Season 23 of The Voice is officially underway. Fans have already witnessed several stellar performances from would-be competitors. However, Holly Brand might be the most impressive of the bunch at this point in the season. During the season premiere on Monday, Brand belted Faith Hill’s 2005 chart-topper “Mississippi Girl.”
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The song was fitting for Brand. The 22-year-old singer is a Mississippi native and former Miss Mississippi. However, it wasn’t her connection to the Faith Hill tune that caught the coaches’ attention. It was her impressive vocal range and her ironclad control of that range. Watch her performance below and you’ll see why the coaches were fighting over her.
The Voice Coaches Want This Mississippi Girl on Their Teams
It didn’t take long for Kelly Clarkson to slam her red button and turn her chair. She wasn’t the only one who was blown away by Brand’s offering, though. Both Niall Horan and Chance the Rapper wanted the honey-voiced singer for their teams. Surprisingly, Blake Shelton didn’t turn around for Brand.
“What is wrong with you?” Clarkson asked Shelton, who is in his final season of The Voice. Pointing to his microphone, she wanted to know, “Is this thing on?”
It seemed odd that The Voice’s country coach didn’t bite for Brand’s performance. However, that just made the competition easier for the three coaches who did want her.
“ You have crazy control of your vocal range. I think If you get down with me, you are obviously going to win,” Chance the Rapper told her. Then, Horan chimed in, hoping to court the Mississippi native. “You remind me so much of my good friend Maren Morris,” Horan stated. He went on to say that he has spent a lot of time in the United States and has become incredibly fond of country music. He promised Brand they could “do big things together.”
However, no one was as impressed as Kelly Clarkson. “Here’s the thing,” she told Brand, “I love Maren, but I heard like a mix between Faith Hill and Carrie Underwood. We don’t have that kind of voice, right now in country music. I’m such a fan. I grew up on it. I definitely know a hell of a lot more than these two. And, since Blake is deaf, you can win with me.”
The flattery and big promises from Chance and Niall didn’t sway Brand. Instead, she decided to go with the straight-talking Clarkson as her coach.
Holly Brand’s Connection to Blake Shelton
After her performance, Holly Brand told Blake Shelton that they have history. In fact, he’s part of one of her major childhood memories. “When I was 10 years old I got to open for you in concert,” she told Shelton. “That concert was, like, the moment I realized I wanted to be an artist.”
So, Blake Shelton may have missed out on ending his stint on The Voice with an incredible story. However, Kelly Clarkson landed one heck of a performer for her team. We’ll have to watch the rest of the season to see how things turn out.