any situation! DIFFERENT BOOK!

I was happy when Sasha got stolen by Shakira though. Now, she has the chance to use Adam's advice and be mentored by another coach. We haven't seen the last of her though!
Tonz: The chance to use Adam’s advice to stop thinking so much? Is that the advice you speak of? If that was the case then he could have kept her and nurtured that aspect himself. I do believe however Sasha should have chosen Usher as he without hesitation pushed his button before Carson even opened up the floor and i do believe she chose Shakira (aka Hips don’t Lie) because her ever so cute daughter screamed from the audience “pick Shakira mummy!” But nonetheless i am glad she is still in the running.


So, I did not see J'Son's audition, so I had no opinion on him from before. Garrett has that grime in his voice that was interesting, buuuuuuuuuuut, I didn't turn my chair for him. He didn't quite do it for me. I don't think Tonz was overly impressed either. She doesn't even know his name!!!! She calls him "The Grunt Man".
First thing I didn't like about this battle is Shakira saying this was the hardest decision to make. EVERY decision to make on The Voice is THE TOUGHEST!!! I wish coaches would stop saying that. I was ranting to Tonia about this, so much so that at this point, we decided we should do a blog!!! So, in essence, in my frustration and Tonia's initiative, Same Page was born!

J'Son caught me with his fluidity; he moved from normal range to falsetto flawlessly. Garrett, as Shax (or Hips Don't Lie as Tonz so aptly calls her) seemed to forcing more huskiness on top of his naturally dirty voice. It was clear to me immediately that in order to perform at the battle, Garrett had the most work to do.
Their rendition was really good! J'Son did his thing! He performed the HELL out of the song! Garrett stayed true to his voice, he didn't add anything and he pushed himself! I thought J'Son showed effortless range and he was my choice for the win. I have nothing against Garrett, J'Son was the one that did it for me. Tonz agreed; SAME PAGE! However, one by one, coaches seemed to favour Garrett over J'Son, which to me made no sense. Weirdly, Shakira also chose Garret and J'Son went home. Congrats to Garrett though!

J'Son wasn't stolen, but in my books, he was the winner of the battle! If he ever reads this, I hope he knows I appreciate the flawless range of his voice. I hope he keeps doing his thing.


For the life of me I can't remember seeing Michelle's audition, so I'm hoping that it was not shown. I like her voice though. Holly though, turned FIVE chairs, seven if you consider that my couch seats three! But her voice reminds me of a smooth, Hillsongs Gospel singer. I love Hillsongs btw, so I love her. She was awesome from the get go!
So, at their practice, Blake told Holly not to be so sweet and urged Michelle to work on her harmonies. I wasn't too sure if she could pull it off to be honest. HOWEVER, in their renditions onstage...WOW. It gave me goose bumps. I don't get those often. Blake's song choice was amazing. Side note: Blown away is a song that my friend Jarryd has been trying to get me to listen to for ages! Needless to say, when I showed him the video for Michelle and Holly, he was not pleased with me at all! I apologize to Jarryd in front of the 3 people who will probably read this on the internets!

Both Michelle and Holly blew the song away, pun intended. Their voices complimented each other. Holly got down and dirty and Holly killed her harmonies for the most part. This was my favorite battle of the night!!! Holly, for me, was the stronger voice even though Michelle put up a good fight. In my opinion, her harmonies were a bit breathy and coming to the end, she could not hold them out for too long. That's the only factor that I think she needed to work on. Otherwise, it seemed to me like they were singing a duet rather than battling to stay. GOOD JOB BLAKE! If ever they decide to form a duo, I WOULD BE FRONT ROW!
There's no need to say that Tonz and I were on the SAME PAGE here, Holly was our winner and the result was as it should be!

Michelle wasn't stolen, but I'm sure she'll continue to use the advice given to her by Blake to pursue her dream!

Tonz will guide you through the last 3 battles of the evening.

Up First Team Usher
These two were a very interesting pairing. I turned my chair for Jess in the blind audition because her voice was so sultry and smooth. I thought Taylor was good as well but she didn’t move me to turn my chair. When Usher paired them I was a bit shocked because their styles are different. But nonetheless I went into the battle with an open mind.
As Jess started to sing I smiled because there was the voice I fell for, Giz and I were on the same page here for sure, she loved Jess’s voice. Taylor has a strong voice but I don’t think she can do smooth slow songs. Her voice is more suited to pop sounds as she sounded a bit too upbeat here, I felt like she needed to take it down, or as Giz and I say ‘take it donnnnggg’, a little bit. Jess carried her side of the song perfectly, being able to hit the high as well as low notes effortlessly. Taylor also carried her part well and hit her high notes but kind of faltered a bit on the low ones. Usher agreed with us on this one and he chose to keep Jess *fist pump ‘yes!’* All was not lost for young Taylor though as Blake swooped in like a knight in shining armor and stole her away from Team Usher. Happy trails Taylor.

Next up Team Blake


When Christian auditioned with his rendition of Sexy and I Know it I was in love with him and immediately turned my chair because I wanted to see the person behind that master mix. The Swon Brothers on the other hand were very smooth and harmonized great but didn’t get me to turn my chair.
When Blake paired them I got a bit intimidated for Christian because these brothers were accustomed to singing together. During the battle Christian was powerful and hit his notes perfectly, which wasn’t the case initially in rehearsals when he himself got a bit intimidated by the brothers. The brothers at times overpowered him when they teamed up and harmonized but Christian held his ground and stamped his name all over this song. So Giz & I were expecting Blake to choose him definitely. But somehow Blake heard something we didn’t hear and chose to go with the Swon Brothers, I think mainly because they’re musical genre is initially country and we all know Blake has a extra special love for his country artists. Giz & I were both equally upset with the outcome and were saddened to see Christian go. Godspeed Christian.


Finally it was Adam’s turn again

Team Adam


I love both of these singers mainly because they are both powerhouses and I LOVE a powerhouse singer. To me they sing with so much passion and soul. Giz however doesn’t think that much of powerhouses she thinks they aren’t always the best choice. I turned my chair for both of these singers because their voices spoke to me so I was a bit peeved when I saw that Adam had chosen to pit them against each other. I mean ‘What was he thinking?!’ but also this battle is gonna be off the chains!!
Now I will admit I came into this battle a bit biased, I was all team Judith because I love her voice and I see the potential of her going way beyond the stars. But when the battle started and Karina started to sing I was blown away by her voice once again. I again chastised Adam for putting these great voices to sing against each other and as seen from the other coaches opinions they agree with me. Giz and I were definitely on the same page with this one, Judith took the soft and sweet approach to the song while still showing her power whilst Karina was edgy and hard and blasted us with her powerful voice. I was still on Judith’s side though and knew that Adam would have been a fool to let her go and I think he knew it too. He chose Judith and I rejoiced, Giz on the other hand was shocked, I mean I understand why cause Karina was great and she felt that Judith needed to step up a bit *gag* but really Adam was always gonna choose Judith in my books. All ended well for Karina though as she was stolen by Shakira, way to go Karina you’re still in the game.


Giz: Juuuuuuuuuust to be clear! I was unsure if the Adam would choose Judith, not because I thought she needed to step up, but because she chose the smooth sultry more reserved approach than Karina, who was great but chose the more energetic powerhousey approach. History has shown that the more hype the individual, the greater the chance of being chosen, so THAT’s why I was a bit surprised. Judith is my giiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiirl!
And…I appreciate powerhouses, I just think they have to be able to control their power!!!

Tonz: HELLO! I distinctly remember you saying and i quote ‘ Judy needs to step up’.


There you have it, part one of the Battlerounds! This season has some spectacular talent in our eyes and we can’t wait to see what they bring to the table. We are most excited to see the new coaches Shakira and Usher’s coaching styles continue to unfold. If this episode is any indication of what is to come i know Blake and Adam are in for a run for their money.
Giz and I though on different Caribbean Islands are always on the same page, we may be in different books at some points throughout this competition BUT we’re almost always on ‘The Same Page’
Tonz: Adam i may not always agree with your choices but i still love you and support you. We’ll win this!
We hope this first entry has wet your palate and you are anxiously awaiting another heaping of ‘The Same Page’.

Until next episode

Giz & Tonz!!!