Niall Horan and John Legend went to great lengths to sign the talented vocalist; the question is whether or not their efforts were successful.
An incredible four-chair turn was featured on the debut episode of The Voice season 24 on Monday. The coaches pulled out all the stops for the performance, including channeling Blake Shelton, who is the most successful coach in the history of the competition.
Mara Justine captivated all of the coaches with her rendition of “Goodbye Yellow Brick Road” by Elton John, and as a result, Niall Horan, Gwen Stefani, John Legend, and Reba McEntire, the brand new coach, were all vying to have her on their teams. Reba McEntire was also interested in having her on her team.
“Someone that’s willing to go into the first round with an Elton John song, and sing it like that, it takes something,” Niall mused. “It takes something to sing an Elton John song like that.”
Reba complimented Mara on her self-assurance and stage presence, while John fell back on the tried-and-true tactic of highlighting the fact that he was the first coach to turn his chair.
“What made me turn around so quickly was your tone in that lower part of the song, and then you had the finesse to do those really light touches,” he pointed out. “What made me turn around so quickly was your tone in that lower part of the song.”
Niall, on the other hand, was not going to give up without a fight and made a reference that wasn’t exactly subtle to a buddy who is no longer a part of the program but is “off on a tractor in Oklahoma.”
“I do know him!” Gwen made a statement while laughing it off.
Niall stated this about Blake, “He taught me a little trick I noticed on the very first day.” “He taught me that you should do anything at all to ensure that you get a member for your team.”
Niall then pressed the button in front of him, which resulted in the notorious “Pick Me” red pointer finger being lowered. This time, though, the name Blake was struck out and another name was written in its place; the massive sign now read “Pick Niall.”
“There is no honor among you!” Reba rolled her eyes.
The young vocalist was more than a little star-struck after John and Mara’s performance of a portion of “All of Me” together, which John did as a kind of retaliation by pulling out one of his favorite pranks and taking the stage with Mara.
Who, then, did she choose to be? Fans of The Voice have been held in suspense as the results will not be announced until the beginning of the Blind Auditions on Tuesday. Keep an eye out!
When ET talked with the coaches before to the season, Niall said that he was certainly missing his “TV dad” Blake. This came after Niall and Blake formed a friendship that was somewhat forced on each other during the previous season.
“Of course I miss Blake,” Niall said in an interview with ET. “I’m delighted I was able to see his last season in person. I was able to pick up some useful information from him while also having a good time.
“Every time he comes into town, he’s like, ‘Can I come over?'” Gwen Stefani dropped a few hints. “It’s like little kids and big kids hanging out together.”
NBC airs new episodes of The Voice on Mondays and Tuesdays at 8 p.m. PT/ET.