The Voice Of The Philippines FINALE

All good things come to an end. It feels like attending a graduation. You will see all those who made it to the end and just feel really proud on how far they have been. The journey of Mitoy, Klarisse, Myk and Janice will all come to an end. Who will be the FIRST winner of The Voice Of The Philippines? 

 I only have good words for this show. This is probably the BEST SINGING COMPETITION we've had in the Philippines. From the hosts, the set, the coaches and the contestants, this show has really put a very high bar if ever there will be another singing competition that our country will have. I had always thought Pinoy Pop Superstar and Philippine Idol have good formats but The Voice in general has probably the best format for a singing cometition in the world. 

Our FIRST GRAND WINNER OF THE VOICE OF THE PHILIPPINES IS............ MITOY YONTING! All of us probably saw this coming, right? Or predicted that Mitoy will probably be in the finale. From his blind audition, we knew he will go far. His crazy limitless range is something that made him be loved by the Filipinos. It might be something that we always hear here in our country but he has something special that sets him apart from the others. His emotional connection on any song he sings. 

 

The exact time when Mitoy's name was announced!

 

I am just lost for words for this final article regarding the voice, I have seen my Idol Thor who inspired me to go back to singing after quite some time, the show itself inspired me to dream big again and I do hope I can make it someday. To all the members and fans of #TeamApl, #TeamSarah, #TeamBamboo/#KampKawayan and #TeamLea, congratulations to all of us!

 

The finale happened a day before my birthday and I would just like to share that I had the blessing to meet some of the contestants. They are all very nice!:)

I felt like a contestant already. :) haha! I wish I could have a photo with Janice Javier, she is really my winner among the four of them. I know we will be seeing more from her. May she have a fruitful career ahead. I would like to also take this chance to congratulate everyone who made this show possible. You guys made history!

Congratulations to our Coaches as well. Will we see them again for Season 2?

Congrats to the winning coach! Coach Lea Salonga!:) 

Will there be changes? Who will replace who?

Writing for The Voice has been a blast for me! Thank you to everyone who shared their opinions, whether you agreed or not, I am still very thankful!:) See you next season!:)

God Bless us all!

All photos are from my phone. :)

Keep the Faith.

Paolo

The Voice Of The Philippines: Top 8 Performance&Results Night

I am sorry for the late post for this review. I needed some time to rest and really get all my bearings back. It's been a hard for me(If you know what I mean). 

There will be only one artist from each team that will represent his/her coach in the finale next week. Did we really see great battles? Who represented each team? If we will be basing in on the poll that I posted on my past article, with 312 votes, here are the winners for each team: Team Apl - Thor, Team Lea - Radha, Team Sarah - Morissette and Myk for Team Bamboo. Were they right? Let us all find out.

I was blessed enough to watch the show live again. Thanks to the Thorifficallies for the ticket. :) They're really nice! The show started with Coach Apl performing his new single Balikbayan. His performance really pumped up the crowd and prepared them for much awaited battles.

It was Team Lea who got to perform first. If you weren't really following the show, you might thought that it was Radha and Mitoy who are fighting in the finale. Haha. Two of the most seasoned, experienced and best singers we have in the competition are fighting for that one last spot. 

Mitoy Yonting was the first to perform and he chose the song Power Of Love. My reaction after knowing that he'd be singing this one? HOLY S#IT. Perfect song choice at the perfect time! He will shine more because of this song! This song requires a lot of control and power but we all know Mitoy have them! He really gave a very good performance, in my opinion this is one of his best performances. We might always hear him really belt out the high notes but for me, although its still the same high hitting notes for Mitoy, this one is more precise and really well prepared. It sounded really good and smooth!

 

Mitoy Yonting - Power Of Love

If I was really amazed with Mitoy, I was at first really disappointed with the song choice of Radha, Let It Be? Really? I thought the song won't be the perfect choice and I was almost sure Mitoy will get it if she will just do the same version of the original song. I WAS 1000000% WRONG. That was probably one of the best versions I've ever heard!!! People on the Newport Theater gave her a standing ovation! Who knew that a simple song like Let It Be can have a version where you can feel empowered and really blessed? It was powerful, amazing and the things that she can do with her vocals are just really outstanding! She killed it. She nailed the song. Her performance for me was WORLD CLASS! I totally forgot Mitoy's performance after she sang! 

 

Radha Cuadrado - Let It Be

RESULTS: *I predicted Radha to win this battle.

Coach Lea gave Radha 55% and 45% for Mitoy. But it was the public votes who really spelled the difference. Mitoy really has the support of the voting public. He dominated Radha by getting 63.78% of the votes and 36.22% for Radha. 

I hope we get to see Radha on TV again and probably hear her release a new album again. My only concern for Mitoy is, I know he has like 60% chance of winning among the other finalists but I am still looking on what genre Mitoy's music apply. Will be he the new Jukebox King? :)

I think from this point on, we all know who will be the person to beat come the finale. :]

TEAM LEA's Finalist: Mitoy Yonting performing "BULAG"

Kamp Kawayan's up next. People tend to say that its the talent vs looks scenario on Team Bamboo but I beg to disagree. They are both extremely talented BUT Filipino voters really look for the Face first before the Voice. Myk is miles better than Paolo. Paolo's good, but for me it's really Myk who is the better among the two.

Myk Perez chose the song "Baby I Love Your Way" and it was surprisingly good since he did not have his guitar with him. Might not be the perfect Top 8 song choice for him but he gave the song justice. What I like about Myk is we know what kind of artist he is. He has his own style, any song that he performs, you know that it's Myk who's singing. It's quite impressive that he knows what he wants on a young age. The girls might love Paolo more than Myk, but I think Coach Sarah likes Myk more than Paolo. Haha. :)

This was a case of wrong song choice for Paolo. He could have beaten Myk if he chose a much more competitive song. Elesi is a great song but it's not a top 8 song in my opinion. The song choice caused his elimination. I knew he will need to double his effort in order to beat Myk but sadly he failed and I think Coach Bamboo knew that Myk was really the guy for him.

RESULTS: *I predicted Myk Perez to win this battle.

Coach Bamboo gave 55% to Myk and 45% to Paolo. It was expected that Paolo Onesa will win the public votes by a mile but it was very surprising that Paolo only beat Myk by 3%. Paolo got a 51.92% and 48.98% for Myk. Finally, 1/2. Myk moves to the finale!

I am sure Paolo Onesa will be on ASAP. He made the Zamboagenos really proud and and we really wish that the war will soon end there. Heads up, Paolo! (from Paolo. Haha) 

Myk's original song Fix You is my favorite. Great lyrics. Great music. He is really talented!

TEAM BAMBOO's Finalist: Myk Perez performing "Fix You"

Probably the most talked about battle are the singers from Team Sarah. Coach Sarah will really have a hard time on picking who she wants to represent her team. Will it be her younger version Morissette or her former competitor Klarisse? Morissette performed the song "Who You Are" and I really think she killed it. She was the first artist to give me chills last Sunday. My only comment from her performance was it lacked emotion for me. She has no problem with her voice, she clearly has the advantage with Klarisse but it just felt that something was missing even though it was already that great.

Klarisse was the biggest surprise of the night. She blew me away! I wasn't expect that at all. This is how you do it! She clearly knew when is the right time to pull a surprise! I am lost for words. Klarisse won the night. In my opinion, experience spelled the difference between Klarisse and Morissette.

RESULTS: *I predicted Morissette to win. 1/3. :\ haha.

Coach Sarah did the right thing by giving Klarisse 55% and 45% to Morissette. This was also one of the biggest surprise of the night. We all thought they will have a very close fight in the public votes but the performance of Klarisse really gave the edge. She got a very high 63.39% while Morissette got 36.61%. 

Morissette might have failed to win it again, first on Star Factor and now on TVOP  but I believe she made her mark in the industry already. She is now famous and making it big will just be a matter of time. She will be a big artist. :) Another artist who deserves to be on ABS-CBN. She is also very beautiful. :) Hoping for the best for Morissette.

Last but definitely not the least.... My team.. Team Apl. If Team Lea has Mitoy and Radha, Coach Apl have Mighty Thor and Great Janice. Two of the most soulful and equally experienced singers battling it out for that one last spot. If you're a frequent reader of my blog, you know who I'm rooting for. I am for Mighty Thor from Day1. I will be forever a Thor fan. Thor chose the song "Climb Every Mountain". After knowing that he will be singing that song the words I came out from my mouth was, "IT'S OVER". Hands down, best song choice among the eight of them. It's just a matter of delivery.

(Others might not agree but this is how I really feel) I felt his performance. BUT. I hated the arrangement of the song. I thought he could have been better if he somehow went with Guy Sebastian's version of that song. See his version on Australian Idol. I think the simple arrangement could have worked for him. He has the voice, and he really deserved to be in the finale!

This is his song. I knew it from the start. But I knew he gave his all. I'm contented with that. He gave his best. 

I thought of the same thing with Janice when I thought her song choice was boring. Imagine is a very simple song but after I heard Joshua Ledet's on American Idol, I suddenly got nervous. She will kill this one. And I was right, it sounded like a worship song. Janice's song clearly has the better song arrangement. She made sure she will get everything she can on that song and she was successful on doing it. I will give their battle a 51-49 score. with Janice having the higher score.

RESULTS: *Predicted Thor to win.

Coach Apl was honest enough to admit that both are really good singers. It's really a matter of who did better tonight. He gave Janice - 55% and 45% for Thor. I just realized the judges gave the same scorecards tonight. This is where I was really caught by a surprise, with Janice losing a lot to Jessica last time, I actually thought Thor will don't have any problem winning this one but I think the public seemed to agree with Coach Apl. Janice got 57.85& while Thor got 42.15%. 

I am sad that my idol Thor won't make it but I am happy that he lost to a worthy opponent. Janice is really great. She is really talented as well. :) I wish her the best. I am rooting for her and Myk to win this season!:) For my Idol Thor, might not be the happy ending that we would have wanted but I believe God has a reason for everything. This is your time. This is your time. :)

TEAM APL's final artist: Janice Javier performing "Coming Home"

I can't wait for next week! Clearly Mitoy has the upper hand among all of them but I hope the remaining three will give him a very good fight. I am very blessed to have seen the show live twice and the chance to meet my idol. Dream come true. :) Thank you again to Rizza of Thorifficallies, Ms. Mai Dulay, the very nice and beautiful wife of my idol and especially to my idol Thor :D :D :D

I will never forget this time. :) Early gift for me! Turning 23 this September 30. :)

I am bad on predicting winners. Haha. Got only 1/4. :(

Who are you rooting for? Team Apl? Team Lea? Team Bamboo? or Team Sarah? :)

surveys & polls

Credits to  TheVoiceABSCBN for the videos. 

Keep the Faith.
Paolo

The Voice Of The Philippines: Top 8

surveys & polls

Can't believe we only have two weeks left for the first season! It feels just like yesterday when the show started! From thousands of people who tried and gave their best, it all boils down to 8. Eight singers proved to be the best of the best. Who will be the sole bearer for each team? Who will be the first Voice Of The Philippines Grand Winner?

I did this so that we can somehow know the contestants more, and I can give my insights regarding their strengths and weaknesses and somehow predict if what will be their chances of winning. Again, this is just me. If you don't agree, I have a comment box below and let's discuss. :)

Let's start with #TeamAPL. My team. Haha.

Coach Apl De Ap have the soulful singer Thor Dulay and the very passionate Janice Javier.

Thor Dulay had his time back in 2004, where he released his self titled debut album: Thor, but things didn't went to his favor. And now, thru this competition, he hopes to relieve his fame once again and believes that this is the right time for him to re-introduce himself to the world.

How cool would it be to see Thor at the end of the competition knowing he was the one of those who performed on the pilot episode? 

Advantages:

- Vocal expertise. He is also a voice coach. 

- Experience. He's been here. He knows what went wrong at that time, and I'm pretty sure he will definitely not let go of this chance given to him.

- Celebrity connections. Having Vice Ganda as one of his supporters will really help his campaign since people's vote will also play a big part if he wants to win in this competition.

- 4 Chair Turner. Enough said.

Disadvantages:

- When will we see his other side? From I Have Nothing - I'll Make Love to You - Narito - Lately, we still haven't heard him sing a fast and upbeat song. Not a reason for concern but people might get bored and think that that's all he has to offer. It would be very good to give a mix-up every now and then.

- Complacency. His fans might think that since Jessica murdered Janice on the public voting means that this will be a walk in the park for him but I disagree. Fans need to know that Janice is a very good and strong competitor.

Janice Javier for me is the underdog in this match up. They might be somehow equal in experience but the fans of Janice need to do much much better to let Janice be in the finale for Team Apl.

Advantages:

- Stage presence. Commanding performance level.
- Probably one of the most powerful voices in the competition.

- Coach Apl's favorite on his team? He gave a 65% score vs Jessica.

- Experience. She's been traveling to share her music to others.
- 4 Chair Turner too.

Disadvantage:

- Public vote. She might get a high score from Coach Apl but she still needs a lot of support from her fans.

PREDICTION: 70%-30% THOR WILL REPRESENT TEAM APL IN THE END.

#TeamLea's up next! I am 100% sure, everyone expected this to happen. Radha Cuadrado and Mitoy Yonting battling it out for the last spot. After we saw Radha and Mitoy picked Coach Lea, we knew they will be here for a long time. And they delivered, providing us quality and world-class performances every week. Who has the upper hand? Let's see.

Radha Cuadrado

The former Kulay member wants to get another shot in the music industry. She had three albums under her band's name and this will be a very good chance for her to redeem what was once her world.

Advantages:

- She has been singing since she was 15. Talk about all the experiences she have under her belt. 

- People still recognize her. Hence, resulting to a sure people's choice come text votes.

- She doesn't need to do anything extra-special. Her voice does all the magic.

Disadvantages:

- People might think, she had her time to shine. Give chance to others.

- She is way too good in this competition. (I know this is a compliment but I still decided to put it in the disadvantage part)

Mitoy Yonting. People might recognize Mitoy since he was also performing as a comedian and people noticed him thru his video on Bulagaan where he surprisingly belted out Alone effortlessly. 

Advantages:

- Wide wide voice range. His range is limitless!

- Comedic approach. Filipinos love that.

- True blue performer.
- We missed this kind of performers. They are the perfect combination of attitude + talent.

Disadvantages:

- Will people buy his music? That's the question that I have. Radha's voice is more marketable in my opinion. I am still trying to figure out what kind of album can Mitoy give us.

PREDICTION: 52%-48% Too close to call but I think: RADHA TINSAY WILL REPRESENT TEAM LEA IN THE FINALE.

Coach Sarah team is up next and I think the Popsters wanted this battle to happen. Two different artists but both have connections with their Idol. Morrisette Amon will be going up against Klarisse De Guzman. This will be very interesting for Team Sarah.

Morissette Amon

She looks like Coach Sarah, but in my opinion she sounds better than Coach Sarah when Sarah was on the same age with her. Morissette sings like a pro even if she is still young. She was also a former contestant of Talentadong Pinoy and finished runner up on Star Factor. Both shows aired on TV5.

Advantages:

- Ka-look-alike charm. She will definitely have the votes from Sarah's millions of fanbase!

- Impeccable voice range and quality.

- She knows the best songs for her. 

- The next Sarah Geronimo?

Disadvantages:

- Can she handle the pressure of this competition? Or her youth will get the best of her?

- People might always compare her to Sarah.

Klarisse De Guzman

Sarah's former competitor on Star For A Night. She might not have the widest and highest range but her soulful voice and deep connection to every song she sings will be her main weapons.

Advantages:

- Coach Sarah's vote. 

- The voting public seems to be in her favor. I don't know why but Klarisse really has a strong following even just after her blind audition. :)
- 4 Chair Turner.

Disadvantage:

- We need to see more personality from her. Morissette shines even if she's not singing. Klarisse needs to step it up more.

- People are somehow questioning Coach Sarah's decision in keeping her around. Although I think Klarisse deserves it.

PREDICTION: 60%-40% MORISSETTE AMON WILL REPRESENT TEAM SARAH IN THE FINALE.

Last but definitely not the least, Coach Bamboo's Kamp Kawayan! Acoustic heartthrob Myk Perez will be battling against the soulful heartthrob Paolo Onesa. Who will be the last man standing for Team Bamboo?

I honestly had doubts with his team at first but after the Live Shows, I was contented on his picks. He did the right decisions at the right time! Kudos Coach!

Myk Perez

Myk's the guy for Coach Bamboo. Myk picked the right coach for him. Bamboo brought out the best in him. I am 100% sure this guy will soon provide countless hits! His version of Chasing Pavements has been getting crazy good reviews and even stayed at the #1 spot on iTunes!

Advantages:

- Better musicality than Paolo. Much more options for him to play.

- Confidence

- Stage presence.
- 4 chair turner

Disadvantages:

- His style is too comparable to his coach. He should be able to do his own style.

Paolo Onesa

Who knew this very shy guy from Mindanao will capture the hearts of everyone? After people criticized Coach Bamboo for picking him instead of the Cordovales duo, he proved to us why he deserved to stay. Week after week he continues to improve but will it be enough for him to win?

Advantages:

- Girls love him. Girls = Vote

- Marketable. His song was the first song to reach the #1 spot on iTunes!

Disadvantages:

- Nerves still shows. Pressure might bug him in the end.

- He needs to do a fast song. We want to see the other side of Paolo.

PREDICTION: 55%-45%. MYK PEREZ WILL BE THE LAST MAN STANDING FOR TEAM BAMBOO.

There you have it! That's my take on our Voice PH Top 8!

Credits to Google for the photos and also to voicePH

Keep the Faith.

Paolo

The Voice Of The Philippines: Top16 Part1

And so the real battle begins. The quest for the very first The Voice Of The Philippines winner will come from this very talented 16 artists. It is very good to see a wide variety of music styles being showcased for this season. Last night was no exception, who made it to the top8? Did the public and the coaches gave the right score? Let's find out.

TVOP divided the group of 16 into 2 groups, with the first one performing first last night. Two members from each team will battle it out for one slot on their respective teams, but this time, the public and coaches have the equal scoring. 50% for the public votes and 50% for the coaches decision.

First to perform was Team Sarah's Morissette Amon and she will be up against the soulful Maki Ricafort. I am honestly disappointed with this pairing because I saw this coming up but not this early, I predicted them to fight for that final slot for Team Sarah. Both are very talented and it's really sad to see them go at this time of the competition. 

Morissette performed the song What About Love. Not the song I would have picked for her, but that's good since she showed her versatility as a singer. She did really well on the song and she really chose her moments very well. She knows where to hit the high notes and just let her voice do the magic.

Coach Sarah's decision: 60%
Public's decision: 50.41%

I think Morissette really brought her A game last night. She deserved that win. The public got it right too.

If only Maki performed One Last Cry last night instead of last Saturday, this will be a different battle in my opinion. Maki wasn't able to maximize his talent on this song. He sounded great, but the viewers are always waiting for that one big moment where they can say, "Yes, I will be voting for this guy!". It lacked that wow factor.

Coach Sarah's decision: 40%

Public's decision: 49.59%

Note: I wouldn't be surprised if it will be a Klarisse vs Morissette fighting for the last spot on team Sarah. But in my opinion, Morissette's the best on Sarah's team by far. 

This is my favorite battle last night. Team Lea's Darryl Shy and Mitoy Yonting. Two different artists but have one thing in common. Pure musicality. Musicians at its finest. They bleed music. It's evident. I was more impressed with Sir Darryl Shy (I tend to call him Sir because I really like his music and he is really one of the most underrated singers in the competition).

Majority of the people predicted that this will be a walk in the park win for Mitoy but Sir Darryl proved them wrong. He sang last night to win. He did a magnificent job singing "Balita" and I really liked it. This Noel Cabangon type of music is what our industry misses. We've had enough of the party songs and digitalized music. We need this somehow folk music back on our radio.

Coach Lea's decision: 40% (I really thought she'd be in favor of Darryl)

Public's decision: 55.89% (Yes people, she bested Mitoy on public votes. I guess the 82% Mitoy last week was attained because of the people he was up against with. No offense to Mitoy's talent and all but he was clearly the best on Team Lea last week so it made the public's decision a lot better)

As much as I wanted to see more of Sir Darryl Shy, but who are we kidding? Who doesn't get excited whenever Mitoy performs? He is on a different level, 10 levels higher than the rest. Coach Sarah was right, where have you been all this time? Although sometimes I think whenever he performs the approach becomes too theatrical but who cares? His voice has not limits! It will be very tough to see him battle against Radha!

Coach Lea's decision: 60%

Public's decision: 44.11%

Kamp Kawayan's up next and I am pumped up to see what his team can bring tonight. People have been really mad at Coach Bamboo for always saving Lee Grane. He saved her twice. And people on the social media are wishing that hopefully Coach Bamboo will make up his mind and also for Paolo Onesa to give a good job.

Lee Grane was the first one to perform, I was excited while watching her VTR because she said she'd sing a faster song, but when she sang it, I was like, you have got to be kidding me. It is still the same as before! Same attack every time. I was really disappointed. At this time, I was just hoping that Paolo will really perform great.

Coach Bamboo's decision: 40% (FINALLY, COACH =) you made a lot of people believe in you again after this decision)

Public's decision: 18.76% (The public has really spoken. Pretty sure the fans of Dan and Talia also joined force in saving Paolo)

Not the flashiest performance of the night but I would to say that Paolo did his job last night. He gave justice to the song Skyfall and the fans obviously loved it. My only concern for Paolo is I hope he opens up more, loosen up more. He has the talent. He just have to start believing because people believe in him.

Coach Bamboo's decision: 60%

Public's decision: 81.24% (Paolo Onesa fans + Dan&Talia fans + Lee haters made this possible)

It was Team Apl tasked to be the last to perform and I must say, this was also one of the hardest. His team is just loaded with a lot of talents and that's good for all of us! This is the battle of the two most consistent singers on Team Apl!

Penelope is also one of the more underrated contestants because of too many talented artists on Team Apl but she really is a star. Her voice is magical and I must say, crazzzzzzyyyyy clean. And that's where I also had a problem with her, maybe she was too concentrated on the thought that her performance should be perfect so she lacked giving emotion on the song.

Coach Apl's decision: 45%

Public's decision: 35.28%

If you will sing a Stevie Wonder song, you gotta think twice or thrice before doing it. First, as a singer too his songs are hard and really needs a lot of emotion and power. But Thor just blew it all! He was amazing, I can really feel that he is offering his every performance to his late mother. I honestly see myself in him, I hope I can be like him next year.. Haha. He is really one of my favorite singers aside from JayR, and others. 

He took the song Lately to a different zone. He did it really, I mean really really well. Outstanding.

Coach Apl's decision: 55%

Public's decision: 64.72%

In all honesty, Penelope did great. Really great. It's just who did better at that time and I think the public got it right when they saved Thor. 

One of the highlights of the night was really the performance of Ms. Lea Salonga and THE Patti Austin! It was amazing and I really felt that Patti was impressed with our local talents!

The coaches, and most especially the public got it right this time! I really hope we can still be like this come our National Elections! Can't wait for next week!

Anyway, the studio versions are available on iTunes :) Go buy and support them!

Credits: ABSCBNBestProgram for the videos. Google for Photos.

Keep The Faith.

Paolo

The Voice Of The Philippines: Live Shows 2

It's that time of the week again! Sunday is The Voice Of The Philippines day! After the success of the first live show, we are all thrilled to see what the contestants prepared for us tonight. I must say that the first live show will be very hard act to follow since "MAJORITY" of the title contenders were on the first one. Did the second half performed better than the first one? Who completed the Top 16? Let's all find out. :)

I would like to thank everyone who have been supporting my blog! My twitter mentions have been crazy so far and a lot of requests have been asked too. I will try my best to really give some of your requests. Thanks everyone :) My blog views just reached 12000 views with my last blog posting a 1,200+ views. Awesome!

Again, I will be doing my review through a ranking category just to spice things up. This are all from my own opinion. For the worst performance of the night..

12th: Angelique Alcantara - Nobela (Team Bamboo)

BORING. Wrong song choice. Everything in that performance was wrong. There was nothing spectacular on her performance at all. Why didn't Coach Bamboo changed the song of Angelique? No offense to the Join The Club but that song was not for contest-type performance. Her voice can be compared to KZ Tandingan but what's missing is her lack of emotion and style. Everyone knows that from this point it would just be Isa and Paolo for the night on Team Bamboo.

11th: Diday Garcellano - Rumor Has It (Team Lea)

BIG. BIG. BIG SONG. If you will cover an ADELE song be sure to really do it well since people will really compare you to the original one.  She was eaten alive by that song. We were wondering if there was a technical malfunction because we can't hear her that well while she was performing. She struggled last night. She knows it that's why she started to cry when Coach Lea was about to make her decision on who to save between her and Kim.

No offense to Diday and Kim, but with their performances last night it kept me thinking that RJ deserved a slot if he performed tonight!

 

10th: Tristhan Perfecto - When I Was Your Man (Team Apl)

Tristhan started strong with his performance. It was cool until the middle part where he struggled. I was wrooonggggg....... That will haunt him for a couple of days. It was just after his performance where Coach Apl defended Tristhan that he voice wasn't really perfect at that time. I just wished that Tristhan changed that part where he will not suffer since he knows that his voice isn't that well at that time. I must say, that part of the song was the MAKE OR BREAK point of his performance & sad to say, he failed to deliver that part. Overall, he still did well. Rest your voice Stan! I believe that you will  be performing with Bruno Mars soon!! :)

 

9th: Klarisse De Guzman - Beggin' (Team Sarah)

Wrong song choice again. Yes, I know that people want to see the other side of Klarisse but that song did not bring out anything good in her. It was plain and simple. I would have opted to see her perform more upbeat songs like Domino or any song by Jessie J, just to be different. Beggin' was performed by Phillip Phillips on American Idol where he performed it as an acoustic version. 

But, despite of that somehow disappointing number, we all know that Klarisse will be saved last night, no matter what happens. Sarah will definitely save Klarisse, for all obvious reasons. She's great but I think Sarah has a female contender already in Morissette Amon which I think has more chance of winning this competition compared to Klarisse. 

8th: Kimpoy Mainit - Hallelujah (Team Lea)

I did not like his version of this song. It was just too much of everything that the song needed. He over sang it. It was too theatrical. He also struggled on the middle portion of the song. This was not how I expected Kim to deliver come live shows, he did well on his performance with Taw and he also did great last night with his duet with Janice Javier. I really felt that none of Kim and Diday deserved to move forward to the next round. I hope he will be able to give us a better performance come next week.

 

 7th: Isa Fabregas - You Got A Friend (Team Bamboo)

This will all be good comments from now on. Haha. Isa really did great last night! She sounded classy! It was like were were all watching her perform on a bar. It's really good! This is how you pick a song. You pick a song that will bring out the best in you. Where you can shine and stand out among the rest. I was having doubts with Isa before since I for me, her vocal range might limit her to only a number of songs but she made the necessary arrangements and really made it her own!

 

6th: Yuki Ito - A Song For You (Team Sarah)

I did not like the arrangement of the song, but who cares? His voice is really incredible! I can consider his voice one of the best voices for this season! He gave his all! His voice quality is crazy good! The control, depth, texture and all! We lost a great talent!!! What a waste. :( He deserves to be in this competition! SAYANG!!!!!

 

5th: Paolo Onesa - You Give Me Something (Team Bamboo)

He has really something to show! Paolo gave a very good interpretation of the James Morrison song. I thought he will still be that shy and awkward while performing but he definitely improved last night. He just needs more confidence and take the risk of hitting those high notes much longer. He can do it, he should give it a try. I believe we will be seeing Paolo for a long time in this competition! 

Coach Bamboo proved to us that he was right when he chose Paolo over the Cordovales duo. Cheers Coach Bamboo!

PS: Paolo's are really great singers. Paolo Valenciano, Paolo Onesa and Paolo Valencia. Kidding.=) haha!

 

4th: Penelope Matanguihan - Ordinary People (Team Apl)

I am disappointed with her performance but I still ranked her 4th. Why am I disappointed? This song was too easy for her! In other words, no challenge, no thrill for her. She needs to test her limit, take risks, she has wide range so she can definitely play with her voice. I ranked her 4th because of her voice, it's probably one of the smoothest voices in the competition. Coach Apl can make her sing anything! Penelope, we know you're a good singer, we want more! We know you have the talent! Don't hold back!

3rd: Maki Ricafort - Without You (Team Sarah)

I'm up for a Maki-Thor-Mitoy and Myk finale! Woohoo! Maki murdered the song! He sounded like Brian Mcknight! I applaud his effort to really not sound as much as Brian Mcknight and it showed somehow. His runs and riffs are crazy good! We were all shouting at home! Coach Sarah was also on point where she said that Maki needs to show emotions while singing. Coach Lea gave a very good criticism too, sometimes when singers tend to style it too much, the lyrics of the song were suffering. I'm sure come next week, he will improve on those things. Maki all the way!

2nd: Janice Javier - I Believe I Can Fly (Team Apl)

Standing Ovation from the judges. No words needed! Janice soared high last night! Shame on me for underestimating her. She's here to win this competition! I felt that she really meant every lyric of that song! Big Momma J brought the house down! She owned the stage and really made the tv viewers and the live audience feel her fire!! Coach Apl is very lucky to have a very diverse and strong team with Thor, Janice, Jessica and Penelope!!

1st: Mitoy Yonting - Don't Stop Me Now (Team Lea)

Mitoy saved Team Lea last night! It felt like he was not a contestant but a guest performer! He totally rocked the stage and fired up the crowd! That's how you make someone understand on how you should define stage presence! He is a PRO! He made it look easy! Hitting those crazy high notes from time to time! I'm speechless as I am under his spell too! Mitoy is a total performer! Definitely the best performance of the night! Mitoy also got the highest vote percentage of 82%! Talk about total domination!

It's like he just sang and told everyone that THE SEARCH IS OVER!! I will win this competition! :)

 

 And there we have it! Klarisse and Maki completed Team Sarah. Mitoy and Kim for Team Lea. Janice and Penelope for Team Apl & Isa and Paolo for Team Bamboo! I would also like to congratulate the voters for doing a job well done! We are making the right decisions! Let's continue to vote for the best until the 2016 National Elections! Haha!

We now have our The Voice Of The Philippines Top 16!!! Who's the strongest team? Here's my take on each team.

#1. Coach Apl de Ap's #TeamApl

How can you go wrong with: Thor Dulay, Janice Javier, Penelope Matanguihan & Jessica Reynoso? This will be really challenging for the four of them to do better than the other! Another headache for Coach Apl! :)

#2. Coach Lea Salonga's #TeamLea

Headed by the two musician veterans on Radha Tinsay and Mitoy Yonting, plus the originality of Darryl Shy and Kim Mainit, Team Lea is also one of the teams to watch out. I can see Mitoy and Radha fighting for the finale spot on Team Lea but I hope Darryl and Kim will do something to surprise us!

#3. Coach Sarah Geronimo's #TeamSarah

It's Maki Ricafort versus the ladies for Team Sarah! Morissette Amon, Klarisse de Guzman & Eva Delos Santos will surely fight hard to win Coach Sarah's vote. I'm prediciting a Maki vs Morissette for the number 1 slot on Team Sarah.

#4. Coach Bamboo's #TeamBamboo #KampKawayan

I can see Myk Perez leading this team all the way but we should also watch out for Paolo Onesa, Isa Fabregas and definitely Lee Grane. This team needs to do a lot of work to somehow keep up with the intensity and talent of the other three teams!

There you have it everyone! Please tell me about who you're picks are! I have a comment section and we can discuss anything! Put your ranking too and let's see if the other readers agree on your ranking!:) Let us all interact and really discuss things out!

Credits to: The Voice Of The Philippines for the photos. ABSCBNBestProgram and ALiWAN for the videos!

Keep the Faith.

Paolo