THE VOICE: Riley Green Makes “Painful” Decision After Fiery Miranda Lambert-Themed Battle
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Season 30 of The Voice started on September 21. Episodes that aired over the days and weeks that followed showed coaches Riley Green, Queen Latifah, Kelly Clarkson, and Adam Levine building up their teams.
The final episode of the blind auditions aired on Tuesday, October 6. The episode also featured the season’s first battle performance, between Brandy Neelly and Ferryn & Brinkley, both of Team Riley.
31-year-old Brandy landed on Riley’s team after covering Dottie West‘s “A Lesson In Leavin'” during the blind auditions. Brandy, who’s also a baker, revealed that she baked one of Riley’s birthday cakes in the past!
Ferryn & Brinkley are 20 and 17-year-old sisters who are full-time performers at Dollywood. They turned all four chairs during their blind audition performance of The Everly Brothers’ “When Will I Be Loved,” ultimately choosing Riley as their coach.
Revisit both of their blind auditions below.
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When it came time for their battle on The Voice, Brandy and Ferryn & Brinkley tapped into the fiery side of their country roots. They covered Miranda Lambert‘s “Mama’s Broken Heart,” bringing untamed energy and goosebump-inducing harmonies to their performance.
That performance earned them a standing ovation from their coach…but who did he choose as the winner?
Who Won The Battle On The Voice Between Brandy Neelly And Ferryn & Brinkley?
Kelly Clarkson spoke first, saying she’d give the edge to Ferryn & Brinkley in the battle.
“Y’all are so tight,” Kelly said about the duo. “Like, it’s beautiful, and cool, and special…you’ve got the whole little package going on.”
She acknowledged how hard that was for Brandy to compete against, giving her credit for shining through and standing on her own.
Adam Levine and Queen Latifah did not name who they would choose as the winner. Adam remarked how tough it would be for Riley to let one of them go. Queen Latifah agreed, saying, “I’m sorry, Riley, that’s gonna be a hard decision to make.”
When it finally came time for Riley to speak, he told Brandy and Ferryn & Brinkley that they had exceeded his already high expectations.
“I knew it was gonna be really good…and it was that much better,” he said.
Riley expressed how difficult it was going to be for him to name a winner, saying, “It’s gonna be painful for me either way…”
When time was up, Riley took a deep breath and made his decision. He chose Ferryn & Brinkley as the winners of the battle!
Explaining why he made that call, Riley said:
“They’ve got a really strong chance of making it past cut week, and they’re the only duo on the show.” He also noted how their heavenly harmonies make them “a real contender.”
None of the other coaches stole Brandy for their teams, so her time on The Voice has come to an end. We wish her the best moving forward!
Watch Brandy Neelly and Ferryn & Brinkley sing “Mama’s Broken Heart” in the video below. Would you have made the same choice as Riley after this battle?
