A Killer Frock, Theatrical Staging and a Poor Quality Winners Single was how The Voice 2016 came to a close.

The show was kicked off by introducing the finalists and there coaches, as coach Paloma lost both her acts last week she made a grandiose entrance after the others wearing in her words a ‘killer frock’. It was certainly an eye catching number; the dress was strapless and floor length in tones of grey, the fabric built up of fine layers of fabric providing texture. Her golden hair was woven into a Grecian goddess style up-do which complemented her golden skin well.  The other three coaches looked respectful smart with Ricky in a suit and black bow tie, Will.i.am in a modern cut suit similar to last week and Boy George characteristically individual in a funky patterned coat, drapey white top and trousers and large orange felt bowler.

The coaches were all well dressed for the final

It was then time for the finalists individual performances, Jolan was first to the stage performing a cover of Heard It On The Grapevine his performance was enjoyable and had a funky, groovy vibe. I have decided Jolan has a tone similar to John Newman. He was also wearing a rather retro red/orange jacket. It was a sound performance; however some of the coach feedback was a bit random to say the least. When asked to give his feedback Wil.i.am looked like he was struggling with what to say, probably because he wasn’t really listening to the performance and was devoting his attention to twitter. Instead of talking about Jolan Will.i.am decided to keep re alliterating it was the last BBC Voice. It is safe to say I was left feeling so what was all that about Will?  

Jolan sported a rustic retro style jacket

Second to perform was Lydia. As you have probably gathered from the semi -final review I am not a huge fan of Lydia I find her voice to shrieky for my taste. However her rendition of No One did once again show off her voice well, Boy George commented it was her most vocally controlled performance and I would agree with this. She did sing well. The staging for her performance was quite theatrical too. She started the song suspended mid -air, sitting on a cloud seat in a starry night, although she is still not my cup of tea it was definitely a better performance than last week.

Kevin and the Triangles

Next up was Mr nice guy Kevin Simm, who had a bit of a makeover this week; dressed in a holey black jumper the stage was lit by tiny bright white triangles (held by dancers) that created shapes around him whilst he sung. The overall styling had a cool hipster feel and gave Simm a more youthful vibe which he has been lacking in the past. His performance also carried more passion than before you could really feel his emotions. The judges seemed to think so to as he got a standing ovation from them all!

Cody cast under dramatic white lights

Last to perform was Cody, her rendition of Tears for Fears Mad World was both stylishly staged and mesmerizingly sung. Atmospheric projections of dystopian woodlands floated behind her. While the lighting cast her striking face eerily in dramatic shadows. Coupled with her pure voice the performance was artistic and hauntingly beautiful.  

Now we had the duets starting with Ricky and Jolan. Their performance of Are You Gona Go My Way was energetic, rocking and oozed confidence from contestant and coach alike. It was an enjoyable, a feel good number and they looked like they were having a ball.

Next we had the creative collaboration of Boy George and Cody who covered the iconic John Lennon song Imagine, with George describing it as a hymn earlier in the show I was hoping for something moving and poetic. The result was a little disappointing; although their voices blended better than last week I still felt it failed to showcase Cody's voice to the best of her potential. Georges voice just seemed to drown Cody out, at times she was a subtle echo which although pleasant was too weak; it felt like she was fighting to be heard.  If only they had turned Georges mic down a little. I also felt it was the wrong song for her voice as it’s quite a monotone song. Don’t get me wrong it was enjoyable but wouldn’t set the house on fire. Despite this their costumes were striking creating a yin yang effect with George all in white and Cody in black.

Ying and Yang

Ricky then took to the stage for a second time, this time with Kevin where they dueted a cover of The Killers Mr Brightside. I felt this started off a little weak but it gathered momentum. The chandelier suspended above the stage was a nice link to the original music video. The performance had plenty of life and vigour if it was a bit northern pub karaoke. I think this is partly because both Kevin and Ricky are English and Brandon Flowers is American. As someone who loves the original, it was going to be a steep challenge to take on such an iconic song but I think they did it justice. 

Kevin and Ricky sung Mr Brightside by The Killers

Last up was Lydia and Will.i.am, who performed Will.i.am’s song Girls and Boys. The performance started with some very creepy babies lined up in prams all with Will faces. It was very strange. It also looked like Will and George swapped costumes as the former was now all in white as well. The song was good in a techno, dance club way and was sung well by Lydia, you could see her making music in this style however it didn’t showcase her range as her other songs have done.

We then had a guest performance by Meghan Trainer followed by a cheesy re- cap of the series showcasing the best, worst and funniest moments as well as all the gossip and drama. This was followed by 18 year old singer songwriter Shawn Mendes singing his hit single Stitches; a really catchy song with enough edge to give it an indie vibe but also a lighter hearted pop sound, you can see why it went to number one a few months ago.

It was then time for the first result to decide who would go on to sing the winners single. It was announced that Jolan and Kevin were the final two, so Lydia and Cody were out. Both contestants were commiserated by their coaches with Will announcing he would do a free show at the Royal Albert Hall with Lydia; while George said Cody didn’t mind being out of the running because she didn’t want to sing the winners single any way. At first glance this appears to be a rebellious joke but when we heard the winners single I think it was quite possible he was telling the truth.

Halftime Vote - The Final Four

The song entitled All You Good Friends was a pretty poor song, very generic reality show style and the lyrics weren’t very inspiring either. Whoever wrote it is a poor songwriter. It would have been much better to let the contestants choose their own song. It’s a good thing in a way that Jolan and Kevin where the ones to sing it because I don’t see how Lydia or Cody could have made it their own.

The two finalists made the best of the bad situation but there wasn’t much difference between them; by this time I didn’t really care who won as neither seemed much different from the other. My personal opinion was that Jolan sung it well but was a bit predictable, although he was praised by the coaches for it being vocally flawless. Kevin meanwhile I felt harnessed more emotion. You could really see he thought this was his one last shot. Therefore out of the two I was glad that Kevin won although any of the final four were capable in the end.

So that’s it my round up of the final of The Voice 2016. Kevin Simm won, arguably the favourite from the start. I just couldn’t help thinking Paloma must be gutted she got rid of him in the battle rounds! I wish Kevin all the best in a successful career although it would be nice to hear from some of the other talents that have been uncovered on the show. I hope Boy George will help Cody to get a record deal; she was so special and deserves to be heard a unique talent as does Jordan Gray. In all it was an enjoyable season invigorated by the new coaches (I really hope Boy George and Paloma transfer onto ITV). Hoped you enjoyed reading.