We spoke with James David Carter from Team Blake, Craig Wayne Boyd, Sugar Jones and Taylor John Williams from Team Gwen and Jean Kelly and Luke Wade from Team Pharrell about their experience so far…
Here is what they told us…
Question for Jean and Sugar: What goes into working together to make such a good performance?
Sugar Jones told us: “My experience going into the battles, I think was a little bit unique maybe just because I became close and fast friends with Jean so quickly and I just think the world of her…
And so I think the way that it call came down is that we just had an amazing time together… had the best time ever in rehearsals and we both just thought that the best way for us to both advance in the competition was for us to put our best foot forward and kind of make it like a duet instead of a head-to-head battle. And so I think our plan worked.
So yes, we – neither of us wanted either of us to go home so I think it was just kind of all about having fun on stage together.”
Jean Kelly told us: “Yes, I completely agree with what Sugar said… getting paired with her was the first time meeting her and it was almost instantaneous… we just had a really good chemistry singing and just as friends.
So it made the whole process really fun.
We both had the mindset that the best way to deliver this song as it is a song that is delivered by a girl group, is to work together and treat is as a duet rather than treat it as a battle.”
Question for Luke Wade: What was going through your mind when the judges were having such a hard time deciding… and was there one piece of advice that Pharrell gave you that you really took to heart when you were performing?
Luke Wade told us: “I had such an amazing time working with Griffin that I was confident in our performance. We knew it was an awesome thing and we were confident that we were both going to stick around just because such a magical thing happened…
Pharrell’s Advice
“And one of the things that Pharrell said… whoever has the most fun is going to win… he just wanted us to go out there and enjoy ourselves and be ourselves and not worry about whether it was a competition or not.”
Question for Sugar and Jean: How was it to work with the guest advisors?
Sugar Jones told us: “Working with the mentor was kind of crazy just because having Gwen and Gavin, such a natural pairing, both of them together because obviously they’re married… it was a very natural, welcoming kind of family-oriented vibe and it was amazing just to have two people with such notable careers in one room giving me advice on how to perform.”
Jean Kelly told us: “I thought it was a very smart pairing. It made sense. As soon as I saw Gavin I thought that they would work really well together and they did because she’s a little more reserved than I had expected her to be and he’s very outspoken…
And he gave a lot of insight.
Well, both of them did but he could see I was struggling with the song and he had learned about my story and just about, like, losing a parent and growing up without money and he reminded me, you know, you’re a survivor.”
Question for Luke Wade: What can you tell us about working with Alicia Keys and how it helped your performance?
Luke Wade told us: “It was really a magical experience. Alicia and Pharrell were just very natural together. They were very warm and very welcoming.
And one of the first things that they did effectively was to make us feel that (they) were their peers and Pharrell even went out of his way to say it explicitly, “You’re here because you deserve to be here. And we’re real. You’re real. The moment’s real,” and just soak that in and just – and get to the point where the only thing that’s happening is we’re making something.
And so there was a pivotal moment in a band rehearsal with Pharrell, Alicia, Griffin and I when Alicia wanted me to sing… to get some of my soul and blues influence into the song because she thought that it would translate…
And the next thing we know, the band had come in and I’d sing half the song and then Pharrell (pointed) to Griffin and got him to start singing and during this whole thing, people are starting to perk up, people are getting more excited…
And by the time this thing’s done, it was just – like, the producers were standing up, the people behind the cameras were standing up, like, the bands were – like, the band, when they were done, like, they were just – they were, like, literally hooting and hollering.
…it was just this moment… And that moment equalized things and there weren’t celebrities and there wasn’t a TV show any more. It was just a bunch of people that were all co-owners of an amazing moment.”
Question: Do you worry that some of the song selections that are chosen might cause you to be compared to the star that is well-known for it and put you in a bad light? Or do you just go out and do your best and not worry about that?
Craig Wayne Boyd told us: “I can answer that because it’s happened a lot for me right off the bat, because I sang a Travis Tritt song and I wear fringe jackets, that I got compared to him big time. And I never set out to be anybody else except for myself. And that’s all – that’s the only person I can be, is myself. And so I didn’t fully worry about (but it’s) all up to me.”
Taylor John Williams told us: “I’m really tired of being compared to Dolly Parton all the time. It just happens every day… but it’s just something I’ve got to deal with. I’ll get through it.”
Question: Who do you think gave the best constructive notes from the advisors last night? And which ones did you take to heart even if they weren’t applied to you? Which did you think was most important?
Luke Wade told us: “the things that Pharrell says really resonate with me and one thing, in particular, is don’t overthink, over feel. It’s something he said to Griffin. But it’s definitely – I think that it’s – you can – we can tweak somebody’s notes or give them, you know, vocal instruction.
But if you can give them a concept that’s going to rearrange the way that they think about the act of performing, I think that that’s something that can be huge for people on the show or people who are just sitting in their living rooms at home. So don’t overthink, over feel. I believe that 100%.”
Jean Kelly told us: “Gavin was our advisor and I feel like I got a similar concept as Luke got from Pharrell. I did get some actual, like, critiques on the song. I was having trouble finding the pocket and Gwen gave me those tips. But Gavin more got me into the concept of what I should be pulling from, from my past and from my life and my experiences.
And it was a night and day difference. I mean, I had to work really hard on getting the timing right of the song because I just wasn’t hearing it. But I think it was what Gavin said mostly that got me just out of my head and just got me feeling the song so that I could give a really inspired performance.”
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