The new season of The Voice has just begun. It’s already heated and the fight for contestants is in the air! Niall Horan already has his foot on the gas as he clashes with Kelly Clarkson over a contestant leading to a fierce but fun feud between the stars.
Blocked!
When 24-year-old Kala Banham climbs the stage before the end of Tuesday night, she thrills the ears of Kelly Clarkson and Niall Horan. Eager Kelly becomes the first to hit the turn button, but Niall uses his “Blocked” move to keep her from stealing the young Kala Banham from him, as he also turns his chair.
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Got Her
In the same moment Niall gets a move over Kelly, Blake Shelton looks over his shoulder with a smile to Niall while mouthing, “Got her.” On the first night of Season 23, Blake also used the Blocked move on Kelly — twice in a row for her, that’s gotta hurt.
Kala’s Performance
The young singer from Windermere, Florida, delivered an amazing retention to Joni Mitchell’s Both Sides Now . According to Niall’s preference for what he wants to see this season, Kala gave a soulful, delicate, and cool performance that he definitely wanted to see on his team.
Not Going To Be Easy
Even after hitting Kelly Clarkson with the Blocked move, Niall wasn’t going to have Kala pretty easy. New judge, Chance The Rapper, also turned his chair to get Kala on his team.
Team Kelly
A sad Kelly tells Kala “we would have been beautiful together,” referring to the move Niall had pulled on her. Then, she adds a promise in her statement to Kala, saying, “I’m gonna steal you, mark my words. You will be wearing this [Team Kelly] jacket at some point in this contest, I promise you.”
Custom Hoodie
The One Direction singer, Niall Horan, responded to Kelly’s promise of Kala wearing her team jacket with his own custom team hoodie. In his words, “or you can also wear this hoodie.” Then, he goes on to praise her performance.
Niall’s Convincing Speech
Speaking on Kala’s Performance, Niall first commended her for her song of choice by Joni Mitchell, calling it “impeccable.” While trying to convince her to join his team, he says, “you did such a beautiful job on it. So brittle and so tender in the soft moments. And I haven’t got a singer like you on my team.”
Storytelling Voice
Frustrated, Kelly yells, “I can’t stand you, Ireland. Oh my god!” as they continue to joke. Niall continues to compliment and convince Kala: “Kala, you get one block, and I chose to use it with you. You are unbelievable. You’ve got such a storytelling voice, so sweet and so beautiful… I just want to go grab a guitar and write a song with you… I would love for you to be on the first-ever Team Niall.”
Background History
Chance The Rapper finally got the time to chip in a comment to young Kala after he turned his chair. He asks her, “when did you first get into music?” Kala responds, “I’ve been singing since I could pretty much talk. And then I went to a performing arts school, did collegiate a cappella, everything.”
Hurts Even More
Hearing her background in music and a cappella reminds Kelly of what Niall made her miss. In that moment, she jumps from her seat with her maroon “Team Kelly” jacket and storms Niall’s seat, smacking him several times with it.
Screaming Niall
As Kelly continues to whack Niall with her jacket, he uses both hands to give himself cover. And as she leaves, it jokingly screams, “where’s my lawyer?”
Chance’s Convincing Speech
Chance starts his speech to Kala by telling her, “she has the most unique voice we have heard so far.” Continuing his statement, he compliments her voice control and range, saying, “I don’t have anybody like you on my team at all.” He closes off his words to Kala by saying he would like to hear her sing some Joanna Newson music and bring her options the other judges can’t.
Three Of Four Chairs
While Kelly Clarkson, Niall Horan, and Chance The Rapper all turned to have Kala on their team, 46–year-old Country singer Blake Shelton didn’t feel what the others felt.
His Reasons
In his defense, Blake states he wasn’t familiar with the song Kala chose and couldn’t vibe with it. Also added that he noticed the other three judges were singing along to her rendition before they turned, and he felt they would be better fits than himself.
Well, He Has
Blake Shelton might not remember it, but he has heard the song before. In season 13, Addison Agen, the runner-up, sang the song during the semifinals. But that was ten seasons ago, and he must have forgotten.
Blake The Promoter
Seeing that Chance has a lot of knowledge about her choice of music, Blake, in a comedic way, tells Kala, “you’re going to have to take your chance,” — hinting at Chance The Rapper.
Kala’s Choice
Stuck between Niall Horan and Chance The Rapper, Kala tries to make a decision, while her mom behind the scenes is shown to be saying she should follow her heart. Ultimately, Kala decides and picks Niall as her coach.
Nice “Block” from Niall!
Building His Team
Speaking to The Voice cameras after Kala had chosen his team, Niall says, “Team Niall is shaping up so well. Kala is the best addition I could hope for.” He further adds, “I blocked Kelly because I knew she wanted Kala. And I let her hand get about this far about her red button. It was a perfectly timed block.”
Later That Night
Other stand-out acts of the night was group member, Jej Vinson, from season 16, reuniting with Kelly, and Sheer Element. Both opening nights of season 13 have had trios, and the competition is already heated — it looks like we are in for a viciously competitive season!
