Reba McEntire set up an epic land battle in an all new episode of The voice!
Team Reba’s Ruby Leigh and Al Boogie took the stage for their Battle on Monday, performing a duet of a Dolly Parton classic, “Jolene.”
Ruby is definitely a season 24 favorite for the coaches – na her stunning yodelling Blind Auditionwhich earned her a turn of four chairs, but Niall Horan called Al’s tone “so infectious.”
However, he also had high praise for Ruby, telling her, “I was so excited to hear you again because what happened here at your Blind Audition was one of my most memorable moments I’ve had on the show.
Gwen Stefani admitted that Ruby’s voice and stage presence constantly make her forget that she is only 16. “I got chills all over my body when you [sang] ‘cry’ because you yodelled it, and it was stunningly perfect,” she told the young singer.
Niall and Gwen both leaned towards Ruby, but Gwen added, “That’s not fair, because Al Boogie, you’re amazing!”
‘You were both convincing’ Johannes Legend agreed. “I think Al, you started out as an underdog… But you killed him, man, you really did.”
He said excitedly to Ruby, “I love how much character your voice has. You just feel so in possession of your identity as an artist.”
As for their coach, Reba said the Battle “showed the versatility of both of you.”
She told Ruby, who she challenged during rehearsals to show more emotion, “You performed fantastically, you made me very proud.” On the other hand, she added that Al “stepped up to the plate and knocked it out of the ballpark.”
In the end, Ruby won and advanced to the Three-Way Knockouts for Team Reba!
ET spoke with Gwen ahead of this season’s Battles, where she talked about how surreal it is to return to The voice without hubby Blake Shelton by her side. The Cowboy left the NBC singing competition earlier this year 23 seasons.
‘It feels a bit like [my] first season, before I knew he existed,” she shared. It’s a little weird, but it’s also like I’m having so much fun.
“Like, I’m just here because it’s fun,” Gwen added. “Coaching and actually getting to know your team after the Blinds is my favorite thing because it feels like the dream is there.”
However, she admitted that it’s a little unnerving to look at Blake’s chair and watch instead The voice‘s newest coach: the Queen of Country herself.
On how Reba has handled her first season so far, Gwen laughed as she reflected on the Blind Auditions.
“She did great. She didn’t have to do anything,” she recalled. “They’d say, ‘I think you’re great. I’d love to have you on my team,’ and they’d say, ‘I’ll pick you!'”
The voice airs Mondays at 8 PM PT/ET and Tuesdays at 9 PM PT/ET on NBC.
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