Following the seventh night of blind auditions on season 22 of The Voice, all of the teams were finally complete. Team Blake kicked off the battle rounds with one heck of a performance covering Johnny Cash's classic "Folsom Prison Blues." He put teenage Austin Montgomery up against Tanner Fussell, which might be one of the hardest decisions he makes all season.
Montgomery's sound from another time that transfixed the coaches when he previously covered Hank Williams was a perfect fit and sounded effortless next to Fussell's gravely twang with a rock edge. The performance was so spectacular it brought John Legend, Gwen Stefani and Camila Cabello to their feet with applause, Coach Blake looking as pleased as ever. Cabello looked particularly impressed by the performance, saying that it sounded like "an awards show performance." She's not wrong. Though she wasn't familiar with the song, she admitted that it was incredibly fun to watch. But she was so impressed she wasn't really sure who should win the battle.
Stefani followed up with her feedback, saying she was "blown away" by the performance. She noted that Montgomery specifically had some rock star moments, really impressed by his skillset when this was only his fifth or sixth live performance. Though she said Fussell's voice was "perfection," she just couldn't stop being impressed by the fact that Austin Montgomery is only a teenager and has so much untapped potential, so he would be her pick.
It's always interesting to hear what the non-country coaches have to say about traditional performances like this, and John Legend noted that they don't stand for everyone who performs, so this was a particularly good performance. When analyzing the two singers, he noted that Montgomery's young age and dedication to his craft means he has a ton of potential but that when Fussell entered the song, "it was like, woah. I'm in a whole other world." He added he'd probably choose him over Montgomery because his performance felt so "real and authentic."
Once it came time for Blake Shelton to make a choice, he admired both performances and noted that it would be the right decision regardless of who he went with. Ultimately, who did he choose? Shelton decided to move forward with 19-year-old Austin Montgomery.
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