FloorWax reviews every TVUS Winner's Journey (Season 22 Posted!)

[nytsch]

6 hours ago, Hsamid said:

- Gymani and Bella are still in my top 5 favourite auditions of season 21. For me those are all timers 

 

Say it louder for the people in the back!!

[allistr]

Bella vs Katie was one of my favorite battles of all time. The only positive thing I remember about Ariana as a coach.

Edited July 24, 2023 by allistr

[nytsch]

Bella vs Katie was indeed very good but I thought it was a little lopsided in favor of Bella, if it was more even it could’ve been an all timer.

Edited July 24, 2023 by nytsch

[Misirlou]

Sticking up for GNT this time. Creep was not perfect vocally but I loved the arrangement and how they navegated through it. The big note was delivered fantastically (big credit to Joshua here). Bekah´s ending was gorgeous too. 

 

For what it´s worth, my Top 3 that night for Team Kelly would have been GNT, Gymani, and Hailey, in that order. I thought Jeremy had good moments but was noticeably pitchy in others, and unlike GNT, he didn´t do much to stand out. And Katie did good, but I don´t think the best qualities of her voice were showcased with that song,  and she got bandzilla´d.

[Rodney]

8 hours ago, nytsch said:

Bella vs Katie was indeed very good but I thought it was a little lopsided in favor of Bella, if it was more even it could’ve been an all timer.

Yet Ariana still picked Katie in the end.

[Gustavo527]

Just now, Rodney said:

Yet Ariana still picked Katie in the end.

To be fair, both were great, so i can see why Ariana would pick Katie. I personally would have picked Bella.

[MusicBuff101]

I definitely think Bella won that Battle, but I don’t think necessarily think Katie was the wrong choice. Long term, I think Katie was a *safer* vocalist. Bella’s shrill high tone showed that she had more of a risk to get pitchy.  Look what happened in the Playoffs. Katie definitely outsung her there. The same could be said about the KO too tbh.

 

Regardless, it’s one of the best performances of the season and an all-timer battle. 

Edited July 25, 2023 by MusicBuff101

[Gustavo527]

Anyone remember when we all thought that Katie was eliminated at the KO's? 

[erik g]

31 minutes ago, Gustavo527 said:

Anyone remember when we all thought that Katie was eliminated at the KO's? 

Lmao i was shocked when kelly hit that steal 

[QueenCami]

1 hour ago, erik g said:

Lmao i was shocked when kelly hit that steal 

and then the realization that brittanybree was gone

[QueenCami]

but also katie KILLED that knockout. like top 2 knockout of the season methinks. so she deserved that steal 100%

[FloorWax]

Katie vs Bella - Everyone who has seen this battle knows how fantastic it was, so instead of gushing about it like I probably should, let me just stick up for Katie here. While I agree that Bella won, I do not think that this was lopsided in her favor. Bella soared for sure, but Katie was a great anchor. Her muscular, raspy vocals contributed just as much to the performance in my opinion. Well, regardless of where you stand, this Battle was a showstopper, and the single best thing Ariana ever put together as a coach. And at risk of hyperbole, I think it's probably the best battle I've seen since Season 13 when I started watching the show.
Samuel vs KJ - I was prepared to be mad at John for choosing a freaking Shawn Mendes song for these two to sing, but this turned out surprisingly great. Their voices had excellent chemistry. In the end, I preferred Samuel for his urgent delivery and raspy tone, but KJ did not deserve to be eliminated after that.
David vs Chavon - The song choice excited me when I first saw it but I didn't really enjoy it as much as I expected to. I don't think either singer had the power to make it work and Chavon's tone just puts me off for some reason. David easily won that but I didn't love him like I did in his audition.
Brittany vs Samara - I'd like to thank this Battle for introducing me to the En Vogue version of this song, because "Giving Him Something He Can Feel" is now part of my regular rotation (listen to it if you haven't!). Anyway, Brittany and Samara both did great, but I preferred the former by a decent margin. Samara's high notes can get a bit shouty at times, but Brittany's voice just oozes power. Not a fan of her audition but she slaughtered this.
Sabrina vs Jack - Glad to see some love for "evermore" on this show (take notes, Taylor)! It wasn't a perfect rendition, but I always love it when two underdog contestants exceed expectations. I thought Jack's tone was better suited to the lower parts of the song, but he couldn't really keep up with Sabrina when it got bigger. I've seen solid arguments for both, but it's a coin flip for me.
The Cunningham Sisters vs Parker - One of the most creative and unique battles in recent memory! The harmonies here were top-notch and I have to applaud both acts for stepping up from their auditions. Parker in particular really killed it, but it's not like the sisters didn't earn their victory. It's just a shame that there wasn't a steal available; Parker was the most robbed out of anyone this round.

[Gustavo527]

Just now, FloorWax said:

Sabrina vs Jack - Glad to see some love for "evermore" on this show (take notes, Taylor)! It wasn't a perfect rendition, but I always love it when two underdog contestants exceed expectations. I thought Jack's tone was better suited to the lower parts of the song, but he couldn't really keep up with Sabrina when it got bigger. I've seen solid arguments for both, but it's a coin flip for me.

Idk if that was sarcasm but in case that it wasn't, the song is from "folklore", not "evermore" 

Edited July 25, 2023 by Gustavo527

[FloorWax]

38 minutes ago, Gustavo527 said:

Idk if that was sarcasm but in case that it wasn't, the song is from "folklore", not "evermore" 

 

I-, this is so embarassing… “evermore” stays unnoticed I guess.

[FloorWax]

Knockouts!!! This group that I chose is a mixed bag for me, and I feel like some people are bound to disagree.

Gymani - I'm not really sure what the general consensus is on this KO, but I personally wasn't a huge fan. I didn't really like the way Gymani's tone sounded on this song, and the performance didn't flow quite as well as her audition. Not sure if anyone remembers Denisha's version from last season but I think she did a better job at delivering the song's supposed sensuality than Gymani did.
Holly Forbes - I remember not liking this too much when it aired but upon a rewatch, I kind of like this better than her audition? The vocal execution was much more clean and focused. She was obviously outshined by GNT in this matchup but I have to give her some credit. She killed that.
Samuel Harness - This guy singing a Lewis Capaldi song feels a little too on the nose, but it was a much better choice than "Best Part" was for Brittany at least. As much as I like Samuel's tone, I think he overdid it with the vibrato here, and the climax was pretty underwhelming. I prefer Corey Ward's less perfect but more impactful live version. That's a guy who knows how to bring some firepower.
Shadale - Okay, I'll just be upfront about it—this is the best KO from anyone who didn't make the Semifinal this season. I was rooting for Shadale to kill it after receiving a pretty bad edit up to this point, and she more than exceeded expectations. It's the kind of emotional pop powerhouse performance that I wish we'd get more often. Shadale looked amazing, sounded amazing, and pulled off some genuinely insane vocals. She deserves all the recognition.
Bella DeNapoli - I was wondering if Bella's unorthodox version of Chandelier would grow on me like Allegra's did, but I'm sorry, this is still underwhelming. There were good moments, but the occasional pitchiness and shrillness of her high notes really holds it back for me. I sure hope this isn't foreshadowing for the live shows...
Katie vs Raquel - I don't want to sound mean but... I didn't really get much enjoyment from either of these Knockouts? Katie was solid as usual, but I found her performance rather plain. Raquel was more interesting, but I'm just not a huge fan of her shtick I guess? I can acknowledge that her impossibly quick runs are impressive, but I never found myself rooting for her. No one else really warranted a steal besides maybe Hailey Green, but I wouldn't been too sorry to see either of these two go.
Hailey vs Libianca - On a more positive note, I thoroughly enjoyed what both Libianca and Hailey were able to bring to their Knockouts. Hailey might still be raw and rough around the edges, but that girl doesn't hold anything back. On the flipside, Libianca's performance was more controlled, but emotional at the same time. She easily won the round, and did so while doing something modern and fresh for the show. Props to Blake for rewarding that.
Ryleigh vs David - I remember thinking that "Midnight Sky" could finally give Ryleigh the moment she desperately needed, but once again she falls a little short. She's clearly capable, as she successfully pulls off some good head voice notes and upper belts, but she's just too inconsistent as a vocalist. David on the other hand, impressed me with his stripped back version of "Lose You To Love Me". He clearly had a vision of what he wanted the KO to be, and he executed it perfectly. I think Ari made a mistake not choosing him.

[Rodney]

14 hours ago, FloorWax said:

Ryleigh vs David - I remember thinking that "Midnight Sky" could finally give Ryleigh the moment she desperately needed, but once again she falls a little short. She's clearly capable, as she successfully pulls off some good head voice notes and upper belts, but she's just too inconsistent as a vocalist. David on the other hand, impressed me with his stripped back version of "Lose You To Love Me". He clearly had a vision of what he wanted the KO to be, and he executed it perfectly. I think Ari made a mistake not choosing him.

Ariana was full-on obsessed with Ryleigh by that time.  She totally had her blinders on where she was concerned.  She wasn't letting her go.  She basically held on to Ryleigh to what turned out to be her detriment.

 

14 hours ago, FloorWax said:

Gymani - I'm not really sure what the general consensus is on this KO, but I personally wasn't a huge fan. I didn't really like the way Gymani's tone sounded on this song, and the performance didn't flow quite as well as her audition. Not sure if anyone remembers Denisha's version from last season but I think she did a better job at delivering the song's supposed sensuality than Gymani did.

My personal problem with Gymani's Knockout was that she just did too much with it.  "PILLOWTALK" is a simple, simple song.  It's not complex at all.  Yet she felt the need to inexplicably make it complex.  Yet there's so much drooling over her here like she had the most perfect Knockout.  She probably still deserved the win, but only because Kinsey made her song too simple.

Edited July 25, 2023 by Rodney

[nytsch]

Nothing wrong with Katie in that battle, I guess I just thought that Bella’s high notes made more of an impression. At least for like the first half though I’d say it’s pretty even

 

Need to rewatch Brittany vs Samara but I do remember thinking it was crazy that neither one of them made lives. Not even that they were robbed (the KO eliminations were more or less fair) but because that battle was so good

 

TCS vs Parker is another one I’d have to rewatch - as I can remember TCS didn’t have problems but imo they got totally outshined in this matchup. Can’t say I would’ve been too mad if they went home, but Parker was robbed.

[nytsch]

As far as Gymani’s KO goes I felt like the chorus is supposed to be kind of an explosion and I thought she nailed that part of it at least? I just love her big raspy notes so much I can forgive other imperfections.

 

For me Samuel’s Bruises is kinda one of those performances I thought was very good but I have no desire to see again really? Song choice was too on the nose and he sang it how you’d expect him to, although he did have some strong shining moments. Overuse of vibrato was way more offensive in his second Lewis cover imo.

[MusicBuff101]

I personally think Ryleigh did a great job with Midnight Sky and it was the best performed during the competition. Liked her battle, but this is the only performance of hers that I still rewatch. I actually thought she was on par with David here.

[AliXRose]

1 hour ago, Rodney said:

My personal problem with Gymani's Knockout was that she just did too much with it.  "PILLOWTALK" is a simple, simple song.  It's not complex at all.  Yet she felt the need to inexplicably make it complex.  Yet there's so much drooling over her here like she had the most perfect Knockout.  She probably still deserved the win, but only because made her song too simple.

To be fair, Kelly kept saying she was worried it was not a competitive song for such a competitive round so maybe she felt pressured to do the most.

[AliXRose]

Ok it's time to share my controversial opinion  I would've picked Katherine Ann over Bella without flinching. Sure it was a hot mess but the girl had some balls and I respect that more than Bella's uninspired attempt.

[FloorWax]

22 minutes ago, AliXRose said:

Ok it's time to share my controversial opinion  I would've picked Katherine Ann over Bella without flinching. Sure it was a hot mess but the girl had some balls and I respect that more than Bella's uninspired attempt.

 

I wouldn’t really call Bella’s cover uninspired? She clearly tried to do something different but it didn’t end up working. Kathy’s arrangement was much more interesting but the execution was even worse than Bella’s. It could’ve been good but some parts are just… yikes . Bella was still better IMO.

Edited July 25, 2023 by FloorWax

[Gustavo527]

I still keep preferring Samara over Brittany in that battle. Her smooth tone is much nicer to my ears.

[Gustavo527]

Shadale's KO is legendary. One of the best in the history of the show. 

Edited July 25, 2023 by Gustavo527

[Gustavo527]

Either Samara or Hailey should have won the "comeback" thing... oh, i forgot it was made exclusively to promote Ariana's team, that's why they decided to do it on Twitter. I'm sorry.  

 

Now that i just talked about the "comeback", i have to say that i never got the hype over Vaughn, like, why people, especially Arianators, were obsessed with him?. He has a nice tone but other than that, but there is nothing particulary appealing or interesting about his voice. And the way the producers promoted him, being the first leak and getting the pimp spot on the IS, is like, they really wanted Ariana to add a 4th member to her mediocre Top 13's team. Yikes

Edited July 25, 2023 by Gustavo527