Kelly Clarkson repeatedly tried to steal her fellow coaches’ contestants Monday on the The Voice and nabbed a singer from Gwen Stefani.
The American Idol winner managed to snag Kiara Brown, 22, from Las Vegas, after the young woman lost her battle, even though Kiara’s coach Gwen sought to keep her.
‘I made a mistake,’ Kelly, 37, told Kiara after hearing her duet on Turn The Lights Down Low by Bob Marley and the Wailers.
Stealing spree: Kelly Clarkson repeatedly tried to steal her fellow coaches’ contestants Monday on the The Voice
‘I should have turned for you in the blinds. You came out here and commanded the stage,’ Kelly said.
She also praised Kiara’s strength of character, which she said she’d heard about from Gwen, 50.
Gwen’s boyfriend, Blake Shelton, 42, called Kelly on her attempts to steal talent from the other coaches.
‘You’ve hit your button more than anybody else for steals, which clearly means you’ve lost,’ Blake teased her.
Singer stolen: Gwen Stefani had her singer Kiara Brown stolen by Kelly
Battle rounds: The Voice host Carson Daly stood between Kiara and Royce Lovett after their battle round performance
‘I don’t even care,’ Kelly replied, explaining: ‘I believe in a lot of people.’
She earlier tried to swipe Marina Chello from Blake’s team, after hearing her performance of the Zutons’ song Valerie.
Blake had pitted Marina, 37, against musician Ricky Duran, 29, from Austin, Texas.
Country star: Blake Shelton teased Kelly for trying to steal singers
‘My goal is to see the least amount of my people go home, even if I have to see them go to suckier coaches,’ Blake observed, sensing that neither contestant would leave.
Marina emigrated to the US from Samarkand, Uzbekistan, at age 11 and said she learned English by listening to Mariah Carey.
She was signed to Bad Boy Records in 2007, but ‘it just didn’t happen,’ she lamented.
Tough pairing: Marina Chello from Blake’s team was paired against Ricky Duran, 29, from Austin, Texas
‘It’s really important for me to show my son that dreams come true and anything’s possible,’ said the mother of one.
Her competition, Ricky, had ‘always wanted something more,’ and the feeling had grown even more intense since both of his parents recently passed away.
‘You sound like a star,’ coach John Legend, 40, told Ricky, after hearing him sing.
Star sound: Ricky was told by John Legend that he sounds ‘like a star’
Blake chose Ricky, but was able to save Marina, too, despite Kelly trying to steal her.
John picked two contestants with a ‘soulful pop style’ to begin the episode’s battle rounds: Jared Herzog, 21, from Niceville, Florida, and Will Breman, from Santa Barbara, California.
He had them duet on the Shawn Mendes hit Treat You Better, which was in their ‘vocal pocket,’ but felt each of them needed to find their personal niche.
Saved singer: Blake used his save and was able to keep Marina on his team
Soul pop: John picked two contestants with a ‘soulful pop style’ to begin the episode’s battle rounds: Jared Herzog, 21, from Florida, and Will Breman, from California
His adviser, Usher, 41, liked Jared’s ‘youthful texture,’ which he said could ‘captivate an older and a younger audience,’ but called Will an ‘incredible artist,’ like Dave Matthews.
They couldn’t have been more different.
Jared, a college student who ran track and performed worship services, was up against Will, who looped sounds to express himself as someone with Asperger’s.
College student: Jared is a college student who ran track and performed worship services
Their fun, engaging rivalry on the song captivated the judges, with Gwen telling Will, ‘I cannot keep my eyes off of you,’ making Blake teasingly say, ‘Hey, hey!’
John picked Will for his ‘vocal presence’ as well as his ‘charisma and star power.’
Kelly and her advisor, Love Lies singer Normani, 23, said they enjoyed watching contestants transform on the show.
Music man: Will looped sounds to express himself as someone with Asperger’s
The coach: John picked Will for his ‘vocal presence’ as well as his ‘charisma and star power’
‘I think maybe I’m a mom now, so it’s, like, the coolest part to watch,’ considered Kelly, who is raising four children with husband Brandon Blackstock.
She picked Willie Nelson’s Always On My Mind for her contestants, mindful that Rod Stewart and Ray Charles had also performed the ‘classic song.’
Her pairing featured country singer Jake Hoot, 31, from Cookeville, Tennessee, and ‘gifted’ musician Steve Knill, 37, from San Francisco, who Kelly felt ‘can sing anything you [give] him.’
Classic song: Country singer Jake Hoot, 31, from Cookeville, Tennessee, and ‘gifted’ musician Steve Knill, 37, from San Francisco, battled over Always On My Mind
Jake, a single dad and sales rep for a radio station, had a ‘piercing’ voice that reminded Kelly of superstar Ronnie Dunn, and meshed well with Steve’s ‘soulful’ tone.
‘I can tell that both of you have maybe felt the message before,’ she told them, looking at Steve, ‘except you said girl. What? Say ”boy.” You’ve got a partner!’
Steve was due to be married to his partner Don on their upcoming fifth anniversary, and did change the lyric for his performance, getting Kelly to yell ‘yes!’
Tough call: Carson stood with Jake and Steve as they waited for Kelly’s decision
‘I just like when people are true to themselves and their life,’ the coach noted. ‘I think it’s a very powerful thing, if you’re comfortable.’
Onstage, the ‘one-chair turns’ wowed the judges, though they all thought Jake was best.
‘You got a little Willie in there,’ Blake told him. ‘That sounded a little weird, didn’t it? Let me rephrase that, for your sake. You got a lot of Willie.’
Country singer: Jake impressed Blake and Kelly chose him as the winner of the battle
‘When Jake walks out on stage, it’s undeniable,’ Kelly said, picking him.
She had other tough decisions to make that night, in battles only partially shown.
Kelly chose Gracee Shriver, 17, from Owasso, Oklahoma, over Brennan Lassiter, 20, from Dacusville, South Carolina, after hearing their duet on Keith Urban’s Blue Ain’t Your Color.
Teen talent: Kelly chose Gracee Shriver, 17, from Owasso, Oklahoma, over Brennan Lassiter, 20, from Dacusville, South Carolina, after hearing their duet on Keith Urban’s Blue Ain’t Your Color
She selected ‘magical and raw’ Damali, 16, from Norwalk, California, over Brooke Stephenson, 28, from Bolton, Connecticut, based on their version of Adele’s Set Fire To The Rain.
Gwen’s contestants were particularly excited to see their advisor, Will.i.am, admiring the way that he bent musical genres like she did.
Singer-songwriter Royce Lovett, 30, from Tallahassee, Florida, had performed across the US and South America, and in Paris, but called the Voice ‘incredibly emotional, because you feel honored to be here.’
Raw talent: Damali, 16, from Norwalk, California, won her battle against Brooke Stephenson, 28, from Bolton, Connecticut, based on their version of Adele’s Set Fire To The Rain
Gwen praised the ‘dirty, nasty’ intimacy in the father of two’s voice, which she felt paired perfectly on the Bob Marley song with the ‘super-straight, clean and polite’ Kiara.
‘The contrast in the duet is working so amazingly,’ she noted. ‘There’s a chemistry. It’s like me and Blake. We do not seem like we would be together, but we go together perfectly.’
Kiara, who finished college in 2018 for audio engineering and music business, had been gigging and writing for artists back home, but ‘being on The Voice, I’m definitely living my dream.’
Marley song: Royce and Kiara battled over the Bob Marley & The Wailers song Turn Your Lights Down Low
‘You’re approaching the song politely,’ Will.i.am pointed out, urging her to take control.
‘It’s like you’re coming into the house and you don’t want to put your feet on the couch. When in reality, you can do whatever you want…just as long as you don’t mess up the furniture.’
Blake, who wanted the song for his personal playlist, said he would go with Royce, who he felt was ‘hitting a groove,’ and Gwen agreed, making him her choice.
Nailed it: Blake, who wanted the song for his personal playlist, said he would go with Royce, who he felt was ‘hitting a groove,’ and Gwen agreed, making him her choice as winner
But Kelly loved Kiara, and was able to steal her from Gwen.
On Blake’s next battle, he gave his contestants Panic! At The Disco’s High Hopes, which he felt would ‘push them both… and give them a chance to entertain.’
Matthew McQueen, 22, from Georgetown, Texas, had played in bands since high school, singing for crowds as large as 15,000 and his relatives even dreamed he’d make the show.
Texas singer: Matthew McQueen, 22, from Georgetown, Texas, was paired against a teenager from Miami
Joana Martinez, 15, from Miami, was less experienced, but comfortable onstage, and she knew the song well, unlike Matthew, who’d learned it the day before.
‘Joana’s a 15-year-old 40-year-old, and she’s got the voice of an angel,’ said Blake’s advisor, Darius Rucker, 53.
‘I am incredibly scared to be beaten by a 15-year-old,’ Matthew admitted.
Familiar tune: Joana Martinez, 15, knew the Panic! At The Disco song High Hopes that Blake assigned them unlike Matthew
He was right to be worried, as Blake ultimately chose the teenager to remain on his team, amazed by the fact that her voice was still developing.
The final battle of the night went to two singer-songwriters on Gwen’s team, who were assigned the Maren Morris song I Could Use A Love Song.
Kyndal Inskeep, 22, from Nashville, had suffered from anxiety and depression for much of her life, and found her selection on The Voice ‘validating.’
Last battle: The final battle of the night went to James Violet and Kyndal Inskeep of Gwen’s team
James Violet, 20, Syracuse, New York, hadn’t been onstage for a year before his audition for The Voice, and had left Los Angeles after busking took him nowhere.
In competition, the two singers blended their voices seamlessly.
Gwen preferred Kyndal’s uniqueness, and picked her, then decided to save James, but John pressed his button to steal him in the same moment.
The winner: Kyndal was named the winner of the battle round by Gwen
‘I really heard the magic in your voice,’ John told James praising his ‘immense talent’ and ‘super-cool vibe,’ while Gwen said she was ‘terrified’ what James would do.
The audience variously chanted for each coach as James said, ‘This is so hard.’
His decision will be shown on Tuesday’s episode as the battle rounds continue.
Tough call: James was saved by Gwen and stolen by John and will announce his decision on Tuesday’s episode