Grammy winner Michael Bublé won last season of The Voice, but the smooth crooner failed to lure a promising singer to his team on the final night of the show’s Blind Auditions for season 27.
He hoped to attract Simone Marijic, a 20-year-old from Los Angeles, who wowed with her take on Olivia Rodrigo‘s song “Favorite Crime.” Coaches Kelsea Ballerini, John Legend, Adam Levine, and Bublé were adding the final members to their teams of 12 before the next round of the NBC competition.
Ballerini was the first to turn her red chair around, but she was followed by Bublé, who was equally interested in her ethereal voice. After she saw Marijic, Ballerini said she was surprised that she was wearing boots. The daughter of Croatian immigrants explained that she goes to school at the University of Virginia. Ballerini, the resident country artist, broke into a take on the song “The Best of Both Worlds,” that Miley Cyrus sang on her show Hannah Montana. She applauded the “pure” sound that came out of the contestant’s “beautiful angel mouth.” Then, she teased Bublé for taking so much longer than she did to turn.
“I did not want to have to do this,” Bublé responded, “but here’s what I want to say: Kelsea is an incredible musician. Crazy, rising career. Her first year, though. This is my second season on The Voice. Maybe you would like to join the team of someone who won the first year of The Voice he was on.” With that, he pulled out a small gold trophy.
Legend teased him, asking, “Is this from your high school baseball team?” Meanwhile, Levine guessed it was from Hollywood Boulevard.
Actually, Bublé said, he picked it up from Target, and it said “Girl Power.”
Then, he weirdly presented it to Ballerini. “You know what? Just because you are so amazing, and you have been unbelievable, you deserve this,” Bublé said. “Let’s just make that part of my pitch.”
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While Ballerini appreciated receiving the trophy, Legend wasn’t having it.
“I feel like woman power is an interesting pitch for a man pitching against a woman for a woman,” Legend said. “It’s almost like you’re arguing for Kelsea.”
That “may not have been my best pitch,” Bublé admitted.
Ballerini then held up the trophy (alongside a boot for the pair of boots she awards her team members) in the agonizing seconds when Marijic was making her decision. When she chose the “Love Me Like You Mean It” singer, the male judges chanted “Woman power!”
In all seriousness, Ballerini told the camera, “I love Simone’s voice, and I feel like she’s hungry and eager to grow and learn. I relate to that, and I feel like because of that, we’ll have nice energy to work together.”
The trophy ended up going to the contestant, who told host Carson Daly that she chose the country star because she really looks up to her.
The Voice coach’s teams of 12 kick off the Battles round of competition Monday at 8 p.m. ET/7 p.m. PT on NBC.