Spoiler alert! This story contains spoilers for the final round of Knockouts on The Voice Season 23, which aired April 24.
Blake Shelton’s final season on The Voice is already through its first three rounds, as the Knockouts wrapped up on Monday night. The cowboy, in addition to Kelly Clarkson, Niall Horan and Chance the Rapper, are down to five singers apiece as they head into the playoffs. With Shelton hanging it up after 23 seasons in the Big Red Chair, he’d love nothing more than to earn his 10th victory on his way out the door. So does he have the winning artist on his team? I think he does, and I think it’s country singer Grace West. Here’s my reasoning:
The Voice Voters Love A Good Country Singer
It almost goes without saying that the front-runner of a singing competition show is a good singer, but country artists in particular seem to make some deep runs on The Voice. Grace West was made for the show, and has likely introduced country legends like Pam Tillis and Randy Travis to a new audience. In the Knockout round she picked another icon in Dolly Parton — singing in front of Mega Mentor Reba McEntire, no less. Check out her performance of “Here You Come Again”:
Blake Shelton was sure to note that she was the “real deal” during her song. There are several great singers on Season 23 — and some other great country artists — but Grace West has a couple of other factors working in her favor.
She’s On Team Blake
The Voice is really playing up the fact that it’s Blake Shelton’s final season, and deservedly so. He’s the only coach of The Voice who’s been on all 23 seasons of the show so far. The country superstar has built up quite the following over the years, including some loyal voters who have helped him to nine wins so far. I can’t imagine if America has anything to do with the decision that they’ll allow any coach other than Shelton to walk away with the Season 23 victory, and Grace West has something else working for her.
Grace West Is Already A Part Of The Voice History
Win or lose, Grace West has already been established as a sentimental favorite on Blake Shelton’s final team. The 19-year-old from Michigan was Shelton’s final chair turn in the Blind Auditions, and the realization that it was the last time he’d ever hit his button for someone had the coach a little “shook up.” At the time he called her the “perfect” country artist to complete his final team, and his praise for her continued when he chose her over fellow Team Blake member Neil Salsich in Monday’s Knockouts. Shelton said:
I just ended up going with Grace because she just has this old-school, country voice. All the potential that she has is still out there in front of her, and I think she’s gonna be a star in country music.
Words like that from Blake Shelton carry weight with the viewers, and I think they are going to remember her name when it comes time to vote. Will Grace West be able to bring it home for the cowboy? We’ll have to keep watching to find out! The Voice returns to NBC at 8 p.m. ET next Monday, May 1, with the Playoffs, and in the meantime, you can check out our 2023 TV schedule to see what shows are premiering soon.
